How to Telecommute from a Pro

By Kathy Kyle Bonomini, Co-Founder and Partner

I’ve been telecommuting for eight years. Since emigrating to the UK from the US, living in Morocco as a British Diplomat, and launching Amplia Group, I can safely say I’ve learned how to work remotely (and how to make a decent cup of coffee for myself). Word to the wise: invest in a good coffee machine.

In the early days of remote working, I found it difficult to unplug from my phone and it has taken me some time to find that balance and not work more than 15 hours in a day. I’ve worked from my home office, WeWork and Regus offices, my business partner’s offices, my client’s offices, cafes, and from my kitchen table. I eventually found the right balance and tools to work remotely.

In Washington, D.C., I was the Communications Director at a multinational consulting agency and at a government agency. I used to commute to work on the Metro every morning and run home in the evening for a decade. I loved chatting with my colleagues in our communal kitchen over coffee and walking over to an attorney advisor’s office if I had a quick question that needed answering.

In light of Covid-19, responsive companies are taking swift action in response government advice and encouraging employees to telework. Many of my friends and colleagues who have already begun working remotely have expressed to me their unease with this arrangement: a sense of isolation, annoyance with their significant other, an addiction to Netflix, a sore neck from hunching over their laptop, dependence on caffeine, and finding themselves staring at an open refrigerator. Their worries over working from home was my impetus for writing this piece.

I realised they just needed to see a different perspective and the value in telework and that there are upsides. I hope my eight years of teleworking can help.

One of our differentiators at Amplia Group is that we always telework.

Teleworking enables us to be agile and work from any location. We can commute to meet our clients where they are - or we can hold a virtual meeting. We are not required to commute to a specific location, which reduces our overheads.

We are more productive, flexible, save money, and we pass those benefits on to our clients.

Here are the ways in which we work remotely, support our team, and collaborate with our clients:

1. We have a dedicated remote workspace.

   We all have a space that is our work space. You know, for work. Bakers have a kitchen. Dentists have an office. We must have some sort of space to work. We all have a desk, a router/wifi, a laptop, a headset, and I personally have a giant weimaraner that keeps me company. I am *pretty sure* he makes me more productive.

2. We use collaborative tools.

   We work on projects using tools like Google Suite, WeTransfer, and Slack to share documents, assets, and communicate.

3. We hold virtual meetings.

   We use GoToMeeting, Google Meet, or Skype to hold calls. Google is making its Workplace Video/Hangouts Premium services free until 1 July to help businesses and schools collaborate due to coronavirus concerns. And you can use Zoom for free for meetings up to 40 minutes.

4. We meet our clients wherever they are.

   We listen to our clients’ needs and collaborate using their preferred method: phone, email, whatever works for them. If they don’t want to hold a video call, we will hold a conference call instead. Not everyone is as technical as we are, and sometimes we learn something from our more technical clients. We especially like learning something new.

5. We encourage work/life balance.

   We are all experts in our respective communications specialisms but we are a dynamic bunch and have interests that go beyond comms. We are foodies, artists, athletes, musicians, illustrators, entrepreneurs…we encourage our team members to pursue those activities in addition to their professional interests. These activities make us well-rounded, happier, healthier, unique, and more productive. This is important to our values as a company that our team is happy and healthy.

6. We establish boundaries.

   This is very difficult when you are sometimes trying to demonstrate that you are adding value when you are not physically in an office. Sometimes tools like Slack will “ping” you and you will feel the need to respond immediately. Tread carefully here. I put a lot of focus on customer service and client satisfaction, so I like to be very responsive. But there are times where I simply must be a carer and be unapologetic about that. So establish your boundaries and stick to them. Eat your lunch. Go for a walk. Do your work out. Pick up your kids. Ensure that the time spent away from your laptop or PC is fulfilling, so when you do sit down to work, you are even more productive.

7. We are productive.

   We not only get work done, but to a very high industry standard. We are an award-winning agency and our work has been recognised and shortlisted by Campaign Live. Our clients are happy with our work; one of our recent healthcare clients said about working with us:

Working with Amplia helped drive our success as a business. Not only did they listen and understand our needs but helped drive and deliver solutions.

Have I missed anything? Let me know how you get on with Teleworking. I know that it can sometimes feel socially isolating if you aren’t used to it, but it doesn’t have to be. There are also social networking groups for both community, learning, and networking opportunities. I am a member of DC and UK Facebook freelance groups in addition to my LinkedIn network that add tremendous insight and value to me professionally and personally. Let me know how you get on with your teleworking.

Connect with me now on LinkedIn.