If there’s one thing 2020 has taught us, it’s that no one knows what’s next.
The full coronavirus impact on business is still unfolding, but that doesn’t mean business owners get to call a timeout to plan next steps.
Here are 5 top coronavirus business concerns — and tips for how to handle each.
Coronavirus business concern: Managing remote workforce
Managing employees from home can be challenging, especially if your business model was previously all onsite. Staff requests, project assignments, shift tracking — tasks can quickly spin out of control if you don’t have a way to manage them.
The first step to turn this coronavirus business con into a pro is to create open communication channels. Use technologies like text, Skype or Zoom to stay in touch, and remember to ask how your employees are doing in addition to how projects are coming along.
Next, find a software that allows you to track both progress and productivity.
- Time Tracker can help you do everything from team messaging to shift scheduling.
- For businesses like construction or trucking, you can also use geolocation tracking so you’ll know exactly where each employee is at all times.
- It will also allow you to run reports on individual employees so you can see what they’re accomplishing in their day.
Coronavirus business concern: Hygiene
While shifting to a remote workforce is an ideal solution for most businesses, some jobs have aspects that must be done in person, and that makes safety and hygiene especially crucial. By giving your employees the option to login using a touchless system, you’ll make their environment safer, offer peace of mind and show you’re putting their safety above everything else.
Apps like Time Tracker allow workers to clock in from any mobile device using biometrics [link to blog once published], which ensure the correct employee is matched with the correct information about their work hours, output and location. That means no unnecessary contact and no confusion about when people clock in and out.
Coronavirus business concern: Employee satisfaction
When considering coronavirus impact on business, employee satisfaction is a top concern. How will employees feel if they can’t interact with each other face-to-face, or walk into their manager’s office when they have a problem? The good news: People who work from home actually tend to be more satisfied with their positions and their employers, and they work harder and longer to meet their goals.
Here are the statistics:
- Remote workers are 57% more satisfied with their jobs
- Organizations that allow remote work report a 25% decrease in turnover rates, and
- 40% of people perceive a flexible schedule as the most significant benefit of working remotely.
That means the only thing you need to do is find a system that puts everyone’s on the same page in terms of expectations and responsibilities.
Coronavirus business concern: Time theft
The flipside of all the flexibility that comes with remote work is time theft [link to blog once published]. As a manager, how do you ensure your employees stay on task during working hours when you can’t see them?
Apps like Time Tracker offer multiple safeguards against time theft.
- You can set up alerts for breaks and overtime so employees always know where they stand
- You can create and send work schedules within the app
- You can monitor your employees’ work in real-time, so you can see if the hours they’re spending on a particular task or client line up with expectations and projections, and
- You can even set up automatic reporting to help you or your managers identify potential problems and gauge productivity.
Coronavirus business concern: Cost
One of the biggest myths when it comes to coronavirus impact on business is that it will be costly to implement remote systems. But even 5 years pre-COVID, employers were saving $44 billion by allowing their employees to work remotely because it helped them cut back on everything from rent and utilities to equipment.
In addition to hard costs, there are other benefits of automating processes using systems like Time Tracker:
- Avoid payroll and billing disputes because every minute of work is tracked and approved
- Cut down paperwork by setting expense reports to be updated automatically, and
- Use online scheduling to ensure you evenly allocate shifts among employees, which is a crucial way to ensure everyone on your team receives an income.
Extended 30-day trial
The bottom line: We know the coronavirus impact on business is large and long-lasting, so we’re offering businesses an extended 30-day trial of Time Tracker to make your transition easier, without the initial upfront cost. Use promo code HOMEOFFICE.
Download our remote working guide and learn more or check out or other tips here:
