The pandemic has shaken up businesses all over the world, but our love for technology did not fade a bit. COVID-19 and the lockdowns just shifted our use of technology. Some might say that the pandemic brought a mixture of blessings and curses to tech providers. Most of us started using technology we weren’t using pre-pandemic, while some ditched their favourite tools in favour of ones that are more suitable for working remotely or telecommuting. Here’s a rundown of the way COVID-19 caused a shift in the way we use technology these days.
Video Conferencing Platforms
How has technology helped us during COVID-19? People bid goodbye to conference rooms and said hello to video conferencing tools. Zoom among other online conferencing platforms have become a staple in households as business meetings and even classes have moved online. More people started to become familiar with Microsoft Teams and Google Meet, and some companies even started satellite projects like extensions for specific industries like finance and customer service.
For those who want to host their own videoconferencing system, they can turn to Jitsi, an open-source tool. We’re all about security here at Dorks Delivered and Jisti is all about that. Plus, it can be a cheaper option for videoconferencing.
With people working from home, office management tools designed to simplify office work have lost their purpose. A lot of people stopped using software for scheduling conference rooms as well as hardware like proximity sensors for conference rooms.
Collaboration Tools
While people work from home and can’t have face-to-face meetings, many business owners and project managers realised the importance of technology during COVID-19. Collaboration tools have become quite useful to ensure that everyone is on the same page. Slack, Trello, Microsoft Teams and Workplace From Facebook help us discuss, organize, and track all of our work in one place.
No more boards on the wall or papers spread across tables. Everything is on the online whiteboard or Kanban boards, whichever you prefer. In fact, we love Trello so much that we made an episode about it even before the lockdowns started. If you’re one of those considering working at a distance post-pandemic, these tools will be quite useful to your team.
Zero-Trust Network
When the lockdowns started, we couldn’t help but emphasize the importance of security. Decentralised environment poses dangers, but it doesn’t mean we can’t work remotely. It just demands a higher level of security we now call zero trust—no one and nothing should be trusted. No business can be complacent when it comes to network security. Internal programs should work as usual when run outside your office but everything is authenticated and encrypted.
Listen to Business Built Freedom’s ‘COVID for Computers’ episode to learn more about the dangers of working from home and how to avoid them.
If you want to identify the vulnerabilities of your current remote work strategy, sign up for a free assessment.
Software Development
Like work, exercise and entertainment are now done mostly at home.
While a few still prefer to go to gyms or run outside, many people now appreciate workout and fitness apps and websites. Business owners have realised the demand and started to turn to software developers to keep up with the shift in how people get products and services.
Subscriptions for unlimited access to entertainment sites and apps are also in demand. Whatever your business is, it doesn’t have to stop running. Your customers are not gone, they’re just staying at home. You just have to start to think outside the box and take advantage of the available technology to make it happen.
The Cloud
With most stuff done online, cloud companies have been there when we needed them the most and demonstrated the benefits of technology during COVID-19. They expanded to absorb the demand from individuals and organisations that rely on technology for video conferencing, collaboration, and even entertainment. Just be aware of the Top 10 Cloud Computing Security Issues and Challenges and take precautionary measures.
We don’t know how long this shift in technology will last after COVID-19, but we know for sure that some technologies are thriving and helping many businesses survive these days. Some of these technologies are likely to be around and in demand for a very long time even after post-lockdown as some companies have realized that they don’t really need to require some or all of their employees to report to the office every day.
Are you embracing remote work? Do you know some quite useful tools that we forgot to include here? Let us know.
Do you need help with technology for remote work and securing your team’s home network? Contact us for tech solutions starting at $1 to achieve more with less.
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