Working Remotely for Better Business

Google search for Fast Company’s, “Why Working Remotely is Better for Business” for their full article.

Our take on the subject matter follows.

[Small Business Era]
We came across a company that seems to be building an online business community with access to several tools aimed at helping other businesses across America realize the savings and increased productivity opportunities with remote working and collaboration, WinWinUSA.com.  WinWin is a “business social media network” that offers text and video chat, screen and white board sharing, file sharing and even webinar sessions, all mostly found in their Virtual Conference Rooms.

Note: This is strictly a business social site, tailored for connecting businesses instead of individuals.  We were unsure at first why this matters, but after researching the site more, it makes great sense.  The focus is on businesses helping other businesses, from sole proprietors through big corporations.  Multiple users (employees) may be added to the business account on WinWin and they are guided within the site’s structure to communicate as the business.  Furthermore, if a manager or employee is no longer part of the organization, there is no notable change to the profile or business activity since the business is the account owner.  Ask any business the significance of this who had an employee establish a Facebook business page, only to have that employee leave with access to that page.

Telecommuting has been available for a couple decades and today the tools for effectively working remotely are in abundance.  The greatest challenge is not technological, but human in nature.  If management is adept at results-driven management, then remote work is a key tool for reducing costs while increasing productivity and employee retention.