Nearly 30% of You Have Remote Workers on Staff

question:

Do you allow any of your staff work remotely?

Yes: 29%

• Just me, as office manager. I work Wednesdays at home so I can let my wife go to her office and I pick up the kids in the middle of the day. — Geoff G., Lake Country, BC
• We have had an off-site claims biller for just over three years. It’s been marvelous. We used to do claims billing on-site, and our staff were always getting interrupted to do other things (phone calls, sell glasses, etc.). Having it off-site has made it so much more efficient and cost-effective. It didn’t hurt that we hand-picked someone for the job without ever having to advertise and screen for it. — Jen H., Sandpoint, ID
• Billing. — Caitlin N., Montrose, CO
• We use to have a billed that moved out of state. She was working remotely with a laptop. It was working out great until she had to leave to pursue other opportunities. — Danielle D., Detroit, MI
• Billing and posting of insurance are done remotely. — Kristina J., Mishawaka, IN
• My wife is my business partner and she takes our paper charts and transfers into our EHR. This is performed at the office and at home with our cloud access. We also do a lot of our inventory tagging and accounting remotely. — William C., Forsyth, GA
• Yes. Our inventory buyer works remotely. Works out great. We also have a biller that works remotely. Also working out well. — Lorie F., Bakersfield, CA
• They are a few of us in the office that work a little from home. We bill, finish charts, and work on other projects from the comfort of our couches. We have found this to be very effective as there are less interruptions than in the office. — Ann-Marie W., Lewis Center, OH
• My optical manager does accounts receivable/insurance from home once or twice a week. She clocks in and out and gives me a report of what’s been done. It works great! — Cynthia S., Lewis Center, OH
• For small amounts of time this is possible for staff in our billing department but the only staff member who can work remotely consistently does our office accounting. All other areas in eyecare are not conducive to remote work. — Zachary D., Saint Peter, MN
• I have one part time employee who runs our social media accounts from home. We communicate frequently and work well together in this capacity. Otherwise it’s all hands-on deck in the store front. — Maggie C., Winston Salem, NC
• Payroll, supplies, managing, marketing, website. — Dave S., San Luis Obispo, CA
• Insurance processing, call center, recall and billing. — Gregory H., Sandusky, OH
• Insurance processing, claims authorizations, working out well. — Deb J., Bismarck, ND
• Our office manager and medical biller will sometimes work from home doing administrative tasks. Otherwise, our business is very patient-facing and hard to do remotely. — Christine H., Plainville, MA

No: 71%

• We take care of all things that need to be done in office. — Pablo M., Atlanta, GA
• Not feasible in our office structure. — Rita Ellent, OD, The Gardens Eye Care, Forest Hills, NY
• I have a small boutique and it’s just myself (the optician) and a part-time secretary who answers the phone and bills insurance. Can’t do any of that remotely except maybe the insurance billing. But that’s no fun! We come to work to see each other and have fun! — Jennifer L., Dansville, NY
• Right now I don’t have a position that can be completed remotely. Everyone is cross-trained, so if someone is out another person can help fill in. That’s tough for a work-from-home employee to be able to do. — Amber F., Mt. Juliet, TN
• Caught on of my employees billing for extra hours that were not worked. — Scott K., Dover, OH
• How do you sell eyewear from home? — Diana B., Austin, TX
• Because we have hourly employees, it is just too hard to track the work. And we are a patient interacting business. Exceptions can be made of course. I think remaining flexible is key! — Jenna G., Fargo, ND
• Because of the nature of our office (making frames on site) it’s very hands on. I can’t imagine a remote way of doing this. — Kevin C., IL
• Just a one-person show, here. I don’t’ think my clients want to come to my house. — Jennifer Y., Canandaigua NY
• We are in the process of figuring out how to do some remote work. 80% of our staff is cross-trained and due to challenges hiring/finding great staff, we need everyone in person in case they need to switch roles in the office. — Diana C., Chicago, IL