With damaging financial implications for companies, latest news of the forthcoming winter weather snap will be bad news for bosses. Heavy rain and flooding could prevent staff from getting into work, and normal operations and customer services are likely to be severely disrupted.
Last year UK businesses suffered as a result of bad weather, which at the time estimated to have cost the economy approximately £470m* a day.
Workers and business were brought to a halt last week and are set to be in a similar situation this week as the Tube strikes continues with another 48 hour protest starting Tuesday 11th February. Although most employees will have remote access to email, few will be able to make and receive business calls whilst stuck at home.
Phil Dyson, Product Group Manager of Voice & Unified Communications, at IT and Cloud service provider, InTechnology Managed Services, believes implementing modern IP telephone services is vital for businesses to survive bad weather and transport strikes. He said: “IP telephony services enable staff to continue to make and receive business calls regardless of their location. By using a simple smartphone application, users can instantly turn their mobile device into their business telephone, complete with access to their company contact directory and call history.”
With a staggering 80%** of businesses failing within 18 months of an incident that stops them trading, looking into effective ways of remote working is a necessary focus for all UK businesses this winter. Services such as Cloud, home-working and Fixed Mobile Convergence (FMC) are all fantastic ways to mobilise workforces.
Phil added: “As well as strengthening business continuity, these services also help organisations increase productivity on a day to day basis, with users able to communicate using a range of devices from essentially any location.”