Insights

Bridging the gap between productivity and security with remote digital workspaces

Sreejesh Varier, Product Manager for UST CloudDesk |

Being able to foster collaboration becomes increasingly important to keep teams connected and prevent silos from forming. While remote work is not new, many IT organizations are discovering that supporting remote work is introducing new challenges to existing infrastructure.

Efficient planning and communication are essential to designing effective digital workplaces. Portability is one feature that definitely should be well considered, because it enables significant productivity gains.

Ways to harness the potential of portability

The possibility of accessing the right technology from any location, on any device exponentially increases worker productivity. Digital workplaces are designed to be readily accessible for every employee giving companies greater flexibility in the physical workplace. Freed from the office, employees can work during their most productive hours, which end up being far longer than the usual day.

The digital workplace allows for the extension of digital communication and capabilities for employees across an organization. This in turn leads to improved engagement and enablement. Further it can result in reduced employee absenteeism, enhanced productivity and efficiency, increased employee satisfaction and better employee performance. The digital workplace connects people to tools and data they require for executing their jobs. Now, things like managing user account profiles or a help desk request can be self-serviceable, trackable and efficient so low-touch workflows can be automated.

Portability introduces more flexible ways to communicate across the organization. Collaborative digital workplace tools foster a single source of truth which has proven to drive greater productivity than the silos that form without it. Interacting and collaborating over streaming video and VoIP requires a higher degree of security and governance, but also provides an invaluable record of important discussions that can be shared with team members without having to worry about high file sizes and maintaining version control. While interaction and collaboration are essential to engagement, remote workers must still stay productive for any organization to be successful.

Greater transparency and common vision and purpose must be cultivated with remote workers. To maintain a level of trust, governance layers must be enforced, but that doesn’t have to be invasive or inhibiting. Digital workspaces by nature create a layer of transparency among teams and also foster relationships between people around the world who would not otherwise connect. Being able to share a single source of data across an entire team keeps everyone focused on the right targets. Also, it allows the required free flow and exchange of ideas within the organization that are foundational for developing innovation.

Developing, managing and sustaining high levels of working adaptability among employees continues to be a critical challenge for organizations. Many IT organizations have been dealing with the BYOD trend now for many years, but when these devices now must be able to connect from the home across a VPN, instead of the tightly secured and monitored on-premise network, there are far more security vulnerabilities that can and do become serious threats.

It becomes a very expensive proposition if your top-tier, highly compensated talent is not able to perform and collaborate. You can’t afford to pay them more because they are idle as a result of connectivity issues. IT could use that money in far more meaningful ways. The bottom line is this: a remote workspace solution is both an enabler and frontline defense that is key for running the enterprise remotely. You’re only as strong as your weakest link, and digital workplace enables strong bonds that are boundary-less.