Save money and increase efficiency by working from home

Work from home, save money and increase efficiency.



Author: Matt Irving

Published: 2/12/2021


Benefits of a virtual office

Working remotely is safer, more economical and in many cases more efficient than working in the office. Employees who work from home don’t have to deal with the stress of morning commutes. These trips may result in tardiness at work, which lead to missed deadlines! In addition, they are less likely to deal with forced social gatherings and the toxicity that arises from office politics. Now, remote work is not completely devoid of office politics it just seems to be less prevalent when employees are operating from home.

Beyond the avoidance of typical stress inducers, most people are generally more comfortable and happier in their home than the office. Happier, less stressed employees are MUCH more productive! I can personally attest to this. I have never been more productive at work than when I started working from home during the pandemic. I started work much earlier and finished later than I did when stationed at the office.

The benefits are not only on the employee side. Employers stand to save a great deal of money by ditching the office space and allocating resources for technology that enables remote work. Renting a commercial space is very expensive. The more employees you have, the more square footage you will need. In the era of COVID-19, you will likely need more space than before to ensure all employees maintain a safe distance from each other.

Heating, cooling, internet, and phone bills are another costs associated with operating in person. Although the latter two may still be incurred when operating remotely. You will likely still have to provide either company cell phones or purchase phone services through a provider like Comcast. But the tremendous savings you will enjoy on utilities and rent greatly offset the cost of cell phones/VOIP (voice over IP) lines.

The move to remote operations will not only benefit your business financially, efficiency and productivity will be on the rise as well. With the money you save on rent, you can invest in a CRM like Super Easy CRM. CRM software gives you the ability to manage contacts, leads, projects, workflows, and tickets all without being physically present in an office.

Remote task management

Workflow management can be conducted at a level of granularity far beyond what can be achieved in person using sticky notes and a white board. Super Easy CRM, for example, has an entire module dedicated to this crucial business function.

The way it works is as follows.

  1. The department head or manager creates a workflow – This is the glue that binds all the team’s tasks together.
  2. Tasks are created based on the day’s or week’s needs – The task is given a name and detailed instructions are provided for the task owner via the description area or the Job Aid module.
  3. Priorities are given (high, medium, low) and a task owner is assigned – This is great as it encourages autonomy and gives the team a sense of structure. Employees can execute tasks far more efficiently when they know exactly what needs to be done, how it should be performed and in what order. This method builds a confident and competent employee.

The beauty of managing workflows this way is that the manager will have insight into how operations are flowing at any given moment. There is no need to travel to another cubicle or office to check on the status of tasks. By leveraging your CRM, you can monitor the workflow and receive real time updates while sitting in your kitchen!

Remote work may seem daunting at first. Especially for those with a penchant for in person socialization. However, as the pandemic has painfully taught us, failing to QUICKLY adapt to this increasingly remote landscape can result in the demise of your business. Working from the office may seem like the only way to operate, since it's been the go-to method for over a century now. Older does not always equate to superior and what’s viewed as the gold standard today may be considered antiquated tomorrow. If you think it’s time to move your business away from the traditional office, you don’t have to go it alone.

Feel free to reach out with any questions and I’ll be sure to get back with you posthaste!