class="news-template-default single single-news postid-2831 wp-custom-logo tribe-no-js">
How to train staff working from home in new technology
By Michael Coyle
It’s now been about three weeks since people started working from home. The first challenge was making sure all users were set up with laptops and headsets as stock ran out. Using home machines is not great and having the right set-up is crucial.
Everyone needs to work out their new routine with the required discipline, just like in an office, with a start and end time and proper breaks.
The technology is there for organisations to work remotely, but technology, such as Microsoft Teams is new to so many people, which brings its own challenges.
Unprecedented nature
Microsoft Corporate vice-president Jared Spataro said: “The last seven days have shown the sheer unprecedented nature of the global demand we’re seeing now for solutions that enable remote work and learning across chat, video, and file collaboration, which Teams provides in a single platform.
“As previously shared, as of March 11, 2020 we counted 32 million daily users of Teams, which was mostly in line with our growth trajectory and projections. As of March 18, 2020, that number has grown by 12 million to 44 million daily users around the world.”
It is vital, therefore, for people to be trained on how to use these new tools. We have run a series of webinars that have had 40-60 attendees, compared to around 20 previously. We held one for a customer that had more than 100 people attending.
Vital for productivity
How to use the tech effectively is vital for productivity. Collaboration across teams when the office is dispersed to remote locations is so important. For example, video is better than audio to bring people together, but sometimes, especially for those with broadband in rural areas, it is necessary to switch video off.
There are a host of great training materials available online for users wanting to learn how to use the tools – but also for some people who may have reduced hours to reskill and retrain for the future.
Microsoft Learn has training paths for Azure and Microsoft 365 which are really useful. Click here to access their excellent materials.
At MicroWarehouse, we are running a series of webinars on different aspects of Microsoft tech. Visit learn.mwh.ie to view all upcoming webinars.
We have partnered with Nulia, a pioneer in Digital Enablement, which enables companies to see that their employees are spending, say, an hour a week on training, what they are learning, how it is helping them.
Removes barriers
This integrates really well with Microsoft 365 and is taking away barriers to continuous training.
This shift to working from home is changing many people’s attitudes to it. With the right discipline and routines, employees are seeing how effective the technology can be. I have heard from a lot of people who were reluctant and somewhat anti-tech before, who are now positive about the experience.
Making sure people are trained on the tools is the key to success for home working. Register for any of our digital workshops or webinars at learn.mwh.ie & join us to see how you can get the best out of technology.
To contact MicroWarehouse, click here.