Organisations that thrive over the long haul tend to have a strong workplace culture. It’s because happy employees are more productive and help the company progress quickly.

In fact, research by Deloitte suggests that distinct workplace culture is a key component of creating a happy workplace.

According to the survey, 94% of executives and 88% of employees believe it’s vital for a business to succeed.

The study found, there is a positive correlation between valued employees and strong work cultures.

But alas, all that is now a thing of the past as offices are closed and employees are working online….(Or that’s what you think).

Having a good working environment now has become more crucial than ever before. Especially as offices go hybrid or completely remote, a digital remote environment has now become mandatory to ensure smoother operations, employee productivity and overall workflow engagement.

We at Remote Office are doing just that. Through years of trial and error, our team has come up with a few best practices that help create the perfect combination of a digital remote environment and physical workforce using software and services.

Here, we’ll share with you what we’ve learned through experience and experimentation. Follow these simple steps to get started. We have a guide for you as well if you’re interested in managing your cross border remote teams.

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1. Working Conditions

First and foremost, you need a good environment at home. By this we mean, a nice background, a pair of good headphones, and most importantly, a kickass internet connection.

You also need to be mindful of those leftover pizzas from last night’s party. You don’t want to present your colleagues with a distasteful background, now do you?

Once you’ve got the basics, we’re good to go.

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2. Office Setup

Now for the PC or laptop, you really don’t need AI to power it up and get the job done while working remotely.

However, it’s recommended that you get a laptop that helps you work smoothly. Try getting an SSD drive and installing office apps on it. It will do wonders.

As for the software, well…it’s your job, so you know which ones work best.

We do, however, suggest that you have a paid version of a top antivirus, in order to secure yourself.

Office data are priceless and one slip-up can cost you fortunes…(or maybe your job). So it’s better to be safe than sorry.

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3. Communication

One of the key things that can help you streamline the workflow is a platform for official communications.

For this, we suggest Slack, as it can integrate apps like Google Calendar and ClickUp.

You can also use it to create specific channels for collaboration, send direct messages, and make calls.

This simplifies workflow and saves you time from having to skim through hundreds of emails every day.

You can however use other platforms like WhatsApp Business or Workplace from Meta.

Keep in mind that it’s a good practice to start the day with a morning note, telling your teammates that you are in for the day and ending it with a closing note of the days’ tasks.

This helps keep teammates on the same page and helps clear out any dependencies that they might have.

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4. Collaboration

You should also consider having a file sharing platform. Apps like Google Drive or G-Suite can do you wonders.

Using Google Docs can help you easily share and edit files with your colleagues, get valuable inputs and make the work a lot easier.

Another perk of Google Docs is that it enables you to add a ton of extensions that help move things faster. You can also use sheets and slides easily to manage workflow and collaborate easily.

As for graphics, we suggest that you use Canva. It is an excellent online graphic design tool with a variety of features, ranging from photo editing to designing social media images and documents. And best of all, it helps you collaborate with teammates easily.

We also recommend getting Miro. It features a digital whiteboard to support research, ideation, customer journey and user story mapping. Drastically simplifying collaboration.

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5. Project Management Tools

Although project management tools tagged along with some CRM Tools should be used in day to day life as it saves a lot of time and money and helps businesses level up.

Using it is crucial in the case of working remotely and creating a stellar digital environment as well.

Because everyone is working remotely, it’s hard to track workflow. But integrating tools like ClickUp and Asana will help you to maximise your day’s productivity.

It eases the process of setting goals, determining a schedule, and reaching the desired outcome. Saving time and extra work.

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6. HR platform

Having an HR platform is a must in creating a smooth digital remote environment. HR software can save you time by automating simple actions such as tracking holiday allowances and training. It can also simplify processes to increase overall productivity.

HR tools also make it easy to document work hours. This ensures teams sign in and out at the right time, giving a clear picture of the workday. There are a number of HR management tools that are simple to use, including Zoho People, BambooHR, and Kissflow HR.

With Zoho People’s cloud-based HR solution, you can boost employee engagement and make HR management more agile and effective.

It also features leave and attendance management, time tracking, employee self-service, form customisation, and more.

BambooHR is an all-in-one HRM software that provides a comprehensive human resource information system designed to facilitate the collection, management, and interpretation of HR data and then helps you use it to make effective and meaningful decisions.

Kissflow is an all-in-one HR Cloud that works to streamline HR processes for companies by enabling them to develop, modify, and manage them efficiently. It comes with a variety of HR management modules, such as applicant tracking, onboarding, performance reviews, and offboarding.

And with the help of its data-driven insights, managers can also make statistical decisions easily.

So take time to look at the ones that interest you and get started.

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7. Bonus tip

Try utilising the bookmarks as they are a great way to save and organise specific websites so you can revisit them. This frees up a lot of hassle of typing in the websites every single time. You can also try bookmarking your current working document. This will help you find it easily.

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Conclusion

So there you go, our tried and tested method of creating a digital remote environment. Remember to have a good working background, a kickass office setup (don’t forget the antivirus, though), a convenient platform for communication, remember to have a good file sharing platform in place tagged along with a project management tool and finally use a good HR platform to streamline the tedious tasks.

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Here’s your free copy of our ebook on managing cross border remote teams:

https://remoteoffice.io/resources/six-pro-tips-for-managing-remote-teams-across-borders/

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