# Five common IT headaches caused by long-term working from home  Author: Pal Sinha, Barnali Author URL: https://financedigest.com/author/pal-sinha-barnali Published: 2020-11-12 Category: BUSINESS Category URL: https://financedigest.com/category/business Meta Title: 5 Common IT Headaches for SMEs Working Remotely Meta Description: Discover the top IT headaches facing SMEs as they navigate the shift to remote working, and how Ultima's CEO Scott Dodds offers tailored solutions for URL: https://financedigest.com/five-common-it-headaches-caused-by-long-term-working-from-homehtml ![undefined](https://prod.superblogcdn.com/site_cuid_cm5qst7v3003gwirgwqtxn8i8/images/untitled-design-25-1736838730937-compressed.jpg) _By S **cott Dodds,** CEO, [Ultima](http://www.Ultima.com)._ With working practices looking set to include working away from crowded offices for the foreseeable future, having the ability to work from anywhere, on a device that’s secure and appropriate for your workload is now more critical than ever. For many SMEs, however, the administrative overhead of ensuring employees have the right IT device and services in place can be prohibitive, often resulting in organisations implementing a patchwork of solutions which don’t quite hit the mark, leading to frustrated and demotivated employees. We know that companies with excellent employee experience outperform the S&P 500 by 122% (Accenture) so making sure your employees have devices that work smoothly is key to productivity and your future success. But we’ve found that there are five common IT headaches that most SMEs have encountered since moving to remote working. 1. **Poor IT infrastructure and slow broadband**. Suddenly having to work full-time from home has [tested IT infrastructure to its limits with systems](https://www.financedigest.com/interoperability-of-data-to-accelerate-the-ventilator-test-systems-market.html "Interoperability of data to accelerate the Ventilator Test Systems Market") crashing regularly and downtime a problem for many companies. And let’s not forget that many [people still don’t](https://www.financedigest.com/people-dont-like-to-be-told-no-when-it-comes-to-finance.html "People don’t like to be told no when it comes to finance") have the best broadband service or speeds. Therefore you have disgruntled employees who are continually calling help desks for assistance. 2. **Old devices and an inability to update them**. At the start of lockdown, everyone scrambled to find a laptop or computer to [work on from home](https://www.financedigest.com/working-from-home-heres-how-you-can-save-money-on-your-auto-insurance.html "Working From Home? Here’s How You Can Save Money on Your Auto Insurance"). Personal devices were called into operation, and many people were trying to [work all day](https://www.financedigest.com/no-more-five-working-days-how-getting-paid-immediately-can-transform-black-friday-for-merchants.html "No more ‘five working days’ – how getting paid immediately can transform Black Friday for merchants") every day (rather than intermittently) on an old laptop, often accessing systems, and apps that required bigger computing power than they had to operate smoothly. The result, slow devices that glitch regularly. How frustrating is it when you are on a [video conference and you can’t share](https://www.financedigest.com/rouble-steadies-near-60-vs-dollar-tcs-m-video-shares-down-after-results.html "Rouble steadies near 60 vs dollar; TCS, M.Video shares down after results") your screen effectively?  These problems haven’t gone away, and with frozen screens and waiting for the IT helpdesk to fix problems, productivity decreases. 3. **Security issues**. There are many different security issues around [remote working](https://www.financedigest.com/remote-working-during-covid-a-successful-social-experiment.html "Remote working during COVID: a successful social experiment") as employees are using their broadband services and devices to access offices systems and corporate infrastructure. Many companies weren’t expecting staff to work outside the [office](https://www.financedigest.com/are-businesses-using-cybersecurity-as-a-scapegoat-for-a-desperate-return-to-office-working.html "Are Businesses Using Cybersecurity As A Scapegoat For A Desperate Return To Office Working?") or to need to use personal devices to access their work, so the appropriate security measures weren’t in place. There’s a [strong likelihood of unauthorised access to systems or data](https://www.financedigest.com/global-shares-slide-dollar-gains-as-rates-rise-on-strong-data.html "Global shares slide, dollar gains as rates rise on strong data") without the proper security in place. Some companies found firewalls, access to virtual [private networks](https://www.financedigest.com/the-new-wifi-how-private-5g-networks-could-revolutionise-business.html "The New WiFi? How Private 5G Networks Could Revolutionise Business") (VPNs), domain name security (DNS) and intrusion prevention were ineffective. And let’s not forget that most attacks start with [human error](https://www.financedigest.com/outthink-raises-10-million-to-tackle-human-errors-behind-data-breaches.html "OutThink raises million to tackle human errors behind data breaches") – 95% of attacks require a human to click on a link to be activated – but many staff weren’t and still aren’t properly trained to avoid these errors. Post lockdown, with remote working looking set to become a way of life for many companies these issues remain, with businesses needing to be able to update [security and ensure employees aren’t unwittingly exposing them to security breaches](https://www.financedigest.com/transport-operator-go-ahead-flags-cyber-security-breach.html "Transport operator Go-Ahead flags cyber security breach"). For example, one interactive [map showing COVID](https://www.financedigest.com/uk-maps-out-return-to-higher-foreign-aid-spending-after-covid-cuts.html "UK maps out return to higher foreign aid spending after COVID cuts") spread was laced with malware. We’ve also seen other malicious sites related to the pandemic linked to a phishing attack, with hackers trying to [access office systems](https://www.financedigest.com/telehealth-monitoring-to-rule-the-the-transseptal-access-systems-market.html "Telehealth monitoring to rule the The Transseptal Access Systems Market"). 4. **No access to devices to do patch or app updates.** Most office devices are updated, and patches installed on-premise. But with the pandemic, this has meant that some [devices are running old systems](https://www.financedigest.com/airway-clearance-devices-system-market-industry-analysis-opportunities-technology-demand-top-players-and-growth-forecast-2027.html "Airway Clearance Devices System Market Industry Analysis, Opportunities, Technology, Demand, Top Players and Growth Forecast 2027") and apps or out of date security. When they have been brought into the office for updating it has required stringent health and [safety systems](https://www.financedigest.com/automotive-active-safety-system-market-2015-scope-of-current-and-future-industry-2025.html "Automotive Active Safety System Market 2015 | Scope of Current and Future Industry 2025") in place and lengthy turnaround times. ![Scott Dodds](https://prod.superblogcdn.com/site_cuid_cm5qst7v3003gwirgwqtxn8i8/images/scott-dodds-ceo-ultima-450x676-1736838730760-compressed.jpg) Scott Dodds 5. [**Lack of technical ability of staff to deal with common device issues**](https://www.financedigest.com/the-lack-of-female-leaders-and-how-to-tackle-this-issue.html "The lack of female leaders and how to tackle this issue"). Most SMEs don’t have a raft of IT staff to deal with all the problems that remote working has thrown up. The sheer volume of work that remote working has created for IT staff has led to them working all hours and pushed them to breaking point in many instances. And with firms strapped for cash as profits have fallen, it’s not as simple as hiring more people or outsourcing your IT as there just hasn’t been any budget available. Businesses have been left with a [skills gap](https://www.financedigest.com/tackling-the-cloud-skills-gap-in-financial-services.html "Tackling the cloud skills gap in financial services"), so many of the common issues discussed above have dragged on rather than being dealt with. But there is [light at the end of the tunnel](https://www.financedigest.com/light-at-end-of-tunnel-for-czech-services-as-government-drops-covid-pass.html "Light at end of tunnel for Czech services as government drops COVID pass") for IT managers. There is technology available now that uses [intelligent automation](https://www.financedigest.com/why-intelligent-automation-should-be-a-top-priority-for-enterprises-in-2022.html "Why Intelligent Automation should be a top priority for enterprises in 2022") to monitor devices 24/7, update security remotely 24/7 and fix issues instantly in the background before problems arise, giving users a device and service that is seamless and so optimises productivity. Gone are the days when [businesses needed to buy more hardware and invest](https://www.financedigest.com/unlocking-fresh-business-investment-opportunities-beyond-covid.html "Unlocking fresh business investment opportunities beyond COVID") huge amounts of Capex in devices that would soon become obsolete. With many [businesses struggling](https://www.financedigest.com/pakistan-floods-add-to-pain-for-struggling-small-businesses.html "Pakistan floods add to pain for struggling small businesses") to update their IT infrastructure or update old devices, these services are available on a monthly pay-as-you-go basis, moving your IT to an Opex system which right now is manna to many boards. So what workspace services are available as pay-as-you-go? You can either use your own devices or upgrade to any of theleading vendor devices. The machines are then pre-loaded or remotely updated with the right apps and business [systems](https://www.financedigest.com/how-to-use-a-pos-system-to-run-your-business.html "How To Use A POS System To Run Your Business?") for your business. All the necessary security and automated provisioning, including secure internet access, is loaded onto the device. And as it’s managed centrally, the machine is automatically monitored and updated with security patches. With systems running autonomously in the background 24/7, any issues detected are immediately fixed, so the [end user](https://www.financedigest.com/sodium-tetraborate-market-key-players-end-user-demand-and-consumption-by-2030.html "Sodium Tetraborate Market Key Players, End User, Demand and Consumption by 2030") experience is seamless. Security has been built into the service by design, so it protects against zero-day threats and ransomware, alongside remote-wipe and [data protection](https://www.financedigest.com/modern-data-protection-how-organisations-can-protect-against-cyber-attacks.html "Modern Data Protection: How organisations can protect against cyber attacks") for non-corporate devices so that threats are detected before they become an issue. Even before your employee has a chance to ‘click’ on a link and compromise your security.  We’ve found that even old laptops work [faster and smoother with this new service](https://www.financedigest.com/why-faster-reactivity-to-end-of-life-deadlines-is-key-for-financial-services.html "Why faster reactivity to end-of-life deadlines is key for financial services") – and I found my laptop performed significantly better. As the service is fully managed for you, it’s simple to update apps, [manage device](https://www.financedigest.com/the-clot-management-devices-market-to-be-digitally-absorbent.html "The Clot Management Devices Market to be digitally absorbent") subscriptions, licenses and data backup. It allows for seamless collaboration, improved management of your infrastructure through self-service orchestration, business analytics, workflow automation and continual strategy review. All of which enhance productivity. While making for happier employees, this new Autonomous Workspace also gives your IT staff the time and energy to [focus on innovation](https://www.financedigest.com/maximising-the-opportunities-available-from-marketing-technology-and-innovation-focused-thinking.html "Maximising the opportunities available from marketing technology and innovation focused thinking") rather than dealing with the time-consuming and mundane issues of remote working. So, what will you do? Fork out more for expensive hardware and possibly still face poor collaboration across your [business or investigate the latest ‘laptop in a box’ services that use the latest autonomous platforms to reduce the cost](https://www.financedigest.com/esg-prepared-why-ignoring-esg-is-a-costly-business.html "ESG Prepared: Why Ignoring ESG is a Costly Business") of unnecessary hardware and improve your security and companywide collaboration. --- This blog is powered by Superblog. Visit https://superblog.ai to know more. ---