{"id":75523,"date":"2020-03-26T19:42:15","date_gmt":"2020-03-26T17:42:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/prohoster.info\/blog\/administrirovanie\/beefree-perevodim-lyudej-na-udalyonku-s-2016-goda"},"modified":"2020-03-26T19:42:15","modified_gmt":"2020-03-26T17:42:15","slug":"beefree-perevodim-lyudej-na-udalyonku-s-2016-goda","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/prohoster.info\/en\/blog\/administrirovanie\/beefree-perevodim-lyudej-na-udalyonku-s-2016-goda","title":{"rendered":"BeeFREE. Moving people to remote work since 2016","gt_translate_keys":[{"key":"rendered","format":"text"}]},"content":{"rendered":"

Hello! <\/p>\n

We hope you are reading this post during working hours, already transitioned to remote work by your employer. <\/p>\n

We were able to transition our employees to remote work quite quickly for one simple reason \u2014 since 2016, our company has had BeeFREE, our strategic remote work project, which allows employees to work from home.<\/p>\n

\"BeeFREE.<\/a><\/noindex><\/p>\n

Below, we will discuss how everything works, why desktop monitoring programs for employees are a shot in the foot, why we implemented all this four years ago, as well as some tips for those for whom temporary remote work was a rather unexpected event, including three remote work traps. <\/p>\n

And here is a small survey.
\n<\/a><\/noindex><\/p>\n

BeeFREE<\/h2>\n

\nBeeFREE was conceived as a project beneficial to both corporate culture in general and to the condition (and mood) of each individual. No matter how large the company is, it always consists of people, each with their own ideas about beauty and surroundings, including the working environment, schedule, comfortable working temperature, the (un)acceptability of reheating fish in the communal kitchen, and other matters.<\/p>\n

Some prefer to work in the office, interact with colleagues in person, and (yes, yes) participate in meetings. Some agree with those for whom open space is one of the circles of hell, where it is simply a bit noisier than in others. The third group is firmly convinced that a well-composed email with a clearly stated question can yield much more than calling three meetings at different times for this purpose. Often even faster.<\/p>\n

In general, it was decided in 2016 to launch this as a pilot and then see if it would thrive at all, or if it was not worth scaling up. As a attentive reader has already understood, it has thrived quite successfully and continues to operate.<\/p>\n

So, how is this arranged and what is needed for an employee to transition to BeeFREE.<\/p>\n

    \n
  1. Discuss everything with your immediate supervisor, who, depending on the situation, will either give the green light or explain why it's not possible. For instance, if a person has demonstrated that they can work independently and solve tasks, then fine, let them try doing it from home. But if someone becomes a prime example of an employee who needs constant supervision, reminders, or corrections, and cannot resist spending three hours on social media, even in their free time, that's a different story.\n

    And, of course, some positions simply do not allow for remote work. It would be a bit challenging to send a fiber-optic installer to work from home. Sure, they could provide moral support to their colleagues via video calls, but that\u2019s not quite the same. Or take employees in communication salons. In general, it's pretty obvious \u2014 a specialist who works well on a laptop and performs all their tasks from a computer can just as effectively work outside the office.<\/li>\n

  2. Inform colleagues that you will not be in the office on specific days. BeeFREE is flexible, and for example, if during a conversation with your supervisor it was decided that you would work from home for three days and in the office on Tuesdays and Wednesdays (or Mondays and Fridays), it would be good for your immediate colleagues to know this so they can write to you via email or chat instead of searching for you around the office. <\/li>\n
  3. Once a week, coordinate your current tasks and priorities with your supervisor. It may sound like a rather trivial thing, but it really helps to clarify focus and removes the strange managerial tension of 'So, what exactly is this guy doing, and at what stage is everything?'. For this purpose, there is a special to-do list in the employee and supervisor's personal account, but as experience shows, the main thing is simply to agree. How and where tasks and progress are recorded is secondary. The key is that it exists, and not just in verbal form.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    \nThe main principles \u2014 in such remote work, we evaluate result<\/b>, not a process. Simply put, the worst thing you can do in such a situation is to try to constantly monitor the worker, asking what they are doing right now, whether they are focused on work or something else. In the most extreme cases, employers sometimes request the installation of special monitoring software (read \u2014 surveillance) for the employee's desktop. There's a strange belief that this motivates the employee to always stay on task rather than being distracted.<\/p>\n

    In reality, this should encourage you to update your resume and find a job without such excessive control.<\/p>\n

    That's about it. Moving forward, we operate as we did, using the following.<\/p>\n

    Our Tools<\/h2>\n

    \nA number of corporate resources are only available from the internal network, so the access issue is solved with VDI. To begin enjoying the benefits of remote work, here\u2019s what you need.<\/p>\n

      \n
    1. We submit the necessary requests. Probably the only stage somewhat related to bureaucracy and formalities. But when you're a large company, it's hard to do it any other way.<\/li>\n
    2. After processing all these requests, VDI is installed on the employee's laptop (personal or work), we use Horizon<\/a><\/noindex>. <\/li>\n
    3. For user authentication, their account credentials are used along with a unique token (this is managed by Gemalto<\/a><\/noindex>, the app can be installed on Android\/iOS smartphones).<\/li>\n
    4. Corporate email and calendar \u2014 Microsoft Outlook.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

      \nBy the way, this is the complete list of mandatory software; in terms of communication and task management, we left everything to the direction heads and the employees themselves. Some prefer to communicate in Slack \u2014 go ahead. Need stickers to express emotions \u2014 Telegram is always an option. No one is canceling Whatsapp and Skype.<\/p>\n

      Once a week, many departments have a status meeting. In normal epidemiological conditions, this was a large conference room with video conferencing, as we have headquarters employees in Moscow, remote workers, people from the area, and individuals from regions, so it was in the format of 'In-person or Bluejeans'. Now, all meetings and discussions are conducted only remotely, either via Bluejeans or Zoom.<\/p>\n

      And additional useful software for comfortable remote work<\/h2>\n

      \nSometimes your company's operations rely on a specific vendor, or you may already be using their products. Conversely, company security policies might restrict the use of a particular company's software, necessitating alternatives.<\/p>\n

      Video Conferencing<\/b><\/p>\n

      Zoom <\/a><\/noindex>(free for up to 100 participants and 40 minutes per conference, then from $15 per month)
      \n      Bluejeans <\/a><\/noindex>(up to 50 participants from $12 per month, more after that)
      \n      Google Hangouts Meet<\/a><\/noindex> (within GSuite, from $5.50 per month per user, up to 100 participants, 14-day free trial)
      \n      Cisco WebEx Meetings<\/a><\/noindex>
      \n      Microsoft Teams <\/a><\/noindex>(within Office 365)<\/p>\n

      Chats and Knowledge Bases<\/b><\/p>\n

      Slack <\/a><\/noindex>\u2014 the product is nearly 7 years old, and during this time it has accumulated numerous useful integrations (Dropbox, Asana, Google Drive, and more). From a simple work chat, Slack has become a powerhouse where you can create a channel for each department in the company, share files, quickly connect required bots, monitor events, send alerts for testers\u2014it's packed with features.<\/p>\n

      Notion <\/a><\/noindex>\u2014 helps create convenient knowledge bases (how-tos, onboarding guides for new employees, useful schedules, tasks with statuses, and, of course, notes).<\/p>\n

      Asana <\/a><\/noindex>\u2014 arguably the classic in task management, deadlines, responsibilities, priorities, and more. Many useful integrations.<\/p>\n

      Trello <\/a><\/noindex>\u2014 for fans of boards and Atlassian.<\/p>\n

      About People<\/h2>\n

      \nIt seems simple: you switch to remote work and start working from home. Undoubtedly, there are many advantages \u2014 no commute (and the associated stress), savings on transportation and gas, and other perks. But there are also several dangers that lie in wait for those who choose this path. The most well-known is related to poor self-organization. In fact, all other issues stem from this.<\/p>\n

      \"BeeFREE.
      \n
      \nTrap #1. Home<\/b><\/p>\n

      If you live with a spouse, children, or parents, or even worse, with a cat, your remote work will initially be interpreted by them quite straightforwardly: cool, you\u2019re at home, so they can ask you for anything. Going to the store, making tea, changing diapers, giving the cat a reprimand for its unequal battle with the ficus, cleaning up the house, and changing the diaper again. <\/p>\n

      Overall, even if you decide that you are working as responsibly and dedicatedly at home, you will need to clearly communicate to your household that you are not just at home on the computer; you are working.<\/p>\n

      It helps to set clear boundaries for times when you shouldn\u2019t be disturbed. This way, your family understands that from 10 AM to 6 PM (for example), they shouldn\u2019t bother you with questions or requests just because you\u2019re \"at home.\" <\/p>\n

      Of course, this requires balance, and if you have 20 minutes left until the end of your work and your peripheral vision notices that your child has managed to escape the playpen and is exploring another room alone, it\u2019s better to get up and take action. Or if you feel like going for a half-hour stroll in the nearby park \u2014 you should go for that walk.<\/p>\n

      Trap #2. Deceptive Time<\/b><\/p>\n

      You might start to think that since you\u2019re sitting at home, with the computer at your fingertips, the software configured, and that you are literally a click away from work, you can now definitely accomplish everything and slow down to do things three times slower.<\/p>\n

      Not at all. And here\u2019s why.<\/p>\n

      Most likely, the number of tasks will increase. There\u2019s a good chance that the overall speed of your department's work will slow down a bit. Working within a remote team for a year and working remotely for two weeks are two very different experiences. Some people have been preparing for this lifestyle for the last 20 or 30 years. For others, such sudden relaxation may negatively impact productivity.<\/p>\n

      Even if you manage to switch quickly, responsibly, and are always connected, completing your tasks twice as fast, there will always be someone who slows down the work. Whether it's someone\u2019s renovation, a power outage, or a neighbor with a jackhammer thinking it's the right time. And now any video conference becomes a collective session of human appreciation.<\/p>\n

      In general, we are not advocating for rigid boundaries and instant responses to every incoming message, but keep in mind that the first phase of transitioning a team that is new to remote work will be associated with some slowdowns.<\/p>\n

      Trap #3. Lack of Control<\/b><\/p>\n

      As we mentioned earlier, the worst thing an employer can do is to have a supervisor trying to keep track of every step you take: at what stage the task is, why not everyone was copied on the email, how much time you spent at the computer today, what brand of drill the neighbor has, why you have such strange wallpaper on your desktop, and so on.<\/p>\n

      The key here is not to start thinking that because you are out of the office, everyone suddenly doesn't care where you are and what you're doing. That all your tasks have been tucked away for management into some folder with no deadlines, and that you don't actually have to do them.<\/p>\n

      The most important control for remote workers is self-control. No one knows better than you what time you work best. Perhaps in your case, it's better and more beneficial to completely ignore work until 3:00 PM and watch series, and from 4:00 PM to midnight your productivity is outstanding, allowing you to do in one day what an office fan does in three. The office system with open spaces and ignoring people's rhythms cannot understand this. <\/p>\n

      Remote work is both an opportunity for the employer to assess how well you perform when working from home, and an opportunity for you to prove that people can indeed achieve great things not only from 10 to 6, and that if you haven't achieved anything by noon, it only indicates that you haven't achieved anything by noon.<\/p>\n

      And one more thing<\/h2>\n

      \nOver the years, we at Beeline have thoroughly tested BeeFREE, gathered a lot of feedback from both employees and their managers, made conclusions, implemented a few fixes, and continue to actively use the approach now.<\/p>\n

      We are now actively helping other companies integrate BeeFREE into their operations. Both from a hardware and software standpoint, as well as providing advice. For example, we can help you quickly deploy VDI for any profile tasks, whether your teams are handling routine tasks or engaging in remote 3D modeling. We have solutions for audio and video conferencing; you can read more about BeeFREE: WorkPlace-as-a-Service. on this page<\/a><\/noindex>. Additionally, our service may be useful for companies, a webinar<\/a><\/noindex>, which you can register for in advance, right here.<\/a><\/noindex>.<\/p>\n

      Here is a detailed webinar on organizing remote work by Olga Filatova (Executive Vice President for Human Resources, Organizational Development, and Support) and Alina Dragun (Manager of Organizational Development at Beeline, curator of the BeeFREE project).<\/p>\n

      \r\n \"Play\r\n
      <\/div>\r\n <\/div><\/center><\/p>\n

      Only registered users can participate in the survey. Please log in<\/a><\/noindex>, please.<\/p>\n

      And a short survey for companies regarding remote work (you can choose several options).<\/h2>\n