The nature of business is evolving. The shift to remote work has been evident for some time, but now the rubber is hitting the road and businesses are under pressure to adapt for the long term. Embracing these changes will guarantee that companies are well-positioned to handle the impacts of the future of work, and technology underpins much of the route to success.

Before the pandemic, 81% of employees aged between 35 and 44 preferred working from home. In the post-pandemic world, this figure has grown considerably. This trend has also given rise to new innovations, which support location-independent work, and ensure that distributed teams can thrive. 

This article explores the remote work software that companies should implement to ensure that their people achieve their full potential in the new world of work. 

How to Empower Your Global Team for Success Using Digital Tools

Remote work is now a significant part of the business environment and will shortly dominate most industries. Therefore, managers must understand how to keep global teams empowered. Since remote work is becoming increasingly normalized, there is a need to understand its unique impact on the organization and how to provide the necessary support.

Adopting the right technology is one way to empower global teams for success. While most articles on the internet recommend software such as Zoom and Slack, they barely scratch the surface of the true realm of possibility. Plenty of remote work tools allow managers to provide the necessary support to employees.

Organizations may have access to the best HR team in the world, but with the right tools, their performance becomes even better. Therefore, assembling the right tech stack will empower your employees to work from anywhere. Key benefits such as flexibility are highly desirable in the modern work environment. With many companies implementing remote work systems, there is increased pressure to support the employees' needs to reduce employee turnover rate.

What Is a Tech Stack?

Tech Stack, in this context, refers to a set of software tools or frameworks that a company decides to use to deploy an application or a solution. The Tech stack can be composed of one or more tools that are most likely integrated to allow for a streamlined approach in remote work.

The requirements of the tech stack will largely depend on the unique needs of the particular company in implementing a remote work approach. While organizations may be in the same industry, they will likely have unique needs due to different organizational cultures and structures. Thus, the tech stack should complement the unique nature of the companies.

A tech stack can be targeted towards mobile or desktop platforms, but in remote work, there is a recognition that employees will have different work approaches. Thus, considering the differing preferences of the employees calls for cross-platform tools. Cross-platforms are tools that can work on various devices. 

If the tech stack is right for the company, it will gain multiple benefits, such as faster business scaling and differentiating the recruitment brand, among others. However, as the business evolves, so should the tech stack. This 

ensures that the tech stack continuously complements the business operations and accounts for new changes.

Why Assembling the Right Tech Stack is Essential to a Company's Success 

Assembling the right tech stack involves plenty of decisions. A manager needs to understand the features of the technology and why it is suitable for the organization. Despite the many choices involved in getting the right tools, the time and effort spent are justifiable since compiling the best set of remote work tools guarantees increased productivity for global teams.

Remote work provides plenty of challenges, but this new approach can succeed with the right technology. Multiple surveys and studies have been conducted on remote work employees, and the results illustrate the value of having the right technology.  The research shows that organizations that adopted HR tech during the pandemic were more likely to report higher job satisfaction and increased productivity.

Employers are responsible for a company's productivity, and their decisions about implementing remote work software will define the company's position in the new business reality.

Needs Your Remote Work Software Should Address

While the many existing options may overwhelm HR managers, it is still necessary to pursue the right technology to ensure it aligns with the organization’s goals. Regardless of the software you choose, tools that support a better employee experience should be considered at the center of decision-making.

Helping employees is a crucial consideration of tech stack decision-making because their experience determines the success or failure of the remote work approach. The right tools will empower the employees by creating a platform that supports cooperation and allows for efficiency.

The right tech stack addresses basic needs, such as providing the correct information to the managers and the employees. Technology should allow employees and managers to communicate effectively. While these needs seem basic, they build the foundation for business success. However, the right remote software should offer much more than the basics.

Therefore, remote work software should be personalized for individual employees. This creates a sense of belonging among the employees and facilitates collaboration. Such tools allow HR managers to have an easier time reinforcing the culture. Employees have various interactions with the organization, from preboarding to onboarding, meaning that managers should be aware of these capabilities.

Managers can use technology to find their organization's best remote work software. With platforms like RemotePass, businesses can get help with HR decisions and tasks. Engaging employees properly leads to more productivity.

Aligning Existing Tools with Remote Work Needs

While businesses need to adapt to the changing nature of work, organizations already have vital digital tools that could be useful in this unfamiliar environment. Hence, HR managers must assess whether the existing business tools effectively support remote work and determine whether the business needs each particular tool. This will allow companies to get rid of ineffective work tools while keeping those that are beneficial. 

Most modern tools have limited features, thus creating the need to add more software. Some of the available software also lacks cloud computing features. 

The way digital tools are used could change in the future. For example, Slack or similar software may have been traditionally used to send business communications but may become more popular for casual conversations. Managers should prepare for new ways of using existing software.

How to Assess New Tools for Remote Working

There are many tools for managers to choose from, which creates a challenge in assessing the right tools. Every organization is unique, meaning it has different needs making it impossible to develop a standardized tool. Thus, to assemble the perfect tech stack for remote work, remote HR should consider the following factors:

Evaluate the Options Based on your Company's Size

Some digital tools suit large companies, while others suit smaller companies. Employees' needs will vary depending on the company's size. For functions such as hiring and rewarding, among others, the size of the business will influence the chosen tech tool.

Additionally, the employees' needs will evolve as the company grows, meaning that HR should anticipate any potential changes in the business and their possible impact. What works for the company during startup may not work as the company evolves.

Consider Integrations 

In the digital age, system integration ensures a streamlined end-user experience. Integration makes collaboration among employees and information sharing effortless. While integration is a valuable consideration, some core applications may still need more features. Therefore, partnering with remote work platforms such as RemotePass allows an organization to create a streamlined approach to remote work.

The integration of the systems will create more opportunities for HR and employees to display their creativity. It also ensures that the tech stack is suited to the employees' unique needs. Another critical advantage of integration is that it creates an easy learning curve for new employees regardless of their tech knowledge. This technology should be easy as this supports adoption in organizations heavily dependent on legacy systems.

Factor In Team’s Expertise

A team's technological expertise is a key factor that influences the managers' tech stack decisions. Managers can incorporate any tool if the employees are experienced in various technologies. However, if the team is less skilled, a decision should be made to choose the tools that demand less skill. Alternatively, managers can make training arrangements around any new tools they want to introduce.

As the organization evolves, it will encounter the need for new technologies, and the team's capability to work with the tech stack is critical in assessing the right tech stack to improve the firm's productivity.

The Best Remote Work Tech for Various Functions

Here we will assess the best tools that will suit an organization's needs perfectly. Choosing one out of a seemingly unlimited number of applications is daunting. However, this should not stop managers from finding the best tools to help transform the workplace. Below are multiple broad categories of functions that managers need to consider:

Core HR

Core HR is a broad human resource management category and includes functions such as hiring, onboarding, performance management, and training and development, among many others. Unlike in traditional office setups where HR was simply another function in the company, today, HR is strategic and a crucial cog in the management engine.

Strategic HR illustrates the importance of the department in remote work. HR will play a key role in decision-making at the top level and at the employee level. Therefore, the appropriate remote work tools for HR should be selected as this will instantly transform the company and lead to better performance. 

One key function in the core HR is onboarding. Onboarding is an important process since it involves acclimating new employees into their roles. This is an essential aspect, especially when an organization deals with contracted employees in the virtual space. If employees fail to understand their roles and responsibilities, it can impact their performance and decrease productivity. While a company may acquire the best talent, onboarding plays a key role in its contribution to the company.

RemotePass supports onboarding through a powerful, easy-to-use platform which ensures that all parties remain aligned during the onboarding phase. The growing need for remote work and the multiple decisions needed to achieve the remote work approach can create challenges for all businesses, regardless of their size. RemotePass, therefore, helps to tackle these challenges, instead allowing HR managers to focus on their core responsibilities. 

Payroll 

Payroll is at the core of every organization's financial operations. With the high demand for skilled remote workers across all industries, organizations must offer competitive pay and benefits to help retain their top talent — and to pay them on time.

Payroll services and HR functions integrate to make managing employees easier, while taking measures to safeguard employee data and making sure the company follows regulations. Remote payroll is more complex, given that it straddles multiple geographies, currencies, and local labor laws and taxes. Thus, the payroll process in remote work is not straightforward, meaning that the organization needs to access the right help.

One key solution available to overcome the multiple elements involved in setting up a remote payroll system is choosing the right remote work software. RemotePass is the solution — offering excellent global payroll systems suited to the organization's unique needs. With RemotePass, finance teams can process payroll for remote full-time employees and contractors in a single click, paying individuals in a currency and payment method of their choosing — ranging from bank account to cryptocurrencies. 

General Work Tools

In order to select general remote working tools, companies need to understand its employees' unique roles and ensure that their chosen tool supports them. The ideal tool should enhance remote working productivity and bolster organizational culture.

These tools, when used right, can unlock multiple benefits, such as greater employee well-being and improved performance. Companies can choose numerous examples of tools, such as Donut. Donut is a software designed to strengthen culture in the virtual space. 

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Organizations can also try the software for free to create an understanding of how the software suits the organizational culture. This is just an example of a tool that can be used together with RemotePass, which tackles all other HR functions in one place.

Talent Management 

Talent management involves onboarding employees and nurturing them to grow. This growth is a crucial consideration of the article and ensures that the organization has secured its future. Employee growth is essential and will support the company's strategies and increase productivity. Thus, a company's tech stack should support all talent management functions.

Adopting a purpose-built solution such as Lattice helps organizations to manage the development of their teams, while also demonstrating a commitment to individual growth which can be both motivating and empowering for workers.

Conclusion

This article has explored why remote work software is critical to a company and how HR can tackle the challenges that arise when attempting to adapt to the new business reality. Remote work is inevitable, and thus businesses need to make changes in the present time to avoid critical failures in the future. 

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While making the final decision about the correct remote work tech is complex, HR can smooth the process by selecting software such as RemotePass, which offers assistance in various business functionalities.