TECHNOFILE
Working from home
Working from home — are you doing it right ? Tim Stackpool explores the tech and virtual world that ’ s now commonplace in our workday
THE EXPERT
Tech expert Tim is the technology writer for Executive PA Media . He can be heard on talk radio in Australia and is a tech presenter who speaks at conferences and trade shows about technology ’ s impact on work and lifestyle .
Working from home has become mandatory for many this year and could develop into a brandnew ‘ normal ’ for plenty of office professionals . Here are a few tips on working with common resources , as well as new ideas , that might minimise those feelings of disconnection .
Zoom video conferencing ( www . zoom . us ) has seen a meteoric rise in popularity over the past few months , proving to be significant competition for Microsoft ’ s Skype and Google ’ s Hangouts . Its ease of use appears to be a driving factor , as well as the quality of the connection and simple interface . Being able to record the call is also of advantage , and no significant sign-up requirement makes for a quick and easy way to call an ad-hoc meeting at short notice . It ’ s worth checking your microphone audio and speakers before beginning a call using the built-in tests and check your camera to ensure the picture is not too bright or dark .
Spending all day typing on a smaller keyboard while peering at the laptop screen can become arduous . You can attach a larger monitor and keyboard with a mouse to your laptop when working from home . Pretty much every laptop has a monitor or HDMI output so you can connect an ‘ outboard ’ screen , by using Bluetooth , or a plain old USB connection , a larger more ergonomic keyboard and mouse can easily be added . This reduces uncomfortable and irritable
RSIs that can develop over time .
Sharing documents and collaborating on reports has been possible by the latest features present in suites like Microsoft Office . Zoho and Dropbox Paper are others . Outside of these , Google Docs ( www . docs . google . com ) is entirely web-based , and includes a word processor , spreadsheet , and ‘ Slides ’ ( their version of PowerPoint ), which allows collaboration with others . You will need to have an account with Google to use Google Docs , as will any collaborators .
No doubt your workplace is using project management tools . MS Project has been a worthy contender for many years , but new tools have joined the market that interface well with mobile users and have proven to reduce the amount of loose emails gathered during a project . Slack is essentially a chat room for the entire team , designed to replace email as a primary method of communication and sharing . Its workspaces organise communications by channels for group discussions , private messages , and to share information , files , and more all in one place . Trello is an online corkboard ; use it to organise ‘ cards ’ into lists . Those cards can be tasks , notes , projects , shared files , or anything else that helps teams work together . Another highly regarded system is Monday . com . It ’ s a cloud-based work operating system offering a simplified way to manage any team and any project while creating a more transparent work culture .
While it ’ s important to remain focussed when working from home , it ’ s just as wise to remember to take regular breaks . Productivity drops across the day and taking a break can help refresh the mind and regenerate faltering enthusiasm . There are many apps that can remind you to take a break but check tomato-timer . com , which uses the ‘ Pomodoro Technique ’ for work rhythms . Being web-based , it requires no installation . S
32 Chief of Staff | Issue 2 2020