Can Your Receptionists Work From Home?

Many companies have started transitioning some of their departments to a remote work setup for productivity and cost-efficiency. With your front desk, however, it begs the question: “Can receptionists work from home?”

The answer is yes: with the right adjustments, it’s easy for your front desk team to work from the comfort of their homes, while also improving the visitor experience.

Here’s how.

The check-in process

Greeting and checking in customers is often the biggest part of a receptionist’s work. This typically involves the receptionists constantly being behind the front desk to welcome visitors at any time.

However, thanks to developments in technology and business, you can easily supersede this obstacle with the right equipment. Incorporating video software allows your receptionists to livestream and attend the front desk from their own homes.

For best results, however, you need a dedicated platform like WelcomeWare that allows your receptionists to attend to your front desk remotely while simultaneously interacting with your visitors through a touchscreen healthcare kiosk.

Administrative tasks

If remote work taught us anything, it’s that administrative work is absolutely possible anywhere. This is very much the case with receptionists. In fact, they can perform much better because they can avoid the typical in-office distractions that can slow down their response time.

Of course, a remote receptionist service still requires some adjustments with the workflow and necessary tools. Thankfully, the transition is often manageable and at times even barely noticeable.

Here are some administrative tasks and how they can be performed remotely:

• Scheduling appointments – Use scheduling apps like Calendly or Google Calendar
• Intake forms – Use a touchscreen platform like WelcomeWare that allows visitors to complete forms and sign documents
• Answering calls – Use VoIP software that can connect directly to a home phone line
• Responding to emails – Use email platforms (Gmail, Outlook, etc.)
• Updating electronic databases – Use online platforms like Google Docs, a CRM system, or an EMR

Availability

One of the greatest strengths of a work-from-home setup is availability. If your receptionists work from home, it completely eliminates the risks behind constant traveling and preparation. These often tire out your receptionists in the long run, and may even result in turnover, especially when the workload gets too heavy, the commute is too long, or the hours are unworkable.

Receptionists may face some personal situations that require them to take a leave and stay at home. Either way, this can affect how your front desk performs, depending on the size of your front desk team.

Letting your receptionists work from home greatly reduces such problems. Since they’re often a few steps away from their workspace, they are more likely to feel positive about their responsibilities. And even if a receptionist is unable to come to work, you can readily have another receptionist who also works from home take over the work on their shift.

Plus, it can actually make your front desk capabilities even more effective. WelcomeWare, for example, enables your receptionists to attend to front desks across multiple locations on demand. This capability gives your front desk a massive edge over on-site work because you won’t need to hire and pay a receptionist to manage each of your locations.

With how fast-paced the front desk can be, you need a system that keeps pace especially when a receptionist is busy on the phone, out on vacation, or sick. It’s best to use a platform like WelcomeWare that allows you to have another receptionist take over in such situations, ensuring that your front desk operates smoothly.