Remote working has been on the rise for some time now and is increasingly at the forefront of how Saudi businesses are expected to enable flexibility for their staff. More so, the coronavirus or covid19 outbreak has certainly forced the pace of change around remote working and workers are quickly adapting schedules, home offices and habits so that working from home (WFH) is both manageable and productive.

Remote working or working from home can bring up some challenges; however, it also opens up the possibility of creating positive changes and increased collaboration amongst teams.

In this blog, we’re looking specifically at two of the best tools for distributed remote teams.

The Best Tools for Remote Workers & Stay-At-Homes

1- Microsoft 365 Business

Needless to say that Microsoft 365 Business has long been the ultimate productivity suite for modern-day workers and digital transformation adopters. With M365 Business you’ll be able to securely access all of your emails, files and folders, everything you would need for your working day from anywhere and on any device. You’ll also be able to efficiently communicate and collaborate with your teams and work on the same file(s) at the same time… etc.

Here are more details on how your teams can work from home using Microsoft 365 Business:

Email & Calendaring

• Schedule meetings and respond to invitations using a shared calendar and with calendar reminders by default, you’ll never be late or unprepared for a meeting again.

• Set up shared mailboxes such as info@ or sales@ so you can manage your personal and shared mailboxes in one place, picking up urgent queries as soon as they come in.

• For when you are in the office, connect room and projector mailboxes so you can book meeting rooms in advance and ensure there won’t be a fight for the meeting room on the day.

Personal & Shared File Access

• When data is added, removed or modified, the changes are immediately synced to all of your devices, so you’ll always be working on the most up to date version.

• Share files with colleagues or external contacts and collaborate on the documents in real time, at the same time
Shared File Access.

• Use SharePoint to host shared document libraries.

• Data can be synchronised via the OneDrive to your PC or Mac and accessed like a traditional mapped drive.

Office Applications

• Get all of the applications we know and love, including Microsoft Word, Excel and PowerPoint.

• Always have the latest and always up to date versions of Microsoft Office across all devices.

Security Services

• Advanced Threat Protection will help to secure your email against malicious threats, ransomware and suspicious email attachments and links.

• Protect company data with remote wipe features for lost or stolen devices.

• Secure company data & email from write, copy & paste, print actions and forward actions.

• Multi-factor authentication fob services, ensuring that brute force attempts are eradicated.

Device Management

• Deploy, configure & secure Windows 10 and mobile devices via the cloud, straight out of the box.

• Deploy business applications via the cloud with no requirement for your IT department to visit each device.

• Apply security policies to protect your business data.

Expert Support

Surely, Ctelecoms are always there to support your business needs for this platform so you never face any complications using M365 Business.

2- Microsoft Teams

At Ctelecoms we also recommend using Teams to communicate and get work done faster with your teams. Teams exists as a centralized hub for key Microsoft 365 Business apps and tools, helping users work more effectively and efficiently. Teams allows you to chat, meet, share files and work with business app. Teams also enables you to make conference calls and meetings a breeze with Teams Rooms.

Embrace online meetings

In the absence of a physical conference room, bringing everyone together can feel like the biggest remote-work challenge of all. As you move meetings to Teams, make sure all meetings have a virtual “join” option to create an online conference room. Also, we suggest that all participants turn on video if they are comfortable doing so. The face-to-face interaction goes a long way to help everyone feel connected. Teams has a wide selection of certified cameras to choose from, as well as devices like headsets and speakerphones to make sure you and your coworkers can always communicate clearly.

Be mindful and inclusive

Moving to online meetings may remove some of the visual cues we rely on to see if a colleague has something to say in a meeting. And overcrowded conference calls can make it difficult for people to share their opinions. Meeting organizer should pause frequently to invite questions and remind attendees that they can also use the meeting chat window to share their thoughts.

Record your meetings

To compensate for lack of face time, some remote workers schedule extra meetings in order to stay connected with customers, partners, and coworkers. Double-bookings can be hard to avoid. If your organization allows it, record meetings in Teams so coworkers can catch up later. If you can’t attend yourself, remind the organizer to record in your absence. The automatically generated transcript is also super-useful when you’re trying to remember information covered in a meeting you attended. Want to learn more about Teams Meetings? Learn more tips here.

Make up for missing hallway talk

A lot of remote workers find the thing they miss the most about the office is casual conversations. Chats at the watercooler or snack shelf not only keep us connected, they often surface important information or insights we wouldn’t have guessed. Be deliberate about reaching out and connecting with your co-workers. Think of chat messages as your virtual watercooler and set yourself a reminder to check in with people regularly. Emojis, GIFs, and stickers are a fun way to keep the chatter fun and light.

Bring the team together

Working remotely can feel isolating. As a leader, it’s important to create opportunities for the whole team to get together virtually. Maintain your regular team meeting cadence or team lunches, just make them online. Use the “General” channel in Teams for discussions that might be of interest to everyone. For large brainstorms you can use the Microsoft Whiteboard app, which provides an infinite digital canvas for meeting participants to ideate and collaborate directly in Teams. We also suggest team leaders download the Crisis Communication Power App. You can use this customizable app to inform yourself and your team on everything they need to know throughout this outbreak.

Have fun & Save money

Save money and time on commuting and holding business meetings, when you can do it from wherever you are and still have a face-to-face feel. Get your free 6-month trial of Teams for you and your workforce today!