Understanding the role of connectivity in today’s remote world

Our concept of connectivity has changed over the past six months. It likely means something different to each of us as we have been required to limit our face-to-face connections. In business, the term’s meaning was once limited to switches, routers, networks, and the Internet. But many of us have broadened our definition of connectivity as it has taken on greater and different meaning. In response to COVID-required remote work, we have learned that both technological connectivity and human connectivity have an important role to play in business.

Technological connectivity is a high priority for organizations as they seek the tools to help their employees operate as if they were still in the office. As we work remotely for an indefinite amount of time, we must have technological connectivity to do our jobs effectively. How can employees stay productive while they are working from home? How can they access files, collaborate on projects, and participate in meetings as if they were in the office? At Logic Speak, we have found that the technological common denominators of those companies that have successfully navigated the shutdowns are cloud computing and comprehensive collaboration tools. Having these technologies in place has made the difference between just surviving or continuing to thrive during COVID-19 for many of our clients. These technologies are not only critical for remote work—they are also important for success at any time. 

 

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In addition, the need to provide our employees with ways to connect with each other on a human level has skyrocketed since COVID remote work began. Forming these human connections at work is critical because they not only motivate us to do our jobs well and efficiently but also provide us with social connection and the ability to stave off isolation and loneliness. Replacing events such as chatting in the break room, grabbing lunch together, or gathering for Friday afternoon happy hour with meaningful virtual encounters via connectivity tools has great benefit to today’s companies.

How does all of this affect your business? Connectivity—both technological and human—can have a huge impact on your operations during COVID and beyond. Enabling connectivity with the right tools provides companies with agility and efficiency, the ability to collaborate as if they were in the office, and the security they need to allow employees to work at home while protecting the company from bad cyber actors.

And while we need both technological and human connection, there is a downside to all of this connecting. One of the challenges of remote work is that we can feel that we are always at work, that we must always check and answer email, respond to phone calls, or work past normal business hours. This can lead to burnout and other negative outcomes and hinders our ability to step away for big picture thinking and creativity. Conscious, deliberate, and planned disconnection is a key component to working effectively while remote.

In this series of blogs, we will discuss systems connectivity, human connectivity, and the impact of connectivity (or lack thereof) on your business. We’ll discuss how Microsoft 365 and Microsoft Teams can enable human connectivity among your employees and produce higher efficiency, increased motivation, improved operations, and better business outcomes—both during and COVID-19 and after you are back to normal. And we’ll address the importance of disconnecting periodically in our always-connected world. Finally, we’ll show you how Logic Speak can help your business choose the right tools and support, based on the individual needs of your business, to enable effective connectivity during COVID-19 and beyond.

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