Category: Vox 4 Thought

While reliable connectivity is fundamental, it has to be coupled with interactive learning technology.

As South Africa emerges from its extended national lockdown in a phased approach, educational institutions across the country are faced with a difficult and complex task. There is clearly an urgent need to re-institute onsite teaching and kickstart curriculums, yet the pandemic continues to pose a grave threat to public health (and will do so for many months to come).

Perhaps unsurprisingly, many education sector decision-makers are pursuing a hybrid approach to learning, blending some form of onsite teaching with remote learning programmes. Without a doubt, there are difficult logistical challenges ahead for the education sector – and many learners have fallen far behind curriculums in the absence of adequate remote learning resources and engaging virtual learning environments.

However, far from being all doom and gloom, positive change and opportunity beckons for SA’s education sector – which is at a critical inflection point.

Ripe for reinvention

Arguably, this is an important moment for the country’s embattled education sector, which now finds itself at a crossroads: leaders can pursue a return to ‘traditional’ education (the way things were); or they can use this crisis as an opportunity to reimagine – and revolutionise – their approach to teaching and learning in a digitally powered world. Today, while technology tools have been used by many local educators as a stopgap to fill the physical void during lockdown, technology can play a far more fundamental and supportive role in education, at every level. Yet this will require a deeper interrogation of the current limitations in technology adoption and infrastructure, as well as an understanding of the immense possibilities – and tremendous benefits – that smart technology can bring to education in the months and years ahead.

Static and unresponsive

As with many other sectors, the lockdown forced educators to move to a complete reliance on virtual learning tools. With almost no time to prepare, many schools embraced free online platforms and basic Cloud computing offerings such as Google Suite and Office 365 – following a cost-driven approach to staying connected and sharing content with students and colleagues. Early on, it was clear that many teachers lacked the training to keep learners stimulated and engaged via these virtual platforms – and their challenges have been exacerbated, in many instances, by poor or non-existent connectivity and lack of access to data.

With the support of telecoms providers and savvy technology partners, educators have to make sure that institutions and programmes are equipped with reliable, high speed data connectivity. This is the first and most fundamental step – and some forward-thinking providers are actively engaged in helping educators to cost effectively and conveniently acquire the technology tools and connectivity that is essential to successful home learning.

Related: Enhancing education

Once the problem of robust and reliable connectivity has been solved, educators must take the next step and boost learner engagement with next-level technology tools and resources. As it stands, many learners finish their virtual school day by mid-morning, and there are growing difficulties in keeping learners engaged with existing content – and simultaneously preparing them for examinations and assessments.

Yet when we take into account the static (and highly unresponsive) virtual learning environments that many students are having to spend time in, poor learner engagement levels should hardly come as a surprise. If we look to first world education sectors, such as the US, it is clear that even with well developed connectivity, engagement has been a critical stumbling block.

Dynamic virtual learning environments

As with the enterprise environment, leaders need to transform the virtual learning space, and make it just as interactive, dynamic, and stimulating as the physical environment … if not more. This can be achieved by replicating and simulating certain physical classroom elements in important ways, while also providing highly personalised learner feedback and interactive assessments that only the digital realm can offer. By blending advanced technology tools and offerings with physical learning elements, today’s learners can accelerate their development and deepen knowledge in ways that have previously not been possible.

Having recognised the infinite scope of new learning tools, the education technology (or EdTech) sphere is quickly rising to the challenge – and innovators such as Kaltura are helping education leaders to reimagine blended learning solutions in a way that will not only support learners through the current pandemic, but position them to succeed in a rapidly changing, digitally-driven world.

For example, emerging solutions include interactive virtual classrooms with ‘perpetual whiteboards’ – in which students can interact and ‘make notes’ that will remain there for the duration of the semester.

 

Other important features and concepts include video-on-demand, allowing learners to access and revisit lessons when they need to, with advanced search functions so that learners can navigate through lessons and content with ease. Teachers can also initiate virtual breakout sessions, allowing clusters of students to brainstorm and work together, thereby simulating the collaborative environment of physical classrooms.

Optimising content

Looking ahead, one key feature of these interactive virtual classrooms will be the ability to track and gauge learner engagement levels. For example, new platforms can alert educators when learners have clicked on a new tab or opened up a new browser and have disengaged with the lesson – even providing real-time percentages to indicate the level of learner engagement with a certain piece of content.

Armed with this insight, teachers can adjust and tailor content accordingly, and also identify learners who perhaps need more personal attention or guidance in a certain subject. Increasingly, educators are identifying the importance of structured and engaging content within virtual learning environments – and technology will be a key enabler in helping to optimise content for each learner.

While there is no doubt that South Africa’s educators are tasked with an enormous challenge in the months ahead, the current crisis can be harnessed to reimagine static learning environments and lay the foundation for a digitally-enabled and highly interactive approach to education. If we can empower our youth with technology, we can empower a nation to succeed.

 

The digital working environment is putting as much a strain on managers as it is on employees who have to remain productive and continually prove their value especially during economically challenging times.

Stress and anxiety have become commonplace as people struggle to balance their corporate responsibilities with their personal ones while at home. However, overcoming these challenges will give rise to a more skilled workforce that is better prepared for the business landscape of the future.

Even if they are spread across geographic locations, digital workers remain indispensable to the success of the organisation. But like a traditional office environment, there will always be those who try and be as productive as possible and those who feel that they just need to log in for the company to continue paying them.

Changing policies

In the case of the former, these individuals are willing to take on more tasks, get involved, and continue with their daily routines whether they are operating remotely or on-premise. For their part, unproductive workers are simply unwilling to change their bad habits. An extreme example of this apathy is someone joining a video conference from their bedroom while still in their pyjamas at 08:00 in the morning.

The reality is that the digital workplace will only accelerate the divide between efficient and non-efficient workers. Employees need to understand that working remotely remains a privilege. If they do not adhere to the terms of their employment contracts, then the might of the HR department and labour laws will ensue. As such, a remote work policy will become a subset of the employment agreement. This is to protect both the employer and the employee from abuse or neglect.

For the company, it means that the employee adheres to all the corporate policies put in place. And for the individual, it ensures they do not overwork themselves (resulting in burnout) and can still have flexibility, freedom, and a personal life when working from home. While it remains difficult to predict how any company will evolve over the coming months, it would be advisable to embrace a blended approach to these changes and test it now to ensure that it becomes a sustainable approach going forward.

This will create a balance between those people who require frequent engagement whilst others can be left to their own devices to meet their daily objectives. What is certain is that establishing levels of structure and routine are critical components to helping employers manage staff.

Technology becomes an enabler insofar as the likes of fibre is an indispensable channel to equip people to do their jobs. It serves as the building blocks to use voice over IP, hosted PBX, team collaboration software, cybersecurity, and so on. Of course, employees must be trained on how to optimally use the tools at their disposal. But beyond the technologies at play, a true digital workplace still centres around the people and not just the bits and bytes.

Engagement strategies

To this end, there are several considerations to help drive engagement in a digital environment.

Firstly, the first few minutes of a one-on-one call should be spent just catching up with the employee and finding out how they are doing. Secondly, managers should never cancel these meetings as people value the connection and facetime, albeit through online means. This is especially the case when it comes to employees who live alone or environments that are not conducive to optimal efficiency.

Here, the strength of a company’s leadership really comes into play. Leaders need to assess which employees require a more hands-on approach and which ones can get the job done on their own. There will always be a risk of trying to micro-manage people. But it all really comes down to whether an employee is meeting their key performance indicators. If they are not, then it is time to review what value that person is bringing to the organisation. Times are tough for all companies and those not bringing measurable value to their organisations will be the first to be let go, let’s be honest.

Maintaining motivation

To help address this, teams (in conjunction with their managers) should consider collaborating on structuring the work week as optimally as possible. This is especially important with people not in an office environment where they would ordinarily pop over to a colleague’s desk to discuss project-related issues. While being careful of the risk of micro-managing, it is advisable to assist junior employees in breaking up their work days into small blocks that focus on key deliverables.

It will quickly become evident which employees rise to the challenge and which are not. These are typically the people who ignore phone calls, find excuses to avoid virtual meetings, and are just unwilling to become motivated. But by embracing a more structured and routine approach to a digital workplace, employees get the focus needed to channel their energy into positive outcomes.

Of course, there is no silver bullet approach to deal with employee productivity and wellbeing. Individuals are different and have unique circumstances in their lives that can impact on their work. For example, those with younger children causing frequent disruption might struggle to keep focused. There are also people who have from poor connectivity with fibre not available in their area and are reliant on expensive mobile access. Some employees live in small apartments where it is not possible to have a dedicated or private area for work.

On the flip side, the individuals who have been performing well working remotely have a ‘safe space’ where they are able to disconnect from the rest of the household and focus on their deliverables. Furthermore, there is good infrastructure in place such as high-speed fibre connectivity and reliable backup power through a UPS or similar solution.

Clearly, the time has come for every manager and employee to prepare themselves for a fundamentally different way of doing things. A digital work environment is here to stay. It is now the responsibility of the individuals themselves to adapt to this new way of doing business. The cream will always rise.

For most people in South Africa, the hard lockdown at the end of March meant that business needed to be conducted differently.

South Africans, for the most part, commute to an office environment, which was not permitted under levels 5 and 4 of the lockdown. We all had to find solutions to keep our businesses running as smoothly as possible, and one of the biggest shifts for many South African companies was the introduction of remote working (or working from home).

Blessings

For many, this shift has changed the way we work. We are all aware of the benefits of working remotely. No traffic, no interruptions, and a more flexible way of completing our work each day.

Companies, especially those classified as non-essential during level 5, are able to service clients and provide support. Technology has provided us the tools to stay connected, as well as enabling us to keep our customers and bosses happy.

However, there are disadvantages to working from home, and it is important that companies take these disadvantages into consideration and assist employees where possible.

The International Labour Organisation (ILO) conducted a study[1] into remote working titled Working anytime, anywhere: The effects on the world of work, which noted that while remote workers are more productive when they work outside of the conventional office, they’re also more likely to working longer hours, at a more intense work pace, and, in some cases, greater psychological stress. Couple this with the heightened anxiety of Coronavirus, and there is the very real possibility that workers will be much more vulnerable to depression or anxiety-related problems.

Curses

There are a number of areas where remote workers are vulnerable. This article will focus on the following:

1. Overworking
2. Prioritising Work
3. Interruptions
4. Isolation
5. Tech glitches.

 

1. Overworking

Many companies, especially in South Africa, shy away from permitting remote work, and it would appear that this occurs in other countries as well. According to the ILO study,  “…[for] most of the national studies for this report, there appears to be a considerable degree of management resistance to T/ICTM in many organisations – including those that already have teleworking/telecommuting polices in place. All the national studies concur that this resistance is due mainly to the fact that the traditional ‘command and control’ style of management is not really possible with T/ICTM, and many managers fear this loss of control.” For example, the US national study notes, ‘’Managers are often distrustful of teleworkers. Out of sight, they assume teleworkers are slacking off.”

The report notes, however, that the opposite is usually true.

Remote workers are more likely to overwork. When your personal life and your work are both under the same roof, it’s harder to switch off.

To combat this, it is important to have a separate work area, with a comfortable chair and flat work surface. If you don’t have a lot of space, use a bookshelf to cordon off an area so that you have some sort of barrier, so that when your finish your work for the day, it doesn’t bleed into your home life.

Set your working hours and stick to them. Most companies require an online presence for 40 hours a week, with flexibility between 7:00 am and 18:00, so make sure you know what is expected of you and when you need to be online and contactable. When your working day is complete, switch off your laptop and remove yourself from your work area.

2. Prioritising Work

Remote workers need to be self-motivated experts at time management because we don’t have others constantly overseeing our work or managing our time for us. While every worker might find it difficult to stick to a schedule and manage their to-dos, it’s especially challenging for remote workers who have more flexible, free-form days.

This can be managed by having a daily task list and sticking to it. Set up regular meetings with your team and customers, so that your remote working day has a similar structure to your office day.

3. Interruptions

The lockdown has forced many families to work together. Children are attending classes online, and adults have to conduct online meetings or telephone calls, sometimes in the same room as their partner or children.

If you are working with others in your home, make sure that everybody understands the boundaries. Designate an area (perhaps a bedroom or study) where meetings and phone calls can be conducted without interruption and schedule your meetings so that you and your partner can each utilise the space.

4. Loneliness and isolation

If you don’t have your family with you, you are more likely to be vulnerable to feelings of loneliness and isolation, which has been amplified by the lockdown. This is especially problematic for workers who suffer from depression and/or anxiety.

Having a routine where you are forced to interact with other human beings can be extremely beneficial to depression and anxiety sufferers, especially those who live alone. Your colleagues become your social circle, and when that is removed, it can be difficult for you to reach out electronically.

Most recommendations for combatting isolation include taking your laptop to a coffee shop so that there are people around you, but this is currently not possible during lockdown. The best way to deal with this is to practice self-care and make sure you are in regular telephonic contact with friends and family.

If you are having online meetings, make sure that cameras are enabled so that you can at least see a friendly face. Take regular five-minute breaks to get some sunshine or go for a quick jog around the garden (or living room!).

5. Tech glitches

In South Africa, data is extremely expensive, and most remote workers are responsible for their own connectivity. In addition, we are vulnerable to unplanned power outages, and load-shedding.

If you are using a Fibre connection which requires electricity to function, a power failure can be catastrophic; not only is your equipment vulnerable to power surges, but workers who require connectivity to do their jobs lose productivity.

The only solution here is to have a plan B. Many employers provide remote workers with  WiFidongles or routers, which can operate without electricity. Many of us have power inverters or battery banks, while others have invested in a generator.

Whatever you choose, make sure that you select a solution that fits your pocket and keeps you connected.

The good news is that many South African companies have seen how effective remote working can be, and some businesses have even taken the decision to continue with Remote working when the lockdown ends. Greater productivity, happier employees and no exorbitant rent on office premises can benefit companies in the long run.

As the hard reality of the COVID-19 hits us, businesses have had no other alternative but to instruct employees to work from home. 

With more meetings taking place remotely and users jumping onto Teams, Skype and Zoom, the need for high-speed, reliable and affordable connectivity has never been greater.

Needless to say, access to reliable connectivity has become as much a necessity as air and water – an absolute must-have to rate a livelihood in the digital age.

Our behaviour has changed, and we have had to quickly adapt accordingly. The entire family is now on lockdown 24/7 in a concentrated area. Something that we never in our wildest dreams imagined would happen.

The kids are home streaming movies and playing video games, pulling data down, and the grownups are pulling data up working online – and so, the work and play balance has been manically put on its head. The struggle is real.

So, what are the options available to us? 

Mobile data 

It’s exactly just that – mobile – giving you an Internet connection anywhere as long as you’re connected to a cellular network.

Fixed LTE 

The best way to describe LTE (Long Term Evolution) is perhaps that it’s like Fibre but in the sky. Albeit a fast and stable connection, ideal for remote working, it’s not as fast as Fibre.

Fibre

The Ferarri of connectivity! Unlike with mobile, Fibre is uncontended with unlimited capacity and speeds can be upped as required. With a speed of up to 200Mbps, it’s ideal when the whole family is working and playing from home! It’s the most reliable form of connectivity and now more than ever, becoming a necessity.

Busting myths – some food for thought

Who wins when it comes to speed?

• With Fixed LTE, if you do not have perfect line of sight to a base station with capacity, you will never get the expected and promised throughput speeds no matter what speeds are advertised. And let’s be real – it’s not going to cut it where multiple people need to connect – even more so with mobile data!
• Download speeds are another myth. It’s been proven, of late, that some LTE networks are getting 0.6Mbps download speed, once again proving that LTE cannot cope with the current required capacity.

Which option is easier on your pocket?

• There is a perception that South African data costs are exorbitant, but that is an ignorant view – Mobile data costs are exorbitantly high, but our fixed line data costs are comparable with the rest of the world.
• Cost-wise, mobile data is by far the most expensive option, fixed LTE less so and hands down, Fibre is the most cost effective.
• All fixed or mobile data have a cap and fair use policies which, compared with Fibre, is in a different league.
• Then consider the router costs: The cost for an LTE router is at least four times more expensive than a Fibre router.

Having taken the above into account, the reality is that with such a demand for Internet and connectivity, one needs to work with an uncapped product or mid-month, all your data will be depleted as will your wallet!

It’s therefore fair to assume that the fact that there have been cable breaks in the last few days proves that Fibre is working extraordinarily and there is no better alternative.

Thanks in part to the increasing popularity of Cloud-based solutions, the global market for unified communications (UC) is expected to reach $167.1 billion by 2025.

In recent weeks, companies have experienced its importance first-hand given the number of employees working remotely. And it is in this environment where the humble telephone management system (TMS) is transformed into a significant business enabler.

UC has shown that people can work remotely without needing customer-premise equipment. All they require is a mobile phone and reliable Internet access with the Cloud taking care of the rest.

The focus is now on providing employees with the right tools for them to remain productive despite the current crisis.

At its core, UC centres on integrating multiple communication methods and devices and letting employees collaborate on projects irrespective of their physical location. As the lockdown has progressed, more people have gotten used to using their mobile devices and apps to collaborate online. And with the right tools in place, productivity can still be managed in a secure way.

Understanding TMS

For its part, a TMS is a software application or Web service that integrates with a PBX and enables detailed expense management and reporting. In turn, businesses can keep track of their company’s telephone usage and expenditure. This includes setting budgets and allowances for employees.

For example, John is a salesperson and is required to make 100 cold calls a week during the lockdown. Without a TMS in place, there is no way for his manager to see if he is indeed making those calls. Using a TMS, it is easy to pull a report and track how many calls John has made.

Read: Now is the time to go the Cloud-based PBX route

But it is also about cost management. In this instance, a manager might only give John a R1 000 call allowance for the month. Both the manager and John will be notified when certain thresholds are reached. The manager can then increase or even decrease John’s call budget as required, giving the manager total control of their telephony usage which takes away the fear of bill-shock at the end of the month.

Application-driven

This functionality results in the optimisation of resources at the organisation. Calls can now be managed better across departments and individual employees. And by integrating a TMS with a softphone application such as Vobi, even if employees are using their personal devices for work, the system can still track business calls on the application and provide relevant insights to managers.

Read: What is the difference between Vobi calling and WhatsApp calling?

A softphone application also addresses concerns about using personal devices (and SIM cards) for business calls. For instance, calls made over Vobi are done at special corporate rates and not the standard operator rates.

More companies have realised the benefits of using TMS solutions to identify and manage expenses. But, there are other advantages, including a call recording feature. This is ideal for various stakeholders to quality check or flag potential customer service issues.

Securing the voice environment

Innovative technology means concerns around fraud and security have largely been addressed. For example, a fraud reporting framework comprising a combination of reports and data is updated several times a day in addition to a live calls view. This helps to ensure that any break in protocol triggers alerts with a security team in place to do frequent scans on the network to ensure the company is not exposed to any threats.

With a locally-hosted Cloud-based TMS solution, companies have the peace of mind that compliance requirements are taken care of.

And if an international undersea cable should go down, this local system is not impacted.

From a Vox perspective, the growth in interest in UC solutions has been significant. The company has seen roughly a 94% increase in mobile application downloads between February and April 2020 when compared to the corresponding period last year.

Even though it is difficult to predict what a post-lockdown business environment will look like, there is certainty many employees who will continue to work remotely and rely on UC and TMS solutions to remain productive.