How the right IT support can make all the difference for your remote team

Employee experience matters a lot more for remote workers, and tech support is part of that

LONDON, ENGLAND — While remote and hybrid workers typically reap tons of benefits from their working model, many can feel isolated from their colleagues who work in-office.

This is especially the case for employees who may have been hired remotely from the start, and had to complete their entire onboarding process completely online.

As a result, a growing number of HR Managers and career experts are urging businesses to put extra effort into employee engagement, especially when it comes to making their remote teams feel included.

In fact, experts are highlighting the importance of the whole employee experience for remote workers, and Lakeside Software is pointing out that IT teams can play a major role in that.

The idea is somewhat unexpected. IT teams are, of course, critical for keeping businesses running smoothly. But (unfortunately) they can be overlooked until something goes wrong.

Lakeside Chief Technology Officer Elise Carmichael is changing that, however. In a blog article, she highlights just how much of an impact tech support can have in keeping remote workers equipped and able to do their best work.

 

How IT can help support remote workers

Step 1, according to Carmichael, is ensuring remote workers have the equipment and tools they need. This includes “right-sizing” so that the company can provide staff with the equipment they actually need rather than just providing equipment to check off a box.

The next part is making sure those tools actually work, to both minimise frustration and improve the overall employee experience.

Putting it in perspective, Carmichael says, “Consider the last time your own desktop, laptop, or app used for work gave you the ‘spinning wheel of death,’ blue-screened, crashed, or just became so slow it was unusable.

“Frustrating? I thought so. I can visualise employees wanting to throw their computers out the window.”

The experience is bad enough for in-office employees who may just be two cubicles away from someone in IT who can help, but it can be that much worse for remote workers.

This is why providing remote staff with tools that work is a simple but extremely effective way to support workers, she added.

Even further, some companies might be able to proactively prevent major tech snafus by monitoring anonymous system performance data.

This kind of information can provide insight on things like crashes or other tech issues that other employees commonly experience, helping IT to get ahead of the ball and address those issues without waiting for remote workers to fumble across the issue themselves.

Carmichael says, “Since virtual workers are 100 per cent dependent on technology and require the right hardware and software for their given roles, digital employee engagement is crucial for employee productivity, satisfaction, and overall well-being.”

Find the latest remote jobs in the UK via RemoteWorker.co.uk.