Propeller Advisory CEO Katie Bryan shares ways to keep your team productive and well during Covid-19 restrictions. This article first appeared in Acuity magazine on 21 August 2020.

By Alexandra Cain

No-one wants another lockdown, but the experience in Melbourne and Auckland has shown how easily it can happen.

IN BRIEF

• In the event of another lockdown, it’s vital to check in on your team’s mental health.
• IT security is a major priority when staff are working from home.
• It’s important to set clear targets and budgets while in lockdown, to give everyone focus and a sense of purpose.

Melbourne and Auckland’s swift re-entry into lockdown brought home how quickly major cities can find themselves overwhelmed by a COVID 19 second wave. It’s important to be prepared for such an event.

Prioritising cybersecurity

Katie Bryan is the founder and CEO of Melbourne-based accounting and business advisory firm Propeller Advisory. Currently, its staff are all working from home in lockdown and Bryan’s team is making the most of technologies such as Slack, Microsoft Teams and Skype to stay in touch.

IT security is a major priority when staff are working remotely and Bryan uses Practice Protect to manage network integrity. Team members have one password for the portal, which gives them access to all the other apps. It also restricts logins to certain times and IP addresses.

“Staff can’t go over to a friend’s house, print documents and accidentally leave them behind because they can’t access the portal from their friend’s place,” explains Bryan.

Ergonomics

Technology has been an area of particular focus during the pandemic, including ensuring that employees’ home-office equipment is ergonomically correct. Bryan’s staff use apps such as Ergonomics, which provides an assessment of the suitability of a user’s desk set-up.

“Our staff have also been really resourceful if office equipment has been in short supply, using wireless keyboards and sitting laptops on books to make sure they are maintaining good posture at home,” says Bryan.

Keeping track

To keep reading the full article, head to the Acuity magazine website.