Working from home IS the new standard. In fact, some of the biggest companies on the planet have responded to the COVID-19 pandemic by moving their employees to work from home long-term or permanently:
- Amazon.
- Microsoft.
- Facebook.
- Twitter.
- Slack.
- Square.
- And Salesforce.
If you’re reading this, there’s a good chance you’ve had your employees working remotely for months. You may even be considering letting them work from home permanently.
NOTE: Don’t have time to read the entire post now? No sweat! Feel free to bookmark this for later, and use the table of contents below to get the information you need.
Table of contents
Employees Working From Home vs. In Office
It is no mystery as to why employees love working from home. Recent studies and surveys report that the vast majority of work from home employees are happier and more productive.
Keep in mind that working from home comes with a few unique challenges of its own ––– namely, having limited access to leaders, managers, team members, and collaborators.
To help with that, there are two major ways you ––– business owners, managers, team leaders, and supervisors ––– can be setting your employees up for success:
- Invest in Employee Career Training: Give them the skills they need to succeed.
- Invest in Your Employees’ Home Offices: Give them the tools they need as well.
1. Invest in Employee Training and Development
One of the unique challenges of working from home is that your employees can’t just stop by your desk when they need help with something. It can take hours of back and forth messaging and video chatting to help someone with a task that may have taken a few minutes in person.
What’s the solution?
As a business owner, director, manager, or leader ––– you NEED TO invest in employee training and development.
Give your employees the training and skills they need to help them become:
- More independent.
- More self-reliant.
- More versatile.
- Stronger troubleshooters and problem solvers.
Foster their skills so they don’t need to rely as heavily on you, their teammates, or coworkers for help. Business and software skills training will give them the tools they need to tackle tasks, projects, and challenges on their own.
You may be thinking “training and development sounds expensive. I don’t think we have the budget for that.”
Here’s the reality: time is money.
Investing in your employees’ skills, education, and training now will save your company a fortune in the long and short term.
Despite the limitations COVID-19 has placed on in-person classes ––– online learning and virtual classes make it possible for you and your employees to get the skills you need, from the comfort of your own home or anywhere in the country.
Virtual Classes and Online Career Training for Your Employees
At ACTS, we have had to make some major changes to adapt to the COVID-19 pandemic. Which is why we are now offering 100% of our career training courses as virtual classes.
We have invested thousands of dollars in state-of-the-art technology to transform our classrooms into a fully-immersive, live online virtual learning experience.
See what makes our new virtual career training courses different from other online learning formats. You can also take a look at our full class schedule on our website here.
2. Invest in Your Employees Work From Home Setup and Home Office
In the early days of 2020, your average work from home setup might have been sitting at the kitchen table with a laptop, a cheap pair of earbuds, and a slow internet connection.
Not exactly your ideal work from home setup.
While a recent study has shown that work from home employees have increased their productivity by a whopping 47% –––there are ways that YOU, their employer, can get that much higher. The first way you can do that…
Give them a work from home setup they can actually work with.
What does a quality work from home setup look like? Consider giving your employees the basics, such as:
- A comfortable chair.
- A desk with plenty of surface area.
- Noise-canceling headphones and/or earbuds.
- An ergonomic keyboard and mouse.
- High-speed internet and Wifi
- A printer and scanner.
Here are our top recommendations for your employee’s work from home office setup…
Note: To support ACTS, we do include affiliate links for the products recommended in this post.
Best Home Office Chairs
Investing in your employees work from home setup is more than just increasing their productivity. It’s investing in their comfort and health as well.
Having a comfortable ergonomic chair is essential for putting in a hard day’s work.
Our Top Rated Home Office Chairs:
- NOBLEWELL Ergonomic Office Chair High Back Mesh Computer Chair with Lumbar Support Adjustable Armrest, Backrest and Headrest,BIFMA
- Alera Elusion Series Mesh Mid-Back Multifunction Chair, Black
Other Top Rated Work From Home Office Chairs:
Forbes: “The Best Office Chairs For Upgrading Your Home Office”
Top Rated Home Office Desks
No more working from the couch or kitchen table.
Having a spacious, accessible, and comfortable work from home desk is essential for increasing productivity. It is important that your employees have the space they need to be organized and effective.
Best Sitting Desks for Working from Home:
- Coleshome Computer Desk 47″, Modern Simple Style Desk for Home Office, Sturdy Writing Desk,Teak
- Cubiker Computer Desk 55″ Home Office Writing Study Desk
- TOPSKY 55″ Computer Desk
Top Rated Standing Desks for Home Offices:
- SHW Electric Height Adjustable Computer Desk, 48 x 24 Inches, Light Cherry
- Flexispot Standing Desk 48 x 30 Inches Height Adjustable Desk Electric Sit Stand Desk Home
- FEZIBO Electric Height Adjustable Standing Desk
Noise-Cancelling Headphones for Working From Home
We have had to swap the somewhat controlled, white-noise of our offices for the untamed soundscape of working from home. Anything from nearby traffic to lawn-mowers, barking dogs, clanging dishes, vacuums, laundry, and their spouse, family, or roommates taking calls is fair game.
For that reason, noise-cancelling headphones are a MUST for working from home.
Best Noise Cancelling Headphones for Working from Home
- Sony WH1000XM4 Noise Cancelling Headphones
- Bose Noise Cancelling Wireless Bluetooth Headphones 700, with Alexa Voice Control, Black
Best Budget-Friendly Noise Cancelling Headphones for Working from Home
Other Great Noise Cancelling Headphones Option
Tom’s Guide: “Best cheap noise cancelling headphones in 2020”
Best Keyboards for Your Home Office
Recent studies have shown that the average working professional spends nearly 30% of their work day reading and responding to emails.
Giving your employees comfortable, ergonomic keyboards for their home office will keep them healthy and happy. Quality keyboards also make writing more enjoyable, increasing WPM and overall work efficiency.
Best Keyboards for Your Home Office
- Mac OS: Apple Magic Keyboard with Numeric Keypad
- Logitech Ergo K860 Wireless Ergonomic Keyboard with Wrist Rest
- Logitech MK345 Wireless Combo Full-Sized Keyboard with Palm Rest and Comfortable Right-Handed Mouse
- Logitech MK270 Wireless Keyboard and Mouse Combo
- Logitech MK550 Wireless Wave Keyboard and Mouse Combo
- Redragon S101 Wired Gaming Keyboard and Mouse Combo
Other Top Rated Work From Home Keyboards:
Tom’s Guide: “Best Keyboards in 2020”
Rtings.COM: “The 7 Best Keyboards for Writers”
Best Work From Home Computer Mouse for Your Employees
No home office setup is complete without a high-quality mouse. Having an ergonomic, customizable computer mouse helps prevent carpal tunnel and overuse injuries while boosting work productivity and efficiency.
Best Computer Mouse for Your Home Office
- Rechargeable Bluetooth Mouse for MacBook pro/MacBook air/Laptop/iMac/ipad, Wireless Mouse for MacBook pro MacBook
- Logitech MX Ergo Wireless Trackball Mouse
- Logitech G502 Hero High Performance Gaming Mouse
- Logitech MX Master 3 Advanced Wireless Mouse
Best Mesh Networks for Home Offices
Few things will hurt your employees’ productivity more than a slow or spotty internet connection. Your team needs a reliable internet provider and high-performing mesh network so they can have high-speed internet, anywhere in their home:
Best Wi-Fi Mesh Network Systems for Working from Home:
- Google Wifi – Mesh Wifi System – Wifi Router Replacement – 3 Pack
- Google Nest WiFi Router 2 Pack (2nd Generation) – 4×4 AC2200 Mesh Wi-Fi Routers with 4400 Sq Ft Coverage
- NETGEAR Orbi Whole Home Tri-Band Mesh WiFi 6 System (RBK852) – Router With 1 Satellite Extender | Coverage Up to 5,000 sq. ft. and 60+ Devices | 11AX Mesh AX6000 WiFi (Up to 6Gbps)
- NETGEAR Orbi Tri-band Whole Home Mesh WiFi System with 3Gbps Speed (RBK50) – Router & Extender Replacement Covers Up to 5,000 sq. ft., 2-Pack Includes 1 Router & 1 Satellite
Best Home Office Printers for Your Employees
In a business-world that is run on the cloud ––– it isn’t often that you need a printer. However, there are times when you and your employees need to print and scan documents and files.
If you do run a business or manage a team that works with physical documents, make sure that your employees have a reliable printer-scanner combo. This eliminates the time it’ll take for them to run to an office supply store to print and make copies.
Best Printers for Your Home Office:
- HP LaserJet Pro M404n Laser Printer with Built-in Ethernet & Security Features, Works with Alexa
- HP Color LaserJet Pro Multifunction M479fdn Wireless Laser Printer
Conclusion
We have all faced unique challenges in 2020. Fortunately, one of the positive outcomes of the year is that more employees are working from home, and as a result are happier, healthier and more productive than ever.
Even so, it’s critical that business owners and leaders like you are giving your teams the tools, equipment, support, and knowledge they need to work efficiently and effectively.
If you are ready to invest in your employee’s knowledge and work skills now, take a look at our virtual classes and our entire schedule of software and business skills classes to get started.
