With so many teams suddenly going remote, this is a hard time for workers, trainers, IT professionals and management alike. Providing security and stability for remote workers in these uncertain times is easier said than done; for many teams, there will be new technology, strategic shifts and lots of questions in the coming weeks. So, how do you support and train your workforce as they transition to a virtual environment?
An online knowledge base can be the difference between total chaos and a successful transition. Instead of sending around multiple emails with cobbled together instructions, you can give your team clear guidance on how to adopt new tools and processes through:
- Visual and clear how-to guides
- Step-by-step workflows (or decision trees) that guide your team through complicated processes
- Training courses
Read on to learn how you can leverage this technology to set up your team for success.
1. Start with the critical information
When you first start filling your knowledge base with support resources, it can be overwhelming to tackle every possible question and scenario all at once. To get things up and running quickly, you should focus on documenting the most critical information first. This includes things like:
- How do people get the equipment they need to do their jobs from home?
- How should employees communicate with coworkers, clients or prospects during this time?
- How are certain tasks going to be handled remotely?
If you're not sure where to start, try to put yourself in the shoes of the user and imagine what sort of problems or questions might arise as they try to do their job remotely. Then, get to work creating resources to solve those challenges. As more questions arise, make sure to always document the solution in an article that can then be uploaded to the knowledge base.
2. Move away from memorization
With so much new information coming in, you can't rely on memorization to get your team up to speed quickly. Instead, you'll want to empower your remote workers to problem-solve on their own by using the knowledge base.
For example, instead of training your team on how to set up Zoom meetings and then providing them with a support article afterwards, simply ask them to set up a Zoom meeting and let them use the knowledge base to figure out how to do that in real-time. Although this training approach might seem unusual at first, it will help your team become proficient faster and it will save your support desk from being overloaded with unnecessary tickets. Win-win!
3. Support people in doing their jobs
Next, you’ll want to make sure your knowledge base is truly helping people do their jobs. Instead of providing resources for, “How to use Zoom”, think about making articles for more specific purposes like, “How to conduct meetings with clients on Zoom”, or, “How to set up a Zoom meeting in Slack’.
These short, tailored articles will be much more effective for users than one long, comprehensive guide to using Zoom.
As time goes on, you can even use analytics to track who is viewing your content and what they’re searching for. This will help you build out more content around common question areas, and ensures your employees are accessing the support resources before reaching out for more help.
Keep iterating
Until we all have clear answers on next steps, your business needs to remain agile. This is where an online knowledge base becomes mission-critical. As your strategy changes and you introduce new technology, it’s easy to put together new articles, update existing resources and create helpful training courses. You can even create workflow articles that guide users through complex processes or mimic the troubleshooting process of live support.
Together, these resources and strategies create the most failsafe training for remote workers and assist your support teams in quickly scaling their operations. In the long-term, you'll be able to keep everyone on the same page as you build out your ongoing remote working strategy.
Preparing for a remote workforce in such a short timeline isn’t easy, but ScreenSteps can help. For more actionable tips, check out our webinar on remote instruction strategies.