There are many changes that come to mind when we discuss what impact the Covid-19 pandemic has had on our everyday life, but perhaps one of the most significant changes is the shift from office work to remote work.
In March 2020, work life as we knew it was drastically changed overnight. Central city offices became empty and home offices were constructed in living rooms and kitchens across the country, with Finder research showing that 60% of the UK workforce were working from home during the first Covid-19 lockdown.
Many employees welcomed this change, with more time for family, hobbies and less time commuting to your company’s HQ. The Work Trend Index survey found that 73% of employees want flexible remote work options to stay, with 63% of those still wanting some more collaboration post-pandemic. Just when we thought that the return to city working was imminent, the new omicron variant has put much of the global return to the office on hold.
So what software can help our workforce stay connected and productive whilst working remotely?
Businesses are relying on digital collaboration tools now, more than ever. The requirement for everyone to be able to meet virtually, work on shared drives and complete tasks on documents with multiple contributors. There are a range of softwares and apps, designed specifically to support remote working, virtual interactions and collaboration between co-workers.
Collaboration tools that allow multiple employees to contribute to tasks and workflows:
Trello: Trello allows teams to create boards for projects, assign tasks to users and plan meetings. It is particularly useful to create workflows and a visual space to provide project updates as tasks are completed.
Slack: Similar to Trello, slack allows teams to create work streams, chats and groups based on different projects and deliverables. A popular feature within slack is the live chat option, whereby teams can discuss tasks and assigned workload in real time.
Microsoft Sharepoint: SharePoint allows team members to share files, data, news, and resources. The Microsoft 365 app allows users to collaborate effortlessly and securely, working on multiple documents at once and assigning tasks across PCs,Macs and mobile devices.
Alongside collaboration tools, it is also important to make use of virtual meeting softwares. One of the most popular virtual meeting tools is Microsoft Teams. Microsoft Teams is part of a wider group of Microsoft 365 apps, because of this the software can be seamlessly used in conjunction with popular workplace apps such as Microsoft Word, Microsoft Powerpoint etc. Microsoft teams allows for one-to-one and group video conferencing, screen sharing, collaboration on documents and live chats. As a one stop shop for all things collaboration and communication - it is a ‘virtual workplace’ essential.
According to Microsoft, time spent in Microsoft Teams meetings has more than doubled (2.5X) globally between February 2020 to February 2021. Alongside the increase in using virtual meeting software, comes the need to up-skill the workforce and educate them in these new day to day softwares.
To find out more about Microsoft Teams and how F1 Computer Services can support your team in adopting this software, visit our Microsoft Programmes course page.