Can Your Team Actually Work From Anywhere?

The snow day test: If your office was inaccessible tomorrow, could your team still work? Most businesses think yes. Most businesses are wrong.

It's January. There's 6 inches of snow. The roads are chaos. Schools are closed.

Your phone buzzes: 'Can't get in today, boss.'

No problem, you think. Everyone can work from home.

But can they? Really?

The Snow Day Test

Here's what happens at most SMBs when staff try to work remotely:

Employee A: 'I can't access the shared drive. It keeps asking for a password I don't have.'

Employee B: 'My laptop won't connect to the VPN. I've tried three times.'

Employee C: 'The files I need are on the office computer. I can't get to them.'

Employee D: 'I don't have Teams on this laptop. How do I join the meeting?'

You: *Staring at your phone, realising the day is already lost.*

This isn't a hypothetical. We hear it every winter, every time there's a train strike, every time someone's kid is ill. The promise of flexible working collapses because the IT wasn't set up for it.

The 8 Things That Actually Matter

When we audit businesses for remote readiness, we check these eight areas. Fail on even one, and your 'work from anywhere' promise is fiction:

1. Can staff access email and files without calling IT?

If users need help to connect from home, you're not remote-ready. The right setup means they log in with their usual email and password, and everything just works.

2. Are files in the cloud, not on office PCs?

This is the big one. If your important documents live on a computer in the office, they're inaccessible from anywhere else. And they're probably not backed up properly either.

SharePoint and OneDrive solve this. Documents sync to laptops automatically, and stay accessible even offline.

3. Does everyone have MFA enabled?

Multi-Factor Authentication. That code from your phone when you log in.

Without it, a stolen password gives hackers complete access to everything. With it, they get nothing. It's the single most effective security control you can implement.

4. Can people join video calls easily?

If your team fumbles with 'which link do I click' or 'my camera isn't working', clients notice. It looks unprofessional and wastes everyone's time.

5. Can you remotely wipe a lost laptop?

Laptops get stolen. They get left on trains. They fall out of cars.

If your company data is on that laptop and you can't remotely erase it, that data is now someone else's problem.

6. Do your business apps work from anywhere?

Some accounting software, CRM systems, and industry applications only work when you're in the office. That's a problem.

Cloud-based alternatives exist for almost everything now.

7. What happens if the office internet dies?

Fire, flood, construction workers cutting the cable - these things happen. Businesses with cloud systems keep working from home. Businesses dependent on office servers stop completely.

8. Is antivirus centrally managed?

Home networks are less secure than office networks. Laptops working from home need enterprise-grade protection that IT can monitor remotely.

The Real Cost of 'Sort Of' Remote-Ready

Businesses that scrape by with half-working remote setups pay the price in:

• Lost productivity: Hours wasted troubleshooting connection issues
• Security breaches: Staff using personal devices without protection
• Staff frustration: 'It's easier to just come in' defeats the point of flexible working
• Client perception: Video calls that start with 'sorry, technical difficulties'

What Proper Remote Working Looks Like

When we set up a business for remote working, here's what happens:

• Staff open their laptop at home, in a coffee shop, or at a client site
• They log in with their email address and password
• They get a notification on their phone to approve the login (MFA)
• Their desktop appears with all their files, emails, and applications
• Nothing is different from being in the office

No VPN struggles. No 'I can't access that file'. No calling IT.

It requires:

• Microsoft 365 with proper configuration
• Files migrated to SharePoint/OneDrive
• Intune for device management
• Conditional Access policies for security
• Proper training so staff know what to do

The Quick Check

Before the next snow day catches you out, ask yourself:

• If your office was inaccessible tomorrow, could every team member do their job from home?
• Do you know the answer, or are you guessing?

We've built a quick assessment that checks all 8 areas in about 2 minutes. You'll get a score and know exactly where the gaps are.

Take the Remote Work Readiness Check

Making It Happen

Most businesses can go from 'sort of works' to 'works perfectly' in a few weeks. It's not a huge IT project - it's about configuring what you already have (or should have) properly.

Our Cloud Solutions service handles the whole thing: audit, migration, configuration, and training. You end up with a team that genuinely can work from anywhere.

Next snow day? You won't even notice.