Checklist: Is Your Business Ready for Work From Home?
Shifting your business into a work from home setup is not that easy, especially if you’re a large group, and especially if it’s abrupt due to a health crisis. If it’s something as serious as a pandemic, you need to be prepared as much as possible. What you can do is make sure that everyone in your business is ready for the new change and implement it as viable for the long term. Here is a helpful checklist that will help you assess if your business is ready for the work from home setup!
The equipment
Start with the main equipment. Here are some of the equipment you will need to work from home:
✓ Computer/Laptop. To be able to work from home, you’re going to need a computer. If not computers, laptops will do. This should be able to let you continue your work properly.
✓ Headphones. Headphones or earbuds are optional for most but necessary for your management team who deals with calls or your customer service representatives. This will help them focus on their jobs.
✓ Camera. Cameras are needed when it comes to virtual meetings and presentations among the team or with potential clients and existing customers.
✓ Desk and chair. If you or your employees don’t have a home office, it’s still important to establish a workspace and have the right furniture. Get a proper desk and chair so you can work comfortably even at home.
✓ Internet connection. The internet connection is one of the most important. Without this, you won’t be able to communicate with other team members or clients, finish tasks, and more. This should be strong, reliable, and secure.
The online tools
Apart from the equipment, you should also be equipped with essential tools for remote working that can be found online. Here are some of them:
✓ VPN. A virtual private network will help you and your team to stay secure while you work from home. You’re more prone to cyber attacks and other vulnerabilities, but a VPN can help decrease those chances.
✓ Large conference call service. A secure conference call service that can handle a large volume of participants is necessary for your business when working from home. This will help everyone connect and communicate on a daily basis.
✓ Cloud storage. A cloud storage can give you flexibility and accessibility among your team when it comes to sharing files.
✓ Online HR software. An online HR software is a handy tool that will help you and your employees to check in and check out every day.
✓ Project management tools. Of course, project management tools are important to help you manage and track your tasks and projects. This will also help you coordinate with the team better even though you’re working separately.
The management team and employees
The next thing you need to do is to check in with your people—the management team and employees. Make sure to ask these questions:
✓ Are they willing to work from home? Unless it’s absolutely necessary, ask your team if they’re willing to work from home. Give them the option to decline or accept, let them mull over the idea for a few days, and let them decide based on their own opinions. You have to make sure that they are a hundred percent behind the idea.
✓ Do they have all the necessary equipment? They’ll need all the necessary equipment listed above. If they don’t, provide for them or lend them some of the equipment they’re already using at the office. You can lend equipment such as computers, monitors, even their chairs. It also helps to ask them if they have some sort of home office or free space they could use as they work from home.
✓ Do they have access to the online tools? You also have to make sure that your employees can access the online tools you normally use at work when they’re finally working from home. These online tools will help them communicate, plan, organize, finish tasks and projects, and more. Make sure they’re all good to go.
✓ Do they know the protocol when it comes to this setup? Shifting into the work from home setup can be disorienting, and standard protocol when it comes to communication or tech may not apply anymore. Make sure they’re familiar with the new protocol and they know just how to apply it.
Keep this work from home checklist in mind and it should be able to help you come up with a plan and continue with the work from home setup.