The Pandemic Home Office

When you think of a home office, you never think of a home business. A home office in a Global Pandemic really becomes an entire business facility.

The space predetermined for a home office was initially to provide a location to do a little extra while not at work or to do simple tasks; like checking emails, a little extra paperwork and research on the internet. During these challenging times of social distancing, the home office is expected to do
much more. Tasks that are specifically allotted to an employee must now be done as if the employee was in an office and at their cubicle. Basic needs to do your job generally consist of a computer and good internet connection. Handling the isolation, changing work patterns and all that comes with the mental stress of working from home are much more difficult.

Very often all the things that an office environment provide an employee, are now things that must be done by the Home Office Employee (HOE). Simple tasks, like opening the mail and courier packages and all things traditionally done by staff in the mailroom, must now be done by the HOE. What tends to be
overlooked are all the equipment and tools that go with taking care of these other jobs. We all know how challenging printers and copiers can be. Well, changing ink and toners and reloading paper cartridges just became work for the HOE. While most companies focus on internet and online security
with the fear of identity theft and corporate espionage, they very rarely think of the document and material security that usually are taken care of by the facility management of the office. The HOE must now be aware of the proper disposal of corporate documents, CD/DVD’s, back up tapes, and all things that are proprietary information.

The modern home office is now a mail room that ships and receives documents and packages. Equipment like letter openers, tape guns and box cutters and shipping supplies are needed to do the job properly. It’s a print shop that prints and copies and does document handling as needed. Printers, folding machines, collators, and other equipment necessary to complete the objective are essential. It’s also a corporate facility which must be insured to manage corporate assets. Corporate information must be protected. Paper shredders and material disposal machines are needed to protect private information. Recycling bins and garbage cans are also something that should always be around.

Home office employees must be given the proper tools to make sure that they are comfortable while being the most competent and productive personnel in these most trying times.