Balancing the Benefits
For the organization, one of the most tangible benefits of remote workers is the decreased costs associated with on-site employees. Workspace real estate can be reduced or kept at current levels while allowing your staff to grow. Companies can lower utility expenses, reducing their overall carbon footprint. In addition, your employees can enjoy savings on fuel expenses, vehicle maintenance, and meal costs.
Many employees flourish in remote work situations. The flexibility it allows can increase morale and help balance work and home life, resulting in increased productivity. Also, remote work options will enable a company to employ talent from all over the world.
Having employees in different locations and working at home also increases your business’s ability to continue operations in the event of a disaster. If your physical office had to close for some reason, many business functions could still go on.
Start Small
Begin your secure remote work program on a small scale using a pilot program. Present the opportunity to just one or a few established employees whose work could be well-suited for this type of environment, even if troubles are met along the way. Testing this program before a company-wide implementation will help address the inherent risks to business processes and workflows as bumps along the way rather than widespread problems.
While remote work can pose many exposures, most can be mitigated with thorough planning and proper execution. Once policies and procedures are established, companies can take full advantage of the benefits that having remote workers offers.
Remote work needs to be conducted carefully with the help of established company policies to protect workers, your clients, and your company.
Project Productivity Risk
The change in environment will mean that workflows will need to be adjusted. As well, different methods of communication and oversight will need to be used to keep supervisors and team members just as connected to remote workers as they are to the workers in the workspace next to them. Employees allowed to work remotely should already be in good standing with the company and understand what it will take from them to keep projects moving. Overall, with the proper adjustments, remote workers’ productivity should remain the same, if not improve.
Safety at Home
Workplace safety and ergonomics should be just as crucial for remote workers as on-site workers at your company. Remote workers should attend specialized safety training or orientation to address all possible exposures thoroughly they’ll face in their new environment, including ergonomics.
When a remote worker begins in their new workspace, a site visit should occur with a supervisor or HR personnel to check that all commonsense safety measures are being addressed. Periodic visits are an excellent idea to ensure continued compliance. Remember that remote workers have all the same rights to workers’ compensation for injuries that occur during employment that employees in your facility do. Not monitoring a remote worker’s workspace periodically can allow hazards to develop, putting your company at greater risk for a workers’ compensation claim.
Information Security
No secure remote work program should be without a discussion on Information security. Physical loss or theft of devices containing data or access to data is much more likely. Remote workers will usually possess laptops, and mobile data drives issued by the company to allow them to work with the same systems and information as workers in-house. The protection of building security, key cards, and the watching eyes of other employees will not be able to protect their equipment. Another security aspect of being cautious is using company-issued equipment for non-work-related tasks. Family members could download a virus or spyware if they access laptops. The same could happen if an employee got lax and used their company equipment for personal use. Companies should also know how sensitive data or documents will be stored and disposed of. Physical printouts especially need to be disposed of properly. To protect your employee and companies’ interests, ensure all equipment requires passwords and encryption for access. A comprehensive policy should be established regarding the line between personal and company property and activity for remote workers to prevent missteps. When establishing the employee’s remote worksite, be sure that any wireless connection is secured and that your company has a policy about using unsecured connections (such as at hotels and other public spaces) for work tasks. Companies can also set up VPN (Virtual Private Network) access for connecting to the company’s networks to ensure that access is secure.
Balancing the Benefits
For the organization, one of the most tangible benefits of remote workers is the decreased costs associated with on-site employees. Workspace real estate can be reduced or kept at current levels while allowing your staff to grow. Companies can lower utility expenses, reducing their overall carbon footprint. In addition, your employees can enjoy savings on fuel expenses, vehicle maintenance, and meal costs.
Many employees flourish in remote work situations. The flexibility it allows can increase morale and help balance work and home life, resulting in increased productivity. Also, remote work options will enable a company to employ talent from all over the world.
Having employees in different locations and working at home also increases your business’s ability to continue operations in the event of a disaster. If your physical office had to close for some reason, many business functions could still go on.
Start Small
Begin your secure remote work program on a small scale using a pilot program. Present the opportunity to just one or a few established employees whose work could be well-suited for this type of environment, even if troubles are met along the way. Testing this program before a company-wide implementation will help address the inherent risks to business processes and workflows as bumps along the way rather than widespread problems.
While remote work can pose many exposures, most can be mitigated with thorough planning and proper execution. Once policies and procedures are established, companies can take full advantage of the benefits that having remote workers offers.
Remote work needs to be conducted carefully with the help of established company policies to protect workers, your clients, and your company.
Project Productivity Risk
The change in environment will mean that workflows will need to be adjusted. As well, different methods of communication and oversight will need to be used to keep supervisors and team members just as connected to remote workers as they are to the workers in the workspace next to them. Employees allowed to work remotely should already be in good standing with the company and understand what it will take from them to keep projects moving. Overall, with the proper adjustments, remote workers’ productivity should remain the same, if not improve.
Safety at Home
Workplace safety and ergonomics should be just as crucial for remote workers as on-site workers at your company. Remote workers should attend specialized safety training or orientation to address all possible exposures thoroughly they’ll face in their new environment, including ergonomics.
When a remote worker begins in their new workspace, a site visit should occur with a supervisor or HR personnel to check that all commonsense safety measures are being addressed. Periodic visits are an excellent idea to ensure continued compliance. Remember that remote workers have all the same rights to workers’ compensation for injuries that occur during employment that employees in your facility do. Not monitoring a remote worker’s workspace periodically can allow hazards to develop, putting your company at greater risk for a workers’ compensation claim.
Information Security
No secure remote work program should be without a discussion on Information security. Physical loss or theft of devices containing data or access to data is much more likely. Remote workers will usually possess laptops, and mobile data drives issued by the company to allow them to work with the same systems and information as workers in-house. The protection of building security, key cards, and the watching eyes of other employees will not be able to protect their equipment. Another security aspect of being cautious is using company-issued equipment for non-work-related tasks. Family members could download a virus or spyware if they access laptops. The same could happen if an employee got lax and used their company equipment for personal use. Companies should also know how sensitive data or documents will be stored and disposed of. Physical printouts especially need to be disposed of properly. To protect your employee and companies’ interests, ensure all equipment requires passwords and encryption for access. A comprehensive policy should be established regarding the line between personal and company property and activity for remote workers to prevent missteps. When establishing the employee’s remote worksite, be sure that any wireless connection is secured and that your company has a policy about using unsecured connections (such as at hotels and other public spaces) for work tasks. Companies can also set up VPN (Virtual Private Network) access for connecting to the company’s networks to ensure that access is secure.
The Last Word
Contact an InsureGood Advisor today for more information on protecting your business’s best interests and planning for business continuity and growth.
