Working from home is a blessing in normal circumstances – waking up later, eating a good breakfast every morning, no daily commute to and from the office – the benefits are numerous. But the practicalities of working from home are far from straight-forward.
The recent lockdown has meant that all those that can work from home have been asked to do so. Yet their ability to work effectively may not be possible. Broadband speeds vary greatly from area to area. Ability to work efficiently could be dependent on who provides your wifi and broadband services.
It was reported on Sky News, that CityFibre will be creating 10,000 new jobs as part of a push to deliver full-fibre broadband access across Britain by 2025. This is a boost for regional economies, as the company says it will invest £4bn over the next three years, and recruit people from towns and cities where new fibre optic cables will be laid.
The Goldman Sachs backed company will provide much needed competition to current rivals BT Openreach, Sky, and Virgin Media. CityFibre hope to roll out new networks in up to 100 towns and cities across the UK. They also maintain that there will be an outreach programme to attract more applicants from BAME (Black, and Mixed Ethnic) ethnic groups.
Faster broadband is a necessity for the UK economy, and the importance has not been lost on MPs. More and more people will request to work from home, and businesses will do well in retaining core staff if they can provide this option. Commuting and working in an office poses risks that leave companies vulnerable if they fail to look out for staff with health issues. Remote working will minimise this risk.
Current broadband speeds are not able to cope with use for a whole household. There could be several people in a household that are watching films, conducting Zoom calls, or general surfing at the same time. This is too much for networks to manage, and why broadband connectivity and even 5G technology are being backed as the solution to all future problems.
Astec IT hope that more investment is given to the roll out of fibre optic connectivity. It will be great to live in a world where work can be carried out anywhere and everywhere. This will help our clients to get the best out of their work from home options. Even the need to meet face to face will be reduced as video meetings become commonplace.
There are many reasons why companies should invest, so that their workforce can predominantly work from home. One study by Stanford University found people who work from home are 15% more productive compared to those who worked full time in the office.
Work-life balance for employees will be improved too. The best way to give more time to staff is by cutting out the commute to and from work. On average, an employee will save between 1.5 – 2 hours per day when working from home.
Internet-based technology has made it even easier for employees to work remotely. Businesses have been slowly migrating all their data and workflows to the cloud, and decommissioning physical servers. Astec IT have been very busy the last few weeks giving advice and support on how companies can achieve this and gain considerable cost savings as a result. Please contact Astec IT if you have any queries about how to expand your company’s ability to provide remote working for staff.