More and more people are now working remotely. Working from a virtual office has several attractive benefits like saving time commuting to work and having the flexibility to work from wherever and whenever you like.
On the flip side, there is the feeling of remoteness that creeps in. You don’t have colleagues you can share coffee and ideas with. It’s just “me, myself and I”. Can you get the best of both worlds? Work remotely and not have the feeling of remoteness?
Here technology comes to the rescue. There are several apps and programs you can use to help you feel connected with the rest of the team, even though everyone might be in different locations.
Take a tip from the user of a virtual office in Mumbai. She has installed software that ensures good communication between team members. It also allows document sharing so everyone is on the same page. The user of a virtual office in Bangalore believes video conferencing is a good way to keep in touch with colleagues. Nothing like seeing familiar faces and discussing projects face-to-face.
Setting up flexible schedules (much like scheduling duties for airline staff) makes sense for different members of the team who have different responsibilities such as looking after children. As a virtual office in Navi Mumbai has found, a timetable says for two who work in the morning and two who work in the evening is a good idea. It also meets the needs of different time zones across the world.
Without being in regular touch with others in the field, it is difficult to keep pace with the latest trends. Re-evaluating practices and tools is critical so people working remotely can be aligned with the latest technology and not a step behind. A virtual office in Bangalore keeps on top of current developments this way.
By far the most effective way to take the remoteness out of working remotely is to have meetups whenever you can. Meeting once a month for lunch gets people interacting in ways that can never happen in a computer chat. The meeting should be on everyone’s calendar much in advance. It’s best to have a fixed day –such as the last Friday of the month –so people can block the time. Users of virtual offices in Mumbai follow this practice and find that a closer bond is forged and helps improve productivity.
It takes time and effort to get people in virtual offices to work together just as if they were working in the same office space. But as users of virtual offices in Delhi, Chennai, Hyderabad, Kolkata, Bangalore, and Mumbai, have found, it can be done. All it takes is a little help from technology and a lot of determination.