First there were flexible-hours, then came working from home and doing business remotely, and now there are huge corporations that work globally yet don’t have a single physical office. What does this mean? It means the chance to work from anywhere in the world is not just a thing, it is a movement that is attracting the very best talent out there, talent that refuses to accept an office-bound life when the alternative is so darn glorious. However, letting your employees work remotely isn’t just a matter of handing them a laptop and then wishing upon a star because, in order for this to work successfully, working outside the office requires a touch of strategy. With that in mind, here are our top tips on how to make the remote revolution work for your business:

It’s About The Person

Working remotely isn’t for everything. That is the first thing you need to realise and accept. You are talking about giving your employees more freedom and responsibilities, tackling challenges alone and managing time. That is why choosing the right people is so important, and that means choosing those with the right soft skills; self-awareness, discipline and good communication skills. Essentially, this

comes down to your leadership

abilities because, without the right people, success is going to be a pipedream and your bottom-line will fall through.

Technology You Can Trust

In order to make working remotely a real success, then you absolutely need to invest in the proper technology. One of these will be the proper laptop for working from home, for example, as you'll need to make sure it fits your particular needs and budget. Likewise, to ensure you have everything you need to maximise your abilities and efficiencies on this front is to use computer services for small businesses, someone with expertise in setting up remote access and VPN services. The more you can spend up front, the more seamless your transition will be. The important thing to remember on this front is communication. That is where certain software can change your life, such as Trello or Asana. These not only allow multiple people to track the progress of individual projects, they don’t require any questions or explanations.

Set Out Clear Goals

The best way to reduce any stressing, guessing or the need to constantly check up on people’s work, your best bet is to

set clear goals and expectations

. That way everyone knows exactly what hymn sheet they are meant to be singing off and exactly what tune to be singing it in. But on top of having clear goals, it is essential you also make deadlines clear, schedule regular check-ins and make sure you have open lines of communication that allow in-office employees to effectively work alongside those who have gone remote. Goals, goals, goals. That is how to ensure success is forged. With these three cornerstones laid, you will have the foundations of success up and running. It then becomes a game of tweaking your processes until they become as flawless as possible. That means working out how to improve the organisational side of remote working, eliminating distractions as much as possible, and setting regular meetings so that progress can be managed that much more effectively.