The Role of Digital Calendars in Remote Workforce Management best practices

Organization and communication are the foundation of a successful business. As we continue to develop new digital ways to manage business practices, it is important to focus on the strategies that allow us to navigate day-to-day responsibilities with ease. 

Digital calendars have become the backbone of a functional workforce – they are easy to share, simple to update, and accessible from anywhere in the world. Let’s review some ways digital calendars are improving the remote work experience for all team members.

The Benefits of Digital Calendar Tools

Though the benefits of digital calendars somewhat speak for themselves, it is worth discussing their functions to get a better idea of why these tools can be so useful for managing the remote workforce.

Enhanced Communication Source

Digital calendars allow you to seamlessly update your schedule, delegate tasks, and inform your colleagues without needing to use multiple platforms. Without a digital calendar, you would need to note an upcoming meeting on a paper calendar, send an email to your team members, wait for individual responses to confirm, and individually decline any other meeting requests you are unable to attend due to the previous commitment. 

When using a digital calendar like Google Calendar, Outlook Calendar, or Apple Calendar, for example, all you need to do is create a meeting event and invite your team members. From there, they can confirm their attendance with a click of a button and access the remote meeting link within the same notification. You can check your colleague’s availability through this calendar as well, eliminating the need for multiple individual conversations and rounds of back and forth.

Worldwide Accessibility

Digital calendars eliminate the frustration that comes with forgetting or misplacing your personal, paper calendar. Remote workers often aren’t just managing their work life from home – they are finishing projects on a plane, answering inquiries from hotel rooms, and checking their schedules while waiting in line for coffee. 

By utilizing digital calendars, remote workers can easily take meetings and address any tasks while on the go. This is especially helpful for busy executives who just don’t have the time to make multiple schedule confirmation calls with their team while on the other side of the world. 

Productivity Tracking

Are you looking for a way to keep an eye on productivity without having to monitor a variety of other (sometimes costly) work management tools? Digital calendars can be especially useful for this. 

As a supervisor, you can request team members to note important daily to-do on their calendars and to mark them as completed when the task is finished. Microsoft Outlook is one calendar application that allows for task-sharing, giving you the opportunity to create a collaborative to-do list for your team members.

Simple App Integration

Digital calendars allow you to integrate other third-party apps to make remote work even more manageable. So, if you and your team already use apps like Trello, Slack, or other CRM systems, there’s no need to manually move over all your tasks to your new digital calendar app. Many digital calendars also have advanced security features available, so any sensitive information you may have on third-party apps will be completely safe while transferring data between each work management platform.

Making Remote Work Accessible For Your Team

In order for your team to properly utilize all digital calendars have to offer, they must be given the proper resources. There are many advantages to remote work for a company – there’s relatively no need to maintain a physical office (and the associated costs), remote team members are 20% happier, and a wider pool of amazing talent is much more accessible. So, creating the best remote work environment possible with the best technology is absolutely essential.

Optimal Internet Connectivity

Giving your team a good foundation for productive remote work begins with reliable internet connectivity. Be sure your team members have access to high-speed internet with adequate download/upload speeds and bandwidth. Most remote jobs can be performed well with internet plans that include 100 Mbs download/20 Mbps upload speeds. 

However, if employees are able to access fiber optic internet, which offers the best performance, you should be willing to subsidize this access in full or at least partially. Slow internet can interrupt productivity and access to digital calendars, which in turn will affect business.

Digital Training Modules

Training is another important part of making remote work accessible for all team members. Having digital training modules available that cover best remote work practices, tools for efficiency, and ways to maintain a work-life balance can make the transition to a fully remote or hybrid work model a lot easier for your employees.

Digital refresher training that covers topics like emergency responses, security updates, and customer service practices will allow team members to perform optimally while at home. These training modules can be added to team members’ calendars on a recurring basis. Digital calendars will give them reminders to attend these training modules or can remind them routinely to review these materials to keep the information fresh in their minds.

Digital Calendar Tools to Support Your Remote Team

As the remote workforce grows, so does the need for platforms that make communication and production easier. Digital calendars and other tools are a great way to simplify the work experience for your entire team while allowing your business to take full advantage of everything remote work has to offer.

One such tool that compliments digital calendars, especially in the age of remote work and busy schedules is AddEvent. Teams can use AddEvent’s subscription calendars to share important company dates such as All Hands meetings, new product releases, and upcoming trainings to make sure employees are showing up and aware of upcoming key activities. Additionally, companies can use subscription calendars as a form of employee engagement – sharing work-anniversaries, birthdays, and offsite plans to build excitement and camaraderie. Regardless of how you use it, AddEvent plays well with digital calendars and can unlock remote engagement. 

Interested in a free trial of our Professional plan? Reach out trials@addevent.com for a 7-day free trial!