English 
Vietnamese To say COVID-19 is an unexpected event would be an understatement. And if this devastating pandemic taught businesses anything, it would be to always have a contingency plan in place and to think on their feet. At TRG, we believe that the ability to respond quickly to changing environments is the key to success. In this post, we will share our story.
Read more: The definitive guide to creating a virtual workplace
What has changed?
There is a glimpse of hope in the future. Governments around the world are lifting lockdowns, and slowly, people are returning to their daily lives. But, what does that mean for companies?
Read more: Fatigue, Exhaustion, Disengagement in A World of Working From Anywhere
This pandemic has forced businesses to adopt a work from home policy, and many experts believe that the work-from-home will be here to stay. Furthermore, employees will favour employers that foster a "virtual working environment" culture in their organisations.
Remote working will become mainstream, and more businesses will begin to offer this perk to their employees, both existing and new. But not every business is ready to implement such a strategy. Therefore, one of our goals is to provide solutions for these companies.
What is the next step to a virtual office?
We believe that the key to beating this and future situations is the ability to adapt fast. Sounds rather easy. But so far, what we have realised is, it is not. To do so, it is crucial to have the right strategies and approaches.
At TRG, our missions and core values as a company are to help you and your business grow and become a better version of yourself. In doing so, we've realised that instead of telling you, it is better to show you. And so we would like to invite you in to take a look at what we have done and achieved.
Read more: Professionalism in the Workplace – Do’s and Don’ts
TRG’s approach to virtual office
You might probably be familiar with our COVID-19 policy, where we laid down the foundation to be able to operate and support our customers 100% virtually.
The focal point of the policy is about protecting our people and preventing them from being exposed to the virus. Only by ensuring the health and wellbeing of our employees, we can continue delivering our services to our customers without any disruptions.
However, the concept of working virtually is easier said than done. It comes with challenges, especially if your business does not have a proper communication protocol.
The concept of "going virtual" sounds rather simplistic until reality sets in, and technical and human-related issues arise. There is more to it than just staying home, switching on your computers, and continuing with your daily responsibilities.
In an attempt to normalise working from home as much as possible, TRG developed a comprehensive virtual working strategy.
In addition to establishing the needed control and guidance, the strategy enables us to maintain the feeling of belonging and unity, which ultimately, leads to further strengthening the tie among our team members and motivating everyone to work together to achieve the common goal.
- Daily check-ins – Each TRG department conducts two check-ins per day. It is not a formal or strict meeting. It is just a 5-minute video chat, where the day is mapped out and questions get clarified
- Working chat – To stay in touch and to not break the conversation flow, TRG employees are always reachable in a matter of seconds
- Platform – Microsoft Teams is the chosen platform for communication. The platform is divided into sectors. It allows each department to have all the information divided in an organised and easy way. Members can have access to all the information, meetings, chat, files and tasks
Read more: Top 10 work from home productivity and communication tools
It is a simple strategy, but it's proved to be efficient for TRG. The implementation of the right communication channels and the use of the right technology proved to meet our pre-defined requirements and goals.
Furthermore, we have a portion of our employees continue to work 100% virtually, while several others become hybrid (partially working from home, partially at the office), and others will operate fully from the office.
What strategies can your company embrace?
Our systems and strategies enable us to move forward with as few disruptions as possible. Unfortunately, not all companies are ready to move in this direction.
Your company needs to Identify which technology systems are the most suitable. TRG recommends cloud-based solutions. They proved to cost less and to have faster development.
To turn the virtual office into a reality, your company needs to adopt the right communication tools. You can leverage video conferencing applications like Skype, Zoom, Google Hangouts or take advantage of storage systems like Google Drive, MS Office 365.
Read more: Cloud adoption strategy: Cloud-first vs Cloud-only
Another crucial step is to track the performance of your employees. It can be more challenging to analyse than the performance of your business. TRG advises you to establish goals from the start. They need to be realistic and flexible.
To be able to understand if your set goals are met, you need to measure them. KPIs are the first approach that comes to mind and OKRs are the “revolutionary” new approach. Both are essential in analysing your strategy.
TRG believes that these are the basic and generalistic strategies that your company needs to invest in. Down the line, you will need to invest more and look for more guidance. TRG is always here for you!
Reach out to us and find out the best solution for your business!
