Impact of virtual world to employee productivity

The Covid-19 pandemic has transformed the dynamics of the working environment and many work places are turning to working remotely. 
While at it, remote workers have experienced all that comes with navigating through different applications in their home spaces. However, could one’s productivity working from home be better

Recommendations 
Ivan P Bwire, a systems analyst with Vas-Tech Uganda Limited recommends individuals working virtually to exploit platforms such as zoom, Microsoft teams as these create room for a variety of features. 
He also says these create more actual work hours as they have fewer requirements for access which increases on number of meetings and trainings. He explains: “One can make video and audio calls, document sharing, cross platform and so much more.”
Bwire encourages users to purchase the licensed versions of these online platforms in order to unlock their full potential. The licensed versions, he adds, give room for more numbers of participants and an extended meeting timeframe unlike the free versions.

Impact 
Global Web Index, a worldwide research and consulting network that provides audience insights to media and marketers established the impact of the new remote world amidst the wake of the pandemic.
The findings showed that a group of people interested in full-time work from home had a diverse range of remote working experience prior to the pandemic.

The Covid-19 pandemic has transformed the dynamics of the working environment and many work places are turning to working remotely from home.  While at it, remote workers have experienced all that comes with navigating through different applications in their home spaces. 

Recommendations 
Ivan P Bwire, a systems analyst with Vas-Tech Uganda Limited recommends individuals working virtually to exploit platforms such as zoom, Microsoft teams as these create room for a variety of features. 

He also says these create more actual work hours as they have fewer requirements for access which increases on number of meetings and trainings. He explains: “One can make video and audio calls, document sharing, cross platform and so much more.”  Bwire encourages users to purchase the licensed versions of these online platforms in order to unlock their full potential. The licensed versions, he adds, give room for more numbers of participants and an extended meeting timeframe unlike the free versions. 

Impact 
Global Web Index, a worldwide research and consulting network that provides audience insights to media and marketers established the impact of the new remote world amidst the wake of the pandemic. 
The findings showed that a group of people interested in full-time work from home had a diverse range of remote working experience prior to the pandemic.  According to the research network, the pandemic made them reconsider moving to locations that are quieter or endowed with more space.

Jonathan Sabiti, a clientele servicing officer at an insurance company cannot agree more to this finding.  He says: “Working from home didn’t yield productivity for me, this is because I struggled with adjusting to the new environment away from the usual office cubicle with intranet cables.”  Sabiti also says consistent network drag, being that he uses online servers and systems. “I can only access the servers through Virtual Private Network (VPN), which protects sensitive data on company sites from hackers,” he adds. 

Challenges 
To tackle the issues that affect Sabiti’s productivity, Bwire attributes connectivity challenges while working from home, to tethering internet services off mobile phones which creates a shared connection. However, he advices users to adopt the best practices for a shared connection.  “Ensure that only the gadget in use is connected. While at it, avoid opening too many applications that hold data usage.” A long lasting solution to connectivity issues he adds would be having a dedicated connection which most ISPS (Internet Service Providers) are offering to residential areas at affordable rates.

 Before the corona virus outbreak, working from home indicated low productivity levels of employees as they would procrastinate and offer less work input under no supervision.  This has evolved greatly after the pandemic. Working from home now is producing a better turn around on productivity increase. A Study by Stanford University, California of 16,000 workers over 9months found that working from home increases productivity by 13 percent. This is largely due to a quieter and more convenient working environment and working more minutes per shift. 

Linda Asaba the Programme manager at UNAU, attributes her increases in productivity to the use of interactive apps which she says keep human contact alive virtually.  “I use Zoom, Microsoft teams and Google meet for my work appointments and this has allowed for me to be in different places at the same time.” Asaba has learnt to appreciate her new work space at home, as it allowed her to be productive other than commuting from work to home in the bustle and hustle of the street jam.
Less water, cooler talk. There are a number of ways in which employees can maximise productivity while working from home.

This is because they get to concentrate more and not be distracted by too many staff around them. To achieve this, Sabiti creates a convenient working environment for himself. Sabiti also opts to take breaks from work and have a drink or snack which refreshes his mind for new and more work activities. To create a productive work environment, Bwire urges internet users to setup reliable internet connectivity to avoid disruptions during virtual engagements. “Avail yourself with headsets to curb noisy backgrounds from disrupting your discussions and ensure these come with noise cancellation feature to keep your meeting from being over-heard,” he advices.

Additionally, he requests organisations to enhance staff productivity by availing them with work from home packages such as data facilitation, equipments and KPI deliverables.
It is a given that parents tend to work closely around their children as the new normal subjects them to working from home. This however, should be well managed by working parents to maintain high productivity while working remotely. Asaba encourages working parents to train their children to understand when they need to allow them attend to their jobs. “I ensure to use the early morning when am in the most refreshing head space and the children are still asleep, after which I create time for them to do exciting activities with them which they patiently look forward to,” she explains.

Security tip
Bwire cautions internet users working remotely to be aware of the rise in cyber attacks. He says, “There are phishing email scams that attempt to have one share their login credentials to emails, bank account information and more.” He advises companies to invest in Information Security such as firewall solutions, data loss prevention, security information and event management (SIEM), etc. These he explains share alerts across all IT infrastructure.