As the world begins to embrace the new, post-pandemic normal, it’s clear that work as we know it has undergone a paradigm shift. What began as a way to protect employees from getting sick, work from home (WFH) is morphing into work from anywhere (WFX) as many companies opt to keep those policies in place indefinitely.
While the differences between “WFH” and “WFX” may seem semantic, WFX underscores how the technologies organizations have relied on to transition employees out of the office and into the home are about to get a lot more capable with 5G.
How 5G unlocks WFX (and on a bigger scale).
We've all heard about a 5G future where ultra-fast, ultra-low latency wireless connectivity empowers use cases like remote, robotic surgeries or fleets of connected autonomous vehicles traversing highways inches apart—but these use cases are still years away from ubiquity. What many business leaders aren’t hearing is how the low- and mid-band 5G spectrum widely available today can offer real, tangible benefits to address what businesses need now.
Today,
At the same time, hundreds of 5G enabled smartphones, laptops, and tablets are hitting the market today. Hotspots and other devices that provide 5G-enabled
What the 5G future of WFX will look like.
While low- and mid-band 5G spectrum won't change how devices and apps function in the short-term, it will improve how well they work and where you can use them.
Traveling nurses, for example, depend on cloud-based apps accessed via a laptop, smartphone, or tablet to onboard new patients, review and submit orders, and interact with colleagues and doctors via video conference. Because broadband is not always available, many nurses still fill out reams of paper forms "just in case."
Because broadband is not always available, many nurses still fill out reams of paper forms "just in case."
This common problem affects anyone who has to travel for work or works in the field. It also limits WFH employees' ability to work from places that might benefit them more than their kitchen table or a make-shift office next to the washer and dryer.
For people that download and upload lots of data, such as insurance adjusters, the future with 5G means they will no longer have to wait to send and receive the information until they have a good connection. Large video files, for example, will fly from device to the cloud in seconds—just like they do from terrestrial broadband connections today.
Desktop-like functionality across devices, wherever your people work.
Longer-term, the growing availability of reliable high-speed broadband like
As part of that trend towards desktop-like functionality, unified communications-as-a-service (UCaaS) could get a real adoption boost from the speed and low latency introduced by Ultra Capacity 5G and the widespread adoption of work-from-anywhere policies. Already popular with many businesses, UCaaS platforms offer digital nomads the ability to roll all of their communications needs up into one service. Like continuous 5G connectivity, this saves them time, improves remote collaboration, and increases productivity.
UCaaS platforms offer digital nomads the ability to roll all of their communications needs up into one service.
This combination of reliable 5G connectivity, an intuitive UCaaS platform, and the 5G-ready devices can unlock the real benefits of WFX for your remote teams and business as a whole:
- A single, nationwide 5G network provider greatly simplifies sourcing across different markets and geographies
- A business-only 5G/4G LTE solution eliminates the “conflict crisis” experienced with shared home broadband, with the ability to limit access to employee devices and filter non-business content
- Quick, easy installation and set-up helps employees get started fast (no IT pro needed)
Keeping you connected and productive, where work happens.
While “what's next” is always a bit of mystery, the hard trends—work from anywhere, the move to 5G, the innovation that always follows advances in networking—all point to a future where work is less about where you do something and more about what you get done. Expanding WFX support for your employees is a critical imperative, both now and into the future.
Ready to give your workforce the speed to connect and the remote work tools they need to collaborate where work happens? Learn more about
iDisclaimer:
During congestion, heavy data users (>50GB/mo. for most plans; >100GB/mo. on Go5G Business) and customers choosing lower-prioritized plans may notice lower speeds than other customers; see plan for details. Video typically streams on smartphone/tablet at 480p. Go5G Business Plus: Activate up to 4K UHD streaming on capable device, or video typically streams at 480p. 40GB full-speed tethering.
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