Remote, Onsite, Hybrid
COVID-19 has changed how offices look and operate. In spring 2020, an avalanche of employees suddenly found themselves working from home. As offices slowly continue to reopen, employers are rethinking their physical spaces and reassessing how to meet their employees’ needs. Some employees want the work-life balance possible with remote work. Others miss being onsite, and the face-to-face time that offers. A hybrid work environment can offer the best of both. Here are three considerations for each work environment and three ways Canon can help a business thrive in whichever setup they choose.
Remote Work
The success of remote work has made companies rethink their day-to-day operations. Employees have proven to be just as productive, especially when they have the tools and technology to do their jobs. Employers and employees seem to be in sync with their feelings about the setup: 74 per cent of employers plan to continue offering the option to work remotely, even once it’s safe to return to the office1; 70 per cent of workers want flexible remote work to continue.2
Three Considerations for a Remote Work Environment
Cybersecurity and data protection
IT teams have growing concerns about the security of information printed on home devices. No wonder – three in four employees print work files on devices they initially bought and set up themselves.[3]
Digitization of paper-based processes
Smart devices – such as multifunction printers – that facilitate efficient document capture and automated digital workflows keep employees connected even when they’re working apart.
Canon Solutions for Your Remote Work Needs
Core ITS provides companies – small businesses to multinational organizations – with a virtual IT department. It focuses on three areas: service and network security; backup and disaster recovery; and end-user support. Core ITS offers round-the-clock network monitoring, allowing users to focus solely on their business operations. With cybersecurity top of mind, Core ITS security services detect malware, file-less attacks, suspicious activity and other potential network threats to keep systems safe, even when workers are all under different roofs.
Scan, capture, sort and index documents as fully searchable files with IRISPowerscan. Users can import from any format (e.g., scanners, multifunction devices, watched folders, emails, cloud); the software verifies data, and then exports it to a chosen document format to any destination (e.g., applications, folders, cloud). IRISPowerscan is impeccably accurate at indexing key data, thanks to its award-winning OCR engine. Employees may work remotely, but with this ability to easily retrieve and share documents, they will be in the same space virtually.
In its standard tabletop formation, the imageRUNNER ADVANCE 527iF equips work-from-home employees with the same tools they would use at the office. The black-and-white multifunction printer produces up to 55 pages per minute, and scans and converts documents to searchable digital files in a variety of file formats. Due to its MEAP (Multifunctional Embedded Application Platform) compatibility, the device has the ability to integrate with many Canon and third-party software solutions, including uniFLOW Online and Canon PRINT Business. For IT departments, it’s easy and intuitive to manage fleets from afar, including managing settings and implementing security policies.
Video: IRISPowerscan
This powerful software solution can help you reduce manual errors and save time.
Onsite Work
Nearly two-thirds of Canadians want to return to their physical workspace or office.4 Easier access to technology and face-to-face collaboration with colleagues are their main reasons.5 Employers must find a balance between providing productive workspaces and ensuring employee safety. That includes enacting enhanced health and safety protocols, guidelines for meeting spaces and common areas, and possibly even daily health certifications.
Three Considerations for an Onsite Work Environment
Workplace Safety
Basic steps include physical distancing, face masks and sanitation stations. More than three-quarter of employers have or are planning to add signage to help control the flow of traffic inside the office.[6]
Office Entry
By automating pre-screening and conducting temperature checks, businesses can better ensure the health and safety of everyone in the building.
Canon Solutions for Your Onsite Work Needs
Canon large format printing solutions can help you outfit your office to stay open safely. The Colorado Series is ideal for printing signage, floor graphics and roll-up banners. Output is immediately dry and ready to be processed, meaning it can be laminated the minute it comes off the machine. The newest addition, the Colorado 1630, was designed for sign makers and in-house printers with lower-volume needs, the Colorado 1650 for higher volumes. Canon’s Remote-Control app is available to monitor all printers in the series (which also includes the Colorado 1640). This application allows users to check the printer status remotely, helping them monitor operations and output from multiple office locations.
The imagePROGRAF product line includes models for production signage, infographics and posters, and general use markets (as well as for professional photography and fine art and technical documents). The imagePROGRAF PRO Series features the LUCIA PRO ink system for enhanced overall colour performance and consistent colour reproduction, important for those printing signage for more than one office. The multipurpose TA Series was designed for first-time large-format print users and is ideal for posters and designs. All imagePROGRAF printers include Canon’s free poster creation software, PosterArtist Lite. Customers can download templates to print signage and posters highlighting COVID-19 safety guidelines. Users can also personalize templates to include their brand name and messaging, or even create their own images. The software includes templates ideal for wall and floor displays.
With Canon’s Secure Entry Tracking (SET), users can automate their pre-screening procedures for staff and visitors. SET is comprised of two parts. The software component, Therefore Check-in Online, allows people to check in virtually before physically setting foot in a facility. They use their own smartphones, PCs or tablets to answer an online questionnaire about their health status prior to arrival. The software automatically calculates the results and confirms if the person is permitted to enter the office. The hardware component, TASK (Temperature and Advanced Screening Kiosk), is an automated thermal temperature screening and facial recognition kiosk. If TASK detects an abnormal reading or someone not wearing a mask, it sends multiple alerts: an audio signal (for example, “no mask” or “abnormal temperature”); a visual signal (both the interface and the live dashboard flashes red); and an email notification to the customer’s designated recipient. Therefore captures this alert and keeps it in the system for future contact tracing purposes.
With imageRUNNER ADVANCE Remote Operation, users take control of their multifunction device with their smartphone or tablet. Scanning the QR code on the imageRUNNER ADVANCE duplicates the control panel on a mobile device. Users can then copy documents, scan and send them to email or network folders, and release print jobs in their queue all without touching the MFP.
Video: Remote Operation
Take control of your imageRUNNER ADVANCE with your smartphone or tablet to minimize touch-points at the device.
Hybrid Work
Both employers and employees still value physical offices. Two-thirds of executives believe employees should be in the office at least three days a week to maintain a distinctive company culture, once the pandemic is no longer a concern.7 They believe a physical space increases employee productivity, provides meeting spaces and encourages collaboration. For employees, an office offers invaluable in-person face time and helps maintain a sense of being part of a team. In fact, 83 per cent of employees say hybrid work is the optimal option for the future.5
Three Considerations for a Hybrid Work Environment
Redesigned office space
Employers planning for a hybrid work environment are 4.5 times more likely to expect a reduction in office space greater than 10 per cent.[8]
Office hoteling stations
About one-quarter[9] of employers want to reduce the size of their office space. A reservation-style workspace not only reduces costs but also promotes a flexible work environment and encourages office networking.
Canon Solutions for Your Hybrid Work Needs
Canon designed the imageRUNNER ADVANCE DX Series to accelerate and support customers in their digital transformation journey. The imageRUNNER ADVANCE DX Series meets the everyday needs of small- and medium-size businesses. The colour multifunction devices allow users to not only efficiently process their output at the office – print up to 70 pages per minute; scan up to 270 images per minute – but also easily digitize documents to be readily accessible remotely another day. uniFLOW Online Express, which comes standard on all models, delivers cloud connectivity to help maintain productivity wherever one’s office is on a given day.
uniFLOW Online extends that functionality by adding My Print Anywhere. The pull print functionality enables print jobs to follow users from one device to another regardless of the make and model. Add Print via Cloud to enable more flexibility on where a job is stored to support different departments’ requirements, including environments with many devices, multiple locations and remote workers. On its own, this cloud-output management platform provides enhanced security features that support employees across disperse locations.
Therefore Online, a document capture and workflow software, allows users to transform manual, paper-based business processes into automated, digital workflows. With the click of a mouse – or the touch of a tablet – employees can instantly capture, archive, retrieve, edit and process documents. Employees can access information remotely through three methods:
- Therefore Web Access, which enables full functionality via any web browser;
- Therefore Mobile App, which offers search and view functionalities via a mobile device; and
- Therefore Anywhere, which allows users to take documents offline for editing. Once reconnected to the network, all changes synchronize to the system.
1. Wilson, Jim. “3 in 4 employers to keep offering remote work.” Canadian HR Reporter, Key Media, 6 June 2021, hrreporter.com/focus-areas/culture-and-engagement/3-in-4-employers-to-keep-offering-remote-work/357209
2. “The Next Great Disruption Is Hybrid Work—Are We Ready?” Microsoft, 22 March 2021, https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/worklab/work-trend-index/hybrid-work
3. Fernandes, Louella. “Scaling print security for the remote workplace.” Quocirca, Alumen Consulting Ltd, 16 September 2020, quocirca.com/content/scaling-print-security-for-the-remote-workplace
4. “Canadians like hybrid model concept: Workplace reboot.” KPMG, KPMG LLP, 19 May 2021, home.kpmg/ca/en/home/media/press-releases/2021/05/canadians-like-hybrid-model-concept-workplace-reboot
5. “The Future of Work: Productive anywhere.” Accenture, May 2021, accenture.com/_acnmedia/PDF-155/Accenture-Future-Of-Work-Global-Report.pdf
6. “HRPA COVID-19 Return to Workplace Survey: Key Findings Report.” HRPA Human Resources Professional Association, hrpa.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/2021/06/HRPA-RTW-Key-Findings-Final1-1.pdf
7. “PwC’s US Remote Work Survey.” PwC, 12 January, 2021, pwc.com/us/en/library/covid-19/us-remote-work-survey.html
8. “Executives share their plans for returning to the workplace.” Deloitte, deloitte.com/us/en/pages/human-capital/articles/2021-return-to-workplace-survey.html
9. “The Littler Annual Employer Survey Report.” Littler Mendelson P.C., May 2021, littler.com/files/2021_littler_employer_survey_report.pdf