News & Trends Archives

SMART CONSIDERATIONS FOR REMOTE WORKFORCE TRAINING

For much of the past two decades, online classes and webinars have become a staple of organizational learning and development programs. But in the COVID-19 era, demand for remote workforce training has spiked. A key reason: some remote employees find communication, collaboration and productivity more challenging in a home-office environment.

The issue is even more pressing for any organization with a high percentage of their workforce at home. Employees need more support now than they ever have. After all, it’s more difficult to collaborate or finish a project when you can’t pop into co-worker’s office with a question. Companies simply can’t afford to wait until physical offices reopen and in-person training resumes.

Another reason it’s an ideal time to ramp up remote workforce training is that employees may have more free time. Without a daily commute and fewer outside activities, they have more flexibility to take advantage of training opportunities.

The pandemic is an excellent time to invest in remote workforce training, but there are several factors companies should consider when drafting a training plan.

The Benefits Of Remote Workforce Training

Generally speaking, workforce training helps organizations build employee skill sets across a wide range of subjects. Remote workforce training offers some additional benefits. This approach to learning is:

Cost-effective: Remote training sessions are typically less expensive than in-person classes since there’s no need to cover the cost of travel or a dedicated physical location.
Convenient: Employees can participate in remote learning from anywhere—at home, on the road or in the office. Naturally, remote training is particularly suited to the world of social distancing, but it’s just as convenient when employees return to the office.
Customizable: Since remote training is available in a variety of formats, employees have the ability to create a curriculum that’s customized to their specific needs.
Scalable: It’s easier to add more options, in terms of both variety and scheduling, when working with remote learning.

Since remote workforce training is easy and convenient, your employees are more likely to participate. They can select topics that appeal to them, at a time that’s convenient and in their preferred learning format.

What To Consider In Your Remote Training Plan

When offering remote training sessions, keep several factors in mind. For example, what are the topics your employees struggle with the most? What are their preferred formats for learning? The simplest way to answer these questions is to consult the source: Ask your team members. Once you’ve received their input, you can offer the right blend of sessions to provide both the content type and format that meets your staff’s needs.

When planning, it’s smart to put three areas at the top of your consideration list: training formats, engagement and topics.

Build A Strong Healthcare Ecosystem

Today’s online training is available in a wide variety of formats, including:

Instructor-led: A live video or prerecorded session. Self-paced sessions: Audio or video sessions that allow attendees to move at their own pace.
Webinars: Prerecorded videos that employees can view at their convenience.
File sharing: Shared document spaces that house training materials for employees to access.
Remote desktop: Live demonstrations performed after an employee passes over control of their screen to a moderator.
Podcasts: Audio recordings employees listen to and learn from.

Engagement

Remote training has numerous advantages, but only if employees are fully engaged. That’s not always easy. For instance, instructors find it takes more effort to create an interactive session remotely than it does in-person. Attendees may be more distracted by their surroundings, and so find it harder to focus. Technical difficulties can also wreak havoc.

Organizations can overcome these challenges by sharing a few guidelines. For instance, simple practices such as silencing their phone can help attendees stay focused. In addition, when properly designed, remote sessions foster plenty of engagement through file sharing, online chat and group discussions. To keep engagement high, McKinsey recommends these best practices.

Before the session:

Test the technology.
Make access easy (e.g. provide local dial-in numbers and web links ahead of time).
Designate a moderator to field and address questions.
Provide training materials in advance.

During the session:

Use communications technology features such as chat or online polls to interact with attendees.
Leverage video technology to carry yourself as you would during an in-person session.

After the session:

Provide follow-up materials as needed.
Ask for feedback.
Troubleshoot any technical issues before the next session.

Topics

Remote workforce training is well-suited for a range of topics from leadership and management courses to software applications. But for today’s pressing need—how to help your workforce communicate and collaborate more effectively as they work from home—training that’s focused on unified communications tools and technology is especially valuable. By learning tips and tricks such as how to assign tasks, share files and create agendas for meetings, employees can connect and work together as easily as if they were a cubicle away.

Introtel customers have an opportunity right now to build up their technical skills. To support your investment in training, we’re offering all Mitel developed and delivered self-paced training free through Aug. 31, 2020. The discount includes certifications for MiCollab and Mitel Border Gateway (MBG), which are ideal solutions to enable remote workers to do their jobs more efficiently and effectively.So far, our customers have found remote training so beneficial that many are coming back for more.

Remote workforce training enables companies to make an investment in their workforce now—when employees need it most. Keep your workforce productive, engaged and connected by considering the above factors when putting together your training plan.

Source:Mitel

Share this post:

Want to learn more about one of the products or solutions mentioned above? Send an email to contact@introtel.com

6 Signs Your COVID-19 Workforce Needs Cloud Phone Technology

Cloud communications, Digital Transformation, Mitel, News & Trends, Remote Working

Almost overnight, the number of remote workers increased dramatically, as businesses mandated “work-from-home” policies in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. There’s no telling when the situation will change. Even when restrictions ease on social distancing, employees may not be able to return to the office in full force, and future waves of distancing have been predicted. You may have been perfectly satisfied with your communications solution in the pre-COVID days, but you may find yourself realizing you now need something more robust. If your current phone system isn’t able to handle the office exodus, that’s a glaring sign you’re due for a change.

The good news during this challenging time? A cloud phone solution, like MiCloud Connect, delivers the latest in mobility and ensures employees can work and collaborate from anywhere.

But mobility is just one problem solved by cloud phone technology. Chances are, your communications system is flashing yellow and red in other places as well. Some of these warnings are harder to recognize than others. If you’ve noticed any of the following signs, now is the time to make the switch.

COVID-19: 6 signs it's time to upgrade your communications

High traffic is reducing the quality of your communications. People might run on coffee, but business are powered by a reliable and consistent network. With fewer people working in the office due to social distancing, just about all communications is now handled remotely. Can your current phone system support the increased demand? Slowdowns, dropped calls and low-quality video impede conversations, frustrating employees and customers. Ask providers about their track record. As a reference point, Mitel has 99.995 percent uptime backed by SLAs and financial penalties if we don’t meet these standards. Other important items to look for in a reliable solution are Tier 4 data centers with several layers of redundancy and multiple connectivity options with automatic failover. With these built-in capabilities, employees work fast and never miss a chance to drive customer satisfaction higher.
You’re concerned about security. This is a hot topic both in the news and at weekly IT meetings. With more employees working from home, protecting sensitive information is a top priority. But if you’re not 100 percent confident in your communications system, you’ll want to ask vendors some hard questions. For example: Do they offer Secure Real-Time Transfer Protocol (SRTP), which ensures voice, web and signaling traffic is encrypted? What platform are they using and what levels of security do they offer? At Mitel, we decided to amp up security by partnering with Google Cloud. Our customers benefit from the same reliable and trusted network infrastructure we all use for search and videos on a daily basis.
You operate in a regulated industry. In industries like healthcare or finance, compliance looms large. Violations are expensive and can tarnish your reputation. Spikes in telemedicine and virtual financial advising put companies at increased risk of non-compliance. However, when you work with a cloud phone provider committed to ensuring high levels of security and protecting sensitive data, you’ll ease your IT burden. MiCloud Connect, for example, is certified to meet Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) standards and Service Organization Control Type II (SOC 2) compliance, helping you adhere to even the most stringent requirements.
You need to adapt – quickly and constantly. Every day seems to bring on a new challenge as the world battles COVID-19. Businesses need to be able to rapidly respond to changing demands and requirements. Ask yourself how difficult it is to add or remove lines and users to your current system. If it requires a call to the vendor every time you need to make a change, then it’s time for a cloud phone solution. The beauty of the cloud is that it’s so easy to adjust to new conditions. You can add or remove seats and upgrade permissions in real time, which means your business is more agile. A scalable solution keeps you competitive, while also offering flexible pricing plans so you can stay within budget.
It’s getting harder to meet client expectations. The coronavirus has created a unique marketplace, in which employees and customers are almost 100 percent reliant on technology to conduct business. It has become all too easy to fall behind without integrated collaboration tools. A stellar customer experience is more important than ever, but it can be difficult to deliver when employees are taking extra steps to share documents or discuss issues remotely. When collaboration is built into communications, it’s easier for employees to exceed customer expectations. For example, with click-to-join access for web, audio and video conferencing, a product manager can convene his team to resolve a pressing issue quickly, getting goods in the hands of customers at the right moment. In addition, a persistent workspace with chat, tasks and file sharing gives teams the ability to collaborate in real time. When employee collaboration is easy and seamless outside the physical office, customers get answers faster and satisfaction soars.
Managing multiple licenses keeps you very busy. Every second counts when you’re trying to run a remote employee workforce and keep customers engaged. You don’t have time to worry about managing multiple licenses for your communications system. With a cloud phone solution, you can mix and match license types on a single plan. Need a contact center? Collaboration tools? It’s simple to add licenses on-demand and manage each user via their own profile. And since your cloud provider is responsible for infrastructure, you don’t have to worry about maintenance or carry the cost of unused equipment or lines. Plus, budgeting on an operating expenses (OpEx) model is predictable and easy, which is important in these uncertain times.

All signs point to cloud phone technology

COVID-19 has changed the way we do business. The new “normal” requires organizations to support remote communications and collaboration and to respond quickly to changing conditions. If any of the signs discussed above are flashing red or yellow in your organization, it’s time to start exploring what cloud phone technology can do for your business. A solution like MiCloud Connect will adapt to your business needs, ensuring you stay current with the latest technology – and healthy in the battle against the coronavirus.

Source:Mitel

Share this post:

Want to learn more about one of the products or solutions mentioned above? Send an email to contact@introtel.com

SMART WORKSPACES WORK SMARTER NOT HARDER

The traditional notion of a 9-to-5 workspace has drastically changed. No longer are employees chained to their desk. Instead, they can work from anywhere, often at hours of their choosing. Today’s workspace moves with the employee, whether it’s to a mid-morning session at Starbucks, aboard an Amtrak train or even a midnight email check after a school band concert.

While many factors are behind the rise of these smart workspaces, there’s one main ingredient required to make them succeed: the right communications technology. Let’s explore the smart workspace in more detail and see how you can set up your business to meet this growing employee expectation.

What Is A Smart Workspace?

In today’s world, the term “workspace” no longer conjures an image of employees sitting at their desks, surrounded by cubicle walls, pecking away at their keyboards for eight hours straight. Workspaces have evolved, and today’s “smart” version allows employees to get their work done from any location, using any device. A smart workspace transcends the physical boundaries of the cubicle and office, creating an environment of collaboration and communication that fosters productivity and increases employee satisfaction.

Flexibility: More than half (51 percent) of employees want their companies to offer more flexible work options, according to a recent study. Flexible options include telecommuting and the freedom to work outside of traditional business hours.

Work-life balance: Your workers don’t want to miss out on their kid’s soccer game or burn the candle at both ends. More employees consider work-life balance to be increasingly important, and fewer people are willing to sacrifice it for their job.

Millennials: By 2020, which is right around the corner, Millennials will make up more than half of the workforce. That number is expected to hit 75 percent by 2025. This generation is tech-savvy, demands flexibility and thrives on collaboration.

Next Steps For A Digital Workspace Transformation

Businesses that want to attract and retain top talent have no choice but to embrace smart workspaces. Gartner predicts that by 2020, organizations that let workers choose their own style of work will increase retention rates by more than 10 percent. Already, a unified communications system with a robust suite of collaboration tools can provide a smart workspace for your employees. Such suites offer:

A single application for voice, video, messaging, audio conferencing and more so employees can easily switch between channels on the fly.
A consistent experience across devices.
Mobile-first design that supports both iOS and Android.
Audio conferencing and web sharing to promote collaboration.
Single number reach, making employees accessible on any device.
Individual and group chat to keep the lines of communication open.
File and screen sharing, which make it easy to keep team members up-to-date on projects.
Secure remote access so employees can work from anywhere without having to worry
- about confidential company information.
- Multi-region and multi-language support, to provide employees around the world with access to the same unified experience.
Not only do such systems meet the demands of your employees, they benefit the business as well. Teams communicate more efficiently and effectively, easily sharing ideas and files. Managers make decisions more quickly and increase productivity. By keeping your employees connected on-the-go, you’ll keep up with today’s fast-paced business world. And, you’ll break down silos between departments and locations. In other words, smart workspaces are just as good for the bottom line as they are for employee satisfaction and retention.
If your business isn’t already part of the smart workspace culture, it’s time to start transforming. A powerful suite of collaboration tools that gives employees access to everything they need to do their work—no matter where they are or what device they’re on—is the main ingredient for success. The right unified communications solution provides a seamless experience for all employees, breaking down barriers, fostering collaboration and resulting in smarter business decisions made in less time. A smart workspace really is a “no brainer.”

Source:Mitel

Share this post:

Want to learn more about one of the products or solutions mentioned above? Send an email to contact@introtel.com

UNIFIED COMMUNICATIONS LETS GOVERNMENTS DO MORE WITH LESS

News & Trends

All over the world, governments are challenged to create more value while holding the line on budgets. Whether due to austerity measures or political policy, government executives are under pressure to reduce costs while still meeting the needs of their constituencies.

Identifying what is most important to the customer is essential to this process, notes Liz Joyce, executive advisor at Gartner. “Leaders need to first understand the return of different services through the lens of the customer. Since not all services are equally appreciated by customers, leaders need to identify the activities that the function must do to deliver the greatest value.”

So, what do your constituents want? Easier access to government services online? Quick answers from municipal staff to their questions? Finding out what they need and want is your first step.

Joyce suggests that to make sustainable cost reductions – those that save money but still deliver desired services – “leaders need to shift their approach from driving efficiencies across all activities and instead make investments and cuts to resource the areas that are most valuable to the organization.”

Investing In The Right Places

One way to reach this goal is to reduce investments in hardware and software by moving computing resources to the cloud. With unified communications (UC), governments save money by using just the services they need, when they need them. More capacity? New features? UC can be scalable and flexible. With a push of a button, it’s there.

Consider, too, that legacy systems often cost more than they’re worth in support and maintenance. Worse, their inefficiency contributes to lost productivity. These conditions inevitably lead to unhappy constituents who aren’t getting the services they want.

5 Ways To Do More With Less

Unified communications enables government employees to communicate efficiently no matter where they are or what kind of device they’re using – desktop PC, mobile, tablet or VoIP phone. Connecting via the cloud enables seamless communications.
Here are five ways UC increases government efficiency to meet the need of its constituents.

1. Collaboration. Public safety depends on strong communications. And whether it’s a natural disaster or a community event, UC solutions link first responders via mobile technologies and enable them to share rich data like video and photos – even with different communications devices.

2. Mobility. What if your employees were accessible to constituents no matter what their location? Some staff can’t be tethered to a desk phone: They need to be out in the field, attending community meetings or even just moving between offices. With a cloud-based mobile application, they’re available to the community just the same, logging into a web-based interface wherever they are. The result is more productivity, greater responsiveness to customers and additional cost savings for the municipality.

3. Managed services. What if you could get all this functionality but without the hardware or software investment? With unified communications as a service (UCaaS), there’s no hardware to buy since all services are delivered via the cloud. Now your communications costs shift from a capital expense to an operational expense, one that’s controlled by actual usage. There’s no need for multiple administration tools either. All functions are accessed via a single browser-based interface that is intuitive and user-friendly.

4. Scalability. No matter your customers need, budgets vary year to year. With UCaaS, you use just the bandwidth necessary at that moment and scale up or down as required. Are your services affected by seasons, with higher call volumes at different times of the year? Scale up when you need to and scale down when demand slacks off. Buying just the capacity you need lowers your total cost of ownership (TCO) over time.

5. CRM integration. Your constituents are accustomed to quick and efficient service from businesses. Cloud-based call centers enable your staff to route customers efficiently – or answer questions immediately. For example, call center staff can see on their computer screens which colleagues are available to help. Instead of transferring the caller to voicemail, they reach the right person immediately.

As pressure continues for government to deliver better services more efficiently, officials must find creative ways to meet their constituents’ needs. UC offers a solution that is scalable, responsive and cost-effective.

Source:Mitel