Providing support to boards, board committees and board members during these work from home and remote work times have been especially challenging.

Nothing more frustrating than your board chair complaining IT is useless because they can't connect to Teams or Zoom /1

I will share some recommendations here that should reduce your support burdens and make life easier for your board members holding remote meetings.

Satisfaction will go up and support calls down, if you follow these guidelines.../ 2

Provide ALL your board members and executive management with iPads. The combination of an iPad and the Apple pencil, I have found is the best device for remote meetings.

The iPad cameras and audio system are by far better than any on a laptop or Mac.

Ensuring superior video /3

And audio quality. The apple pencil allows them to sign documents electronically making the review of board papers a breeze (no more dispatch riders carrying documents for signing). You likely have an Enterprise Microsoft agreement so you can also provide access to Office 365 /4

With IOS, there are fewer support calls associated with running Office 365 and Outlook on an iPad.

Set up Microsoft Authenticator for your office domain and avoid all the expired password issues (you really expire passwords after 60 days??!)

No irate directors /5

To solve your connectivity issues, ensure the IPads have cellular AND also provide MiFI's to your directors. Use speedify to transparently use both the MiFI and the iPad's cellular connection.

Speedify for Teams is ideal here, with its reporting and support for MDM /6

Go to your CEO, demo all of this for her/him. This is how you get budget approval. Also budget for the one time install for each of your board members.

Use Airtel/MTN for the iPad Sims, Swift & Smile for the Mifi's. This thread has more detail /7 https://twitter.com/aadetugbo/status/1268266741408415745?s=20

I hope this helps you improve the remote working experience for your board

/End