Remote work has now become the new normal for many organisations in Singapore. The pandemic ushered in a wave of flexibility in work arrangements, and even to this day, the habit of remote work has been embraced by employees. As many as eight out of ten workers prefer working from home or having flexible arrangements, and preparing for it has become inevitable.

To make the most of this new way of working, it’s crucial to create your own ideal home office setup. That means paying attention to the little things and creating a conducive and comfortable environment, so that you can allow your home to function as an office.

An important part of working from home is being able to stay connected and in constant contact with your employees. Here are some important things you need to prioritise, to make sure communication between colleagues is just as strong as back in the office.

5 Internet Essentials for Your Work-From-Home Setup

1. An Ultra-Low-Latency Internet Connection

A high-speed, low-latency Internet connection is vital for a seamless WFH experience. Imagine you’re in the middle of an important video call, presenting a crucial report to your team. Suddenly, your connection starts lagging, your voice becomes choppy, and your computer screen freezes. It’s not just frustrating—it can also affect your professional image and your team’s productivity.

Why does this happen? It’s because your network latency might not be up to scratch. Latency is the delay between a command and its response, which can be a big problem when working in real-time. If you find yourself experiencing this often, or have employees with constant Internet trouble, it might be time for an upgrade to a dedicated network for professional use.

SPTel’s Business Home Broadband plan offers ultra-low latency connectivity even for your home offices, ensuring that you’ll enjoy the best performance to important collaboration tools such as Zoom or Microsoft Teams. Having this will allow you and your employees to keep up with the demands of your work, no matter where you are.

2. Dedicated Business Grade Connectivity

Imagine you’re negotiating a significant business deal over a video call, and your home network cuts off right when you’re about to close the deal. Or perhaps you’re leading an online training session and you lose connectivity, causing you to lose valuable time. In moments like these, a reliable and dedicated Business Grade Internet connection isn’t just good to have – it’s a non-negotiable essential.

Enter SPTel’s Business Home Broadband. The network uses a unique and diversified backbone from the incumbents, reducing your risk of network issues from shared infrastructure. Being a separate service from your home internet network would prevent unintended disturbances from other members of your family such as network congestion caused by a family member downloading a large file. It also comes with 24/7 support, and IOC monitoring for enterprise-grade support right to your home.

So, if you’re grappling with an unreliable home network, consider investing in a network that’s built for business. It’s not just about avoiding Internet-related hiccups—it’s about ensuring that you can work with confidence, knowing that your network won’t let you down.

3. Security, and the Ability to Protect Your Data

A survey conducted by AT&T revealed that 44% of respondents from Singapore had staff accessing company data and networks through their own personal devices.

However, while you may feel the most comfortable using your own devices at home, your home broadband doesn’t have the same sort of security measures as enterprise networks. Unsecured devices connecting to home networks can be compromised, posing significant risks to businesses, especially when handling sensitive information related to health, finance, or other confidential data.

To mitigate these risks, it is essential to invest in a secure Internet connection for your remote employees. SPTel’s Business Home Broadband service offers advanced security features, including DDoS attack alerts,virtualised firewalls and managed security services that are monitored by a World Class Security Operations Centre, to ensure that your business data is protected even when accessed from the home.

By prioritising security in your employees’ home office setup, you can protect your business from potential cyber threats and maintain the trust of your customers and partners. Investing in a secure and reliable Internet service like SPTel’s Business Home Broadband ensures that your employees can work safely and efficiently from their home office.

4. Ease of Access in Managing Employees

In the pre-pandemic era, troubleshooting network issues for your employees was as simple as walking down the office hallway or peeping over the cubicle. However, remote working has reshaped the management landscape, putting digital barriers between you and your team. In a remote work setup, you can’t physically check if your team members are facing network issues or if their connection is secure. But what if you could do all that, and more, from the comfort of your own workspace?

This is where SPTel’s Software-Defined Network (SDN) and Software-Defined Wide Area Network (SD-WAN) models come into play.

Think of it as having a control room from where you can monitor, manage, and troubleshoot your team’s Internet connection. It’s like being able to freely check in on every ‘branch office’ you’re in charge of—which in this case, are your employees’ home setups.

That’s exactly what SPTel’s digital self-service portal together with their managed SD-WAN solution does, giving businesses real-time visibility over the network infrastructure, and enabling them to identify and address potential issues before they become roadblocks. This ultimately ensures that your team stays connected and productive in their virtual office space.

So while managing a remote team may seem daunting, services like SPTel’s Business Home Broadband comes with Software-Defined Networks that help make it simpler and more accessible. It’s about giving you the tools to steer your remote workforce effectively, ensuring they remain connected, secure, and primed for maximum productivity, no matter where they are.

5. The Need for Scalability in a WFH Setup

As a decision maker, one of the key factors you must consider in any aspect of your business is scalability. Just as your business needs to be able to grow and adapt to changing market conditions, so too does your work-from-home infrastructure.

Imagine a scenario where you’re holding a sale on your online store, and you’re expecting a huge increase in online traffic. Your current network services might not be up to the task of handling that many people, and your site might turn sluggish right when customers are trying to pile in.

That’s where the concept of scalability becomes crucial. A scalable network service can adapt to your growing needs, allowing you to increase capacity when you need it, and scale back down when you don’t.

This is where SPTel’s Business Home Broadband shines with it’s bandwidth on demand capabilities. Need more bandwidth to handle a sudden surge of online traffic during a sale period? No problem. Expecting a slower month and want to cut back? You can do that too. Using the dashboard, you can receive instant quotations and come to a decision in minutes. Having this scalability provides flexibility, control, and the ability to adapt quickly to change.

Enhance your Work From Home Setup with Business Home Broadband

As you map out your remote work strategy, remember that the best home office setup extends beyond just the physical aspects. Yes, an ergonomic setup, ambient lighting, and a quiet workspace all play a part, but they are just the tip of the iceberg. The lifeline of any remote work arrangement lies in its digital infrastructure. A reliable and secure Internet connection comes first. SPTel’s Business Home Broadband provides a secure, stable, and easy-to-manage network infrastructure that can help keep you and your employees on the same page.