Remote business operations as a result of changes due to COVID-19

April 19, 2020 3

The COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic has affected every country across the globe, and it has affected every individual in some way or another. While this isn’t going to last forever, there’s no doubt that things have changed — and will continue to do so — for the foreseeable future. As businesses, we need to adapt and that includes resorting to remote operations. However, we’ve no way of telling whether lockdown restrictions will be in place for a few months or a year or more, and what the situation will be even then.

Economic struggles and deep recessions are predicted. As company owners, we need to be on the ball and doing what we can to keep going. Due to physical distancing being the main issue, one of the best things we can do as company owners are to establish remote work environments. This allows you and your team to work from home. It allows for the completion of all tasks while running commerce operations. This is easier for some businesses than it is for others, but if you can, here are some ideas.

Setting up employees for remote work from home

If your existing employees are able to work from home, then allow them to do so. This might involve taking company laptops, computers or equipment with them. They might be able to use their own equipment from home. With people working from home while also juggling childcare and other issues, you’re likely to need flexibility in your approach. Instead of setting rigid working hours, you could set daily deadlines for each day’s tasks. This allows your staff to work their jobs at more suitable times while still ensuring work is done.

Outsourcing

If you need additional support, outsourcing could be a good option. This means you don’t need to hire your own staff, which could be tricky to do in the current climate. Instead, send the work to a professional company that is capable of completing such work. It could be anything from marketing to payroll, HR to blog writing.

There are lots of areas you can outsource in your business. In light of the current pandemic, it can be a fantastic way to keep your own company running while also providing work and also helping prop up the economy.

Using a colocation center to support remote operations

A colocation center is a data center facility. As a business, you’re able to rent space for servers and other computing hardware. The center provides the building, cooling, power, bandwidth, and physical security, requiring fewer worries on-site. With everyone working from home, it will keep your servers in order. It will also eliminate the need for buying and maintaining additional equipment. Look into colocation pricing and costs and see if this is something that suits your business.