Owning or managing a business during the COVID-19 pandemic does not have to result in closing your doors or missing out on revenue. In fact, transitioning to remote work and utilizing digital tools and work-from-home solutions can help your business to not only survive during COVID-19, but also thrive.

Use Portals and Microsites

Depending on the size of your business and the entire operation, you may consider using a portal or a microsite to help guide employees through the process of working from home or completing tasks and daily responsibilities. Using a portal solution is a way for you to connect and communicate with all of your employees without privacy risks or vulnerabilities in your way. A portal intranet is utilized by many major corporations who currently allow workers to work remotely or are in the process of transitioning to remote work due to the COVID-19 pandemic outbreak and quarantine orders in place.

Create Unique Landing Pages

Creating unique landing pages for your company’s official website can help to inform staff of changes while also directing employees to different links, portals, and log-in areas of your website, depending on their purpose. Unique landing pages are optimal if you manage a larger number of employees or if you are interested in managing your employees based on the team they are in or their job title. Creating unique landing pages for employee titles and teams can help you to better track and monitor the overall productivity of various sectors of your business, even when everyone is currently working from home or remotely.

Use Applications and Remote Management Software

Using tools such as Slack, Microsoft Teams (formerly known as Skype), Facebook Workplace, and even Fleep can help you to keep in touch with remote employees while maintaining communication at all times, regardless of your locations. Take the time to research various programs, tools, time trackers, and even project management software solutions to determine which are right for you and the number of employees you intend to manage from home or remotely. Ask yourself the following questions when selecting digital applications, management tools, and software programs that are most suitable for your business and the workplace culture you are trying to maintain:

• How many employees will I be managing? Can I manage employees individually, or do I require software or applications that can help with the process?
• What productivity measurements are most important to my business? How will I track these measurements with individual employees or entire teams?
• How will I communicate with my employees daily, weekly, or bi-weekly? Will video calls and conferences be mandatory for all employees? If so, which programs will sustain the number of employees I intend to meet with?

Create a Remote Work Policy

Implementing a remote work policy is also highly advisable for any business in the process of transitioning to working remotely. A remote work policy provides guidelines, rules, and restrictions for all employees who intend to work from home with the use of their own computers, company-owned computers, and smartphones.

Use a remote work policy to implement availability requirements, meetings and conference dates, as well as resources for tools, software, and programs necessary to work each day. Your remote work policy can also include guided instructions for your employees to help them download and install the necessary tools and software to help them get to work.

Whether you own a small shop or a local storefront in a busy area, helping your business survive during COVID-19 is still possible by transitioning to the digital realm, launching an eCommerce store, or allowing your employees to work from home.

When you are familiar with various project management software solutions, communication apps, and productivity tracking programs, you can keep your business operating at all times without sacrificing the overall efficiency and productivity of your employees and ultimately, the revenue you are able to generate.