Covid –19 Pandemic and the challenge of working from home (Wfh) IV

We set out initially to do three articles on this topic matter but due largely to exigencies of duty; we are forced to have the fourth article on the subject matter. Permit me to start with a quote today to underscore the magnitude of the challenge facing mankind.  ‘From China to Chile, Mexico to Italy, […]

We set out initially to do three articles on this topic matter but due largely to exigencies of duty; we are forced to have the fourth article on the subject matter.

Permit me to start with a quote today to underscore the magnitude of the challenge facing mankind.  ‘From China to Chile, Mexico to Italy, and from Switzerland to South Africa, the world is being dragged through a tunnel of despair, doom and uncertainly, with a collective fear of the unknown putting civilization and economies at great risk’.

Above quote is from Private Sector Coalition against COVID-19 in Nigeria.  These alliances have so far raised about 22 billion to help government fight the pandemic of corona virus!  So much on the fight against the scourge of COVID-19

We shall now return to the concluding part of the discussion we started last week on the structures necessary to be in place for a successful and hitch free RW Scheme.

Ensure that you commit Yourself—and Your Teams—to Video Conferencing:  While in the office, many of us fall into the rhythm of taking calls from our desk or dialling-in to meetings from conference room phones. WR provides an opportunity to explore new ways of connecting. Platforms like Zoom and Whatsapp provide reliable and clear group video calls.  They also allow users to record the sessions, screen-share and even exchange documents and links during the call. The benefits of video conferencing are clear, especially for a visual workforce.

Organisation should Use Collaboration Platforms to Maintain Company Culture.  With a distributed workforce, culture can be impacted. It’s a concern among business leaders – that the positive and motivating company culture they’ve fostered in-office – could potentially fall by the wayside when work is visual. Collaboration platforms such as Slack and Microsoft Teams can help. In fact, these tools become the centralized “water cooler” around which employees can interact and foster the same sense of community as they would in person.

Companies/Institutions should invest in a Reliable and secure Set-Up:

Many RW’s will tell you that having a reliable Wi-Fi connection is vital to their success — nobody likes a faulty video conference. But along with an internet connection that allows for clear, uninterrupted calls, RW’s should consider other technology that enhances their productivity. For example, a pair of noise-cancelling headphones could cut down on distractions, especially if others kids, spouses, roommates or pets share the household. Wireless keyboards and mice, too, can make for a more comfortable work environment and improve efficiency.

There is a compelling need to be Clear About the Use of Business VPNs:  This might seem like a small detail, but it’s an important one that can be easily overlooked or under estimated. A Virtual Private Network (VPN) creates a secure link between a business’ network and employees’ laptops and mobile devices to protect against cyber-threats. Having a VPN is critical for employees who are going to be working from a number of remote locations. What’s most important, however, is not the existence of a VPN, but the use of it. Business leaders should consistently and clearly remind employees that connecting to a VPN is a must when working outside the office.

Finally, Make Device Sanitization a Best Practice

RW’s often bring their devices into a variety of settings and work-spaces making device sanitization critical. Remote workers should consider it a best practice to regularly sanitize their devices.  Personal computers and printers should be cleaned with an alcohol base solution or sanitizer.  When cleaning one should wear latex or nitrile gloves, turn off the device and remove batteries from external devices such as wireless keyboards. Using a microfiber cloth dampened with the mixture, they should gently wipe the areas to be cleaned, ensuring none of the sanitizer solution slips into the keyboard or display panel. Finally, surfaces should completely be air dry before turning on the device.

Rather than thinking of WFM as a disruption, business leaders should see it as an opportunity to think through new ways of building successful, productive and happy teams. By empowering workers to use technology constructively, and by seeing the opportunities behind these arrangements, we can create a better business culture in and out of the office.

Indeed, RW has recorded remarkable success with 79% of workers recording increase in productivity and about 91% recording a better Work-Life-Balance in a recent US study.  More and more workers are requesting to be allowed to work virtually!  This has come to stay.

Indeed, the Corporate Affairs Commission in Nigeria has released guidelines on Remote or virtual Annual General Meeting, Lagos State Government held for the first time in Nigeria’s history, the state’s Executive Council Meeting online while the Honorable Minister of Education is planning a Radio and Television Stations to be used by schools to provide online teaching services.  I believe Guaranty Trust Bank has conducted a near virtual Annual General Meeting while several Churches have conducted Mass and Church Services using virtual technology.  Remote working or activities have indeed come to stay.