Remote working has many benefits for a business – if managed correctly, it improves staff loyalty and productivity, and can assist with employee attraction and retention.

For many businesses, there is really no reason to have staff sitting at their desks for eight hours a day, five days a week.

With the perks of modern day technology through things like HP’s Elitebook range, a cloud-based operating system and high-speed fixed or mobile internet connection, experienced knowledge workers are entirely capable working out of the office, and many of them thrive.

The perceived autonomy that workers gain by being given the freedom to work from anywhere, whether that’s at home, at a café, or even at the beach, increases their happiness, performance and creativity.

It also allows them to cut down on travel time and costs, and manage work-life balance more effectively, reducing stress.

Employers, meanwhile, enjoy all these benefits as well as through reduced commercial real estate costs, as they can lease smaller spaces. The practice will also drive recruitment of the best young talent.

Millennials crave flexibility

Flexible working arrangements will also help attract millennial workers, who will soon be the most important demographic to target for employers looking to attract the top-level talent.

There’s been a lot of effort put in to trying to understand millennials, but one thing is clear – they really value work-life balance, even above their love for meaningful work, and that means they are keen to embrace remote working.

They’re also digital natives who are capable of using a range of devices including smartphones, laptops and tablets and digital communications mediums to work independently.

While New Zealand has not fully embraced remote working, that is changing. The rollout of high-speed broadband across the country has made flexible working arrangements feasible for workers in professional services.

Speedy internet is essential for successful remote working, and not just in industries that work with large amounts of data. Employees must be able to engage in data-intensive video conferencing to stay engaged with their manager and colleagues, a key factor in maintaining high performance.

The technology is available

One thing is for certain, it’s not hardware that is holding back the transition to a more flexible, remote working environment in most industries.

The Intel-powered HP Elitebooks, for example, are versatile, well-designed pieces of hardware that appeal to millennials’ sense of style and have all the processing power and in-built features required to facilitate out-of-office work.

Their in-built security systems also give employers piece of mind. HP SureView, for example, offers privacy when working in public spaces by reducing the visibility of the notebook’s screen without compromising the user experience.

Data security is a pressing concern for workplaces, and remote working offers new security challenges, including that every public Wi-Fi should be treated like it is compromised.

These issues can be overcome with the right systems in place and the strong in-built protection within the HP Elitebook range.

Independent IT solutions provider NEOS offers cost-effective assistance for businesses looking to unlock the benefits of remote working by offering strategic advice on the hardware, software and management systems for a successful and secure flexible working environment.

NEOS is your partner to a digital future – visit www.neos.co.nz or call on 0800 022-123.