DISPLAY SOME INITIATIVE

Gunnar Kyvik, Business Segment Lead – Meeting & Conferencing, Sharp NEC Display Solutions Europe, examines the shift towards home working.

A home workspace, as its name suggests, is an intrusion on home life. Any time spent working in the home environment will impact family and/or home life, in some way. This can lead to conflict and tension. Since home working is now a long-term scenario, many workers have invested in ways to try to separate their home workspace from the home environment, such as garden rooms, or smart furniture in a living room/bedroom – this separation is vital. For many, where space availability at home is a luxury, local office hubs can provide the answer. What is crucial, is flexibility. Working practices must become more flexible to enable workers to manage the intrusion on their home life, therefore, the solutions and tools available to them, but also be flexible.

How should the home office be equipped?

Ergonomics are as important in the home workspace as they are in the office; a well supporting chair, height adjustable monitor, appropriate desking etc. Perching on the end of the bed and leaning on the dressing table might have been a ‘needs must’ scenario two years ago, but it is now no longer appropriate.

Home workers will appreciate equipment which will support a high-quality audio and visual experience for video calls but forcing them to take certain equipment will not be appreciated. Many global corporations offer a catalogue, enabling workers to select their preferred equipment from a pre-approved list which will ensure any issues regarding quality, compatibility and security are already ironed out. Other organisations provide a budget enabling employees to purchase their own equipment.

Beyond video calls, agile workflows must be supported through tools and devices for collaborative work sessions. Remote workers need to be as participative as those working face to face, using collaborative tools.

The demands on home-based equipment can be greater than for officebased – where equipment could well be used for both work and leisure, longer battery life and wireless functionality is required. An example might be headphones, used for videocalls but also for listening to music or playing games, therefore demanding 24/7 capability. Blending technology for home and work life helps to reduce potential tension and conflict.

The key is frictionless working – anything that removes boundaries and makes the process of work easy and efficient is vital to increase productivity and motivate workers. Simple, easy connectivity, without compatibility issues, will ensure a smooth and easy process. Choosing technology which is open and modular, offering choice and flexibility without restriction, will help employers and employees to find the tools that support their working practices, both now and in the future.

Could employees just use their own equipment?

Certain quality standards need to be maintained but if a company wants to attract and keep talent, flexibility is vital. The pandemic has accelerated change. Now that people are being asked to work from home, organisations must shift their thinking to support this in any way necessary. This requires freedom of choice – freedom to choose their equipment and freedom to use whatever platform they prefer.

When requiring people to work from home, they will have no choice but to use their home connections. Any security issues will simply have to be addressed and managed.

This NEC Windows Collaboration Display is designed to fit seamlessly into any environment

What about the employers’ obligations to home workers?

The focus here should be empowerment – employees are sensible, responsible people in their private lives, it should be the same in their work lives. Employers should provide whatever training is reasonably needed to support employees whilst informing them of their obligations and responsibilities as homebased workers.

In looking at the formulation of a home working policy, it’s important for organisations to involve the user / home-worker in this process. Making policies and forcing compliance is not the way forward. Empowering employees is the quickest, most efficient way to make a cultural change within an organisation. Every worker is unique, but every human needs an element of social interaction – how this is addressed must be a key consideration of any home working policy.