How Are Managers Remote Monitoring Computers for Remote Workers?

An unprecedented number of employees in the United States are currently working remotely for at least part of their workweek. This is partially due to the global pandemic, but the truth is that many employees were shifting to remote work even before the coronavirus crisis.

Studies have shown that both employers and employees can benefit from remote work. Employees benefit from the flexibility, autonomy, and convenience of remote work, whereas employers can reduce operational expenses, increase employee retention, and improve job satisfaction by allowing employees to work remotely.

But of course, there are some drawbacks to remote work. Because they work off-site, managers aren’t able to keep a close eye on remote employees during work hours. Fortunately, remote monitoring computers for remote workers is possible thanks to employee tracking software.

How Does Remote Employee Monitoring Software Work?

This software is designed to help managers understand what their remote workers are doing throughout the workweek. Once installed, the software will track and record what your remote employees do on their company-owned devices. It records anything and everything, including:

• Instant messages
• Emails
• Social media usage
• File uploads/downloads
• Use of USB devices
• Print history
• Keystrokes
• Online searches
• Web site history
• Application/program usage
• Networks

The software also takes screenshots of your employees’ devices. This feature allows you to see exactly what your employees are seeing on their screens.

The best part is that you are in complete control of how much or how little information you want to track. You can adjust the settings so you only monitor and track certain types of information, such as websites visited or time spent on social media. Or you can choose to track and record all types of digital activity so you don’t miss a thing.

You can control how often screenshots are taken, too. You can either take screenshots at certain time intervals throughout the day or ask the software to only take screenshots when the employee performs certain actions. For example, you can choose to only take screenshots when an employee searches for a specific keyword.

What Are the Benefits of Remote Monitoring Computers for Remote Workers?

There are a number of reasons why every manager should consider remote monitoring computers for remote workers. Some of the benefits of using this software include:

• Increase Productivity
• Insider Threat Detection
• Simplify Workplace Investigations
• Verify Compliance

Increase Productivity

Some employees struggle to stay focused while working remotely, whereas others thrive in a remote work environment. You can find out who is pulling their own weight—and who isn’t—using this innovative software.

You can pull customized reports that show you an overview of how many hours each employee is working and what they are spending their time on. You can even access detailed information for each employee that shows how much time they spent on each website and using each application or program.

Analyzing this information will help you determine the strongest and weakest members of your team. Recognizing and rewarding the strongest members of your team will keep them motivated, whereas providing additional coaching or support to the weakest members could make them more productive.

You can also use this information to make smarter business decisions. For instance, if you determine that employees are spending far too much time using a specific program, you may want to look for an alternative program that is easier to use. Switching to this program could save your employees time and increase their overall productivity.

The data could also help you identify areas of strengths and weaknesses for each employee. Use this information when deciding how to delegate certain tasks to optimize your team’s productivity and performance.

Insider Threat Detection

It’s estimated that the source of 60% of data breaches are insiders, which are employees, contractors, or other parties within the organization. These data breaches can seriously damage a company’s operations, finances, and reputation, which is why it’s so important to prevent them.

Detecting insider threats is always challenging, especially when employees are working remotely. But remote monitoring computers for remote workers can help companies detect and extinguish these threats before they are able to act.

The software closely monitors each employee’s activities at all times. If an employee begins engaging in unusual or abnormal activity, the software will immediately notify you. You will be able to quickly access video playback of the suspicious activity so you can determine whether or not it is a legitimate threat. If it is, you can take action right away to protect your company’s data.

You can also adjust the settings so you are always notified of certain activities. For example, you may want to be notified every time an employee accesses a specific file that contains sensitive data. This allows you to keep a close eye on anyone engaging in activities that could put your company at risk.

Simplify Workplace Investigations

Employers must investigate allegations of discrimination, harassment, retaliation, fraud, theft, and other types of illegal activities. It is typically difficult—not to mention expensive and time-consuming—to locate evidence in these investigations. But remote monitoring software can drastically simplify the process.

The data collected by this software can serve as irrefutable evidence in these investigations. For example, emails and instant messages could be used as evidence of harassment. Screenshots could serve as evidence of fraud or other types of criminal activity.

There’s no need to waste resources on conducting an extensive, lengthy investigation into wrongdoing. Instead, simply sift through the data collected by this software to find the evidence you need to hold the at-fault parties accountable.

Verify Compliance

Remote monitoring software can help managers ensure that their remote workers are complying with laws, regulations, and internal company policies.

For example, managers can review each employee’s data to confirm that they are complying with HIPAA, PCI DSS, FINRA, FERPA, and other federal regulations. Managers can also review the data to verify that employees are not violating internal company policies by visiting restricted websites or engaging in other prohibited activities.

Will Remote Workers Know About Monitoring Software?

Managers must decide whether or not to tell their employees that their activities are being monitored.

The software can be installed on your remote workers’ devices without their knowledge, so you won’t need to tell them in order to set it up. However, some states have established laws that require employers to notify employees when they are being monitored.

For this reason, it is best to learn about the laws in your state when deciding whether or not to tell your team about remote monitoring software.

Being transparent with your employees about the use of this software could actually improve their productivity. Employees may stay more focused and work harder when they know they are being monitored.

Plus, being honest could help you build trust with your employees, which is a crucial component of a positive working relationship. This also gives your employees the opportunity to ask questions and voice their concerns over the use of the software.

What is the Best Remote Monitoring Software?

There are a number of different remote monitoring tools available, but none that can compare to Veriato. This software, which can be remotely deployed to your employees’ devices, will track and record each employee’s digital activity. It can be used as a digital surveillance tool designed to keep managers in the know regardless of where their employees are physically located.

You will never need to wonder or worry about what your remote workers are doing during work hours again. Start a free trial or schedule an online demo of Veriato to learn more about this powerful tool.