A guide to remote work enablement

Remote work isn’t just about handing out laptops and calling it a day. You need to empower your team with the right tools, support, and culture, no matter where they are. 

To help you build a collaborative team across dispersed locations, we’ve put together a guide on everything you need to know about remote work enablement.

What is remote work enablement?

Remote work enablement is the strategic process of equipping your team with the necessary tools, technologies, policies, and support systems to effectively collaborate from anywhere. 

It involves creating an environment where hybrid or remote work is feasible and optimized for productivity and team well-being. This comprehensive approach ensures everyone has everything they need to perform their job efficiently, regardless of their physical location. 

Benefits of enabling a remote workforce

Global Workplace Analytics found that implementing remote work policies helps companies save around $11,000 per employee per year. Apart from cost savings, the major benefits of remote work enablement include:

1. Better alignment of expectations: Establishing clear remote work policies communicates expectations to your team regarding work arrangements, communication channels, and performance standards. When they know what to expect, they can better plan their workdays and manage their tasks efficiently. Clear policies also help maintain consistency and fairness across the organization, reducing confusion and potential conflicts.
2. Increased engagement: When you support remote work, you demonstrate trust in your team’s abilities to manage their responsibilities effectively, regardless of location. They feel valued and supported when their organization invests in the necessary tools, resources, and infrastructure to enable remote work. This support improves employee engagement, encouraging everyone to perform their best work in a flexible and accommodating workspace.
3. Improved employee retention: Offering remote tools and technologies for your team can help you retain existing talent. Lakeside reports that 36% of employees consider leaving their employer because of poor digital experience. By providing a seamless and reliable digital experience, you reduce turnover costs associated with employee attrition and maintain institutional knowledge within your organization.

Best practices for remote or hybrid work enablement

To help you maximize productivity, collaboration, and employee satisfaction, we’ve compiled a list of best practices to enable remote work. 

Make sure everyone has suitable devices for their roles

While most smartphones and tablets are good for general tasks, like answering emails or writing documents, certain roles within your organization may require more powerful devices to effectively perform their duties. For instance, software developers need high-performance laptops to run heavy applications smoothly.

To make sure everyone is working with a device compatible with their role, compile a list of devices that fit your budget and let your team choose what they prefer. Encourage your team to use company-issued devices rather than personal ones. Using personal laptops can introduce security challenges because it’s difficult for IT teams to monitor, track, and secure them effectively. For 44% of organizations, one of the biggest cyber challenges is the lack of visibility into the assets connected to their network. 

Secure devices and data

To ensure robust security in a remote work environment, implement comprehensive controls, such as: 

• Encrypting files in transmission and storage
• Enforcing multi-factor authentication (MFA) policies
• Configuring device-level security policies such as screen lock settings 
• Requiring remote workers to use secure VPNs to connect to company networks
• Enabling remote data wiping capabilities in case of device loss or theft 

Create a culture of trust

McKinsey reports that 87% of employees prefer to work remotely when given the choice. To ensure your team is satisfied with choosing remote work, you need to foster a culture of trust and engagement. Encourage open communication, transparency, and collaboration among your team members to build trust and maintain morale. Focus on outcomes rather than micromanaging your team’s activities.

Frequent one-on-one sessions with managers help team members build healthy relationships. Consider adopting a shared virtual whiteboard where colleagues can share work pipelines and deadlines, which can improve transparency and accountability. 

Use open, synced calendars to coordinate

In traditional workspaces, locating a coworker is as simple as glancing around the office or walking to their desk location. In a remote work environment, if you want to connect with a colleague or schedule a meeting, you no longer have the luxury of physical proximity. You need to look at their synced calendar.

Advise your team to mark their working hours on the company calendar and label when they’re unavailable. Making everyone’s calendars accessible helps your team to simply work around each other’s schedules and easily find time to connect.

Use cloud-based collaboration software

Secure cloud collaboration tools enable your team to work together efficiently, communicate effectively, and collaborate seamlessly regardless of their physical location. Cloud solutions act as a centralized repository for storing documents, files, and resources that eliminates the need for multiple versions of files scattered across different devices.

The best team collaboration software offers enterprise-grade security measures, such as encryption, granular access controls, and user permissions, to protect your sensitive content.

Organize occasional in-person meetings

Arrange occasional in-person meetings, team-building activities, or retreats to foster social connections and strengthen relationships among your remote team members. TravelPerk found that 79% of employees are excited to attend events for the opportunity to meet their peers and build meaningful relationships in real life.

Face-to-face interactions enhance communication, collaboration, and camaraderie within your team. Plan these gatherings strategically to accommodate remote and hybrid employees’ schedules and locations.

How does technology enable remote working? 

By investing in the right tools and technology, you empower your remote or hybrid workforce to collaborate effectively, stay connected, and boost productivity while working from anywhere. Let’s look at the six common tools for working remotely.

1. Reliable connectivity: Encourage your team to use secure, password-protected internet connections or download a reliable VPN to access confidential information. Consider factors such as latency and speed when choosing an internet connection. A network with low latency minimizes delay in data transmission, helping you to efficiently communicate during video conferences or online meetings. 
2. Digital whiteboard: With these tools, your team brainstorms ideas, visualizes concepts, and collaborates on projects in real time, regardless of their location and schedule. Select a virtual whiteboard platform with features such as drawing tools, sticky notes, shapes, and the ability to share and save boards for future reference.  
3. Cloud storage and document management: A Box-sponsored IDC survey reports that for 39% of employees, the difficulty in finding required data or documents is a productivity barrier. To make sure your remote team is working with the latest documents and can easily access them, you need cloud storage and management. Look for a solution that offers features like version control, commenting, and real-time editing to easily track changes and maintain document integrity.
4. Video conferencing platform: These tools facilitate face-to-face communication and make meetings more engaging and personal. Select a solution that offers features like screen sharing, recording, chat, and virtual backgrounds to enhance remote work collaboration during meetings.
5. Instant messaging platform: With these tools, you get quick, asynchronous communication between your team members. Choose a solution that is compatible across devices and operating systems and supports quick exchanges, file sharing, and group discussions.
6. Project management software: These platforms help your team organize tasks, track progress, and collaborate efficiently on projects. Consider a software offering task lists, timelines, and team collaboration features to streamline project workflows.

Enable your remote workforce with Box

Box provides an extensive suite of cloud-based collaboration tools for remote work enablement. With the Content Cloud, you benefit from:

• Centralized storage for all your documents and files in one secure, cloud-based platform accessible from anywhere with an internet connection
• Real-time collaborationon documents, presentations, and projects, ensuring everyone is working with the latest information and updates
• Secure file sharingwith colleagues, clients, and partners while maintaining control over who can access, edit, and download sensitive information
• Integration with productivity tools and applications commonly used in remote work environments, such as Microsoft 365, Google Workspace, and Slack
• Automated workflows and processes to streamline content-related tasks such as approving contracts, reviewing HR policies, and approving invoices
• Enterprise-grade security and compliance to protect your content from unauthorized access, potential leaks, and advanced malware attacks

Contact us to power your remote or hybrid work environment with Box.