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It was always going to happen: The combination of innovation in cloud technologies and change in commuting habits for environmental and efficiency objectives would lead enterprises down the path of remote work. Now, the Coronavirus is giving us a swift kick. Why not take it and get started then by proactively and successfully getting employees working from home.

On your mark: preparation

While not all companies can adopt a work-from-home policy, those who are able to do so now, amidst the pressure of the COVID-19 pandemic, will likely be among the first to do so more regularly and permanently. As a result, we need to be prepared to prolong work-from-home changes not only for the duration of the pandemic’s economical effects, but for good. It’s all about getting the right infrastructure set up from the start.

Get set: VPN vigilance

For most businesses, setting up an infrastructure adapted to a remote work strategy is going to involve a hefty reliance on VPNs – Virtual Private Networks. These offer a secured, encrypted connection for employees from home to access the company network.

But there’s more to it than that. A sudden increase in traffic to add all these new users could overload VPNs, not to mention add to costs associated with licensing and slower service. Then there’s the security of employee devices, whereby the company network may be put at risk as employees eventually connect to less secure networks. So, while key, the increased use of VPNs will come with its own obstacles.

Among these: The location of company servers to which employees from home are connecting. In other words, where is the data? And, in times of quarantines and “self-isolation”, how will responsiveness rate when companies are faced with downtime?

Go: To the cloud

While VPNs are a piece of the puzzle, where employees are connecting is crucial. By migrating data from company servers to the cloud, access and connection to this data is ensured by your cloud service provider; employees use VPNs to connect to the company cloud network rather than to the physical servers at the company location. In this case, according to the terms of your SLA (service level agreement), providers can perform routine maintenance and backups while also fixing critical issues remotely. This then minimizes the need for on-site employee presence during a pandemic, while simultaneously increasing responsiveness to downtime.

The frequency of downtime and critical issues comes back down to location, and selecting the right provider for your business. Our 7Clouds NYC data center location and strategic partnership with top ISP Cogent, for instance, allows us to offer our most direct and reliable internet connection via their dedicated, non-oversubscribed network. That’s why for the best service, we suggest businesses opt for secure, private cloud services from an independent provider. This allows for greater customizability in the service plan which could, for example, easily allow physical access to servers and data or a physical migration of big data. The provider’s datacenter location and internet connection then offer insight into their security and reliability.

As pandemic headlines come in waves, why not dive into remote work and get your employees set up long-term, from the start?

7Clouds - Contact us today to set up the right infrastructure for your business so that you can easily adapt in times of crisis and evolve towards a work-from-home future.

Reference

Daniel Bukszpan, Working remotely due to the coronavirus? This technology from your employer is key. March 2020.
Images: Pixabay