The world has become technology-driven, and many advancements have positively impacted society. And in the recent global health crisis, businesses and organizations have utilized the power of technology to remain relevant amidst the challenges of the times. Because of limited physical interactions, institutions have devised ways to continue their operations; hence, remote work. But it became a challenge initially because remote working is a relatively new phenomenon, but everyone adjusted.
Businesses worldwide have embraced this work mode, especially during the pandemic. Since then, technology and software have been developed to support the transition to remote work.
With the increased importance of remote work for organizations, businesses need ways to share confidential company files from one department to another. The need to promote enhanced collaboration has also arisen to avoid unproductive employees. Thankfully, several tools can help foster collaboration among remote teams. That said, here are some file-sharing and collaboration tips for remote businesses.
• Choose The Right Tools
You must have the right tools to foster collaboration within your team. Every business will have different IT needs. Nevertheless, you must provide your staff with all the IT resources they need to be productive. Some of the tools you may need include e-signature tools like jSign, video conferencing tools, project management tools, and file-sharing tools. Remember, the success of your business relies heavily on investing in the right tools.
• Invest In Employee Training
Remote businesses need to ensure to invest in employee training. For your employees to be productive, they need to understand how to use your business’s IT resources. Most importantly, they should also be trained to be alert for cyber threats.
Note that cybersecurity awareness training may require hands-on demonstrations. Other forms of training may not. So, consider creating training tutorials for how to operate the systems in your business. If team members forget bits of information, they can easily refresh their memory.
• Use A Password Manager
Some people avoid creating strong passwords out of fear of forgetting them. However, this is a serious error since it makes it simpler for hackers to access your accounts or systems. It would help if you created a strong password that’s difficult for anyone to decipher.
Investing in a solid password manager allows your teams to create complex passwords and keep track of them. Having a password manager also makes it simple to change your passwords regularly. That is why it is preferable if each team member invests in a reliable password manager.
• Use Multi-Factor Authentication
You may need more than strong passwords to protect you from cyberattacks. Therefore, using multi-factor authentication for your systems would be best.
A strong password may not suffice if an employee falls prey to a phishing email scam, for example. Once the hacker accesses the system, they can reset passwords and lock you out of the system. So, consider establishing a standard requiring multi-factor authentication for your business systems.
• Encrypt Data
Your data needs to be encrypted in transit and at rest. Encrypting your data means that the person receiving it must have a key to decrypt it. Even if someone tries to access the data, they can’t view it if they don’t have a key. Therefore, remote businesses need encryption because they typically share files via the cloud or file-sharing tools.
• Use Expiring Links
Links are an easy way to share data between team members. You can also share files with external users by sharing a link. But when sharing links outside the business, you must ensure they expire after a given time. People outside the organization shouldn’t have access to system files forever for security purposes. If such users want extensions, they’d have to request them from you or management.
• Make Data Readily Available
Since your teams will be working remotely, you must ensure that all of them have access to the data they need to remain productive. It’s easy for data to get siloed in a remote business because people in different locations may need to access company data at varying times. Businesses with employees that reside in different time zones may encounter this issue. For example, if a team member needs access to a specific file when their supervisor is asleep in another part of the world, they won’t be able to carry on with their project.
It is one situation your business should aim to avoid. One way to prevent this is by investing in integrated cloud storage systems that all your team members can access. Additionally, you could implement access controls to give employees or departments access to parts of the system they need to do their tasks. Also, if possible, team leaders and their subordinates should share schedules so that they know each other’s availability status.
Conclusion
As more firms adopt a remote working model, developers are eager to continue developing tools that facilitate remote work. Thankfully, most of these solutions are accessible even to smaller businesses. Businesses could also consider outsourcing some of the IT services to save costs. Furthermore, remote businesses must ensure that data is always accessible to employees and that security measures are in place to protect company data.
