BSI Article: Balmori Software gears up to serve you with social distancing

Balmori Software adapts to the new normal - and so will pretty much everybody. First of all, despite the imminent relaxation of quarantine restrictions, there is no guarantee of personal safety against COVID-19 until a vaccine is available. And widely disseminated.

A dangerous knock-on effect of COVID-19
could complicate your reopening

If you're going back to your office during the GCQ, this is one more very serious danger that you have to guard against.

This article means you have to be assertive and firm with your building administrator.

Take care, everyone.
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In recognition of this reality, we at Balmori Software have done the following things:

We're deploying resources for remote working and customer support. We recognize that many of our clients will continue to Work From Home. That's because the health risks have not disappeared regardless of everyone's (reasonable but risk-fraught) desire to get the economy restarted.

Therefore, we want to make it easy for you to obtain the BSI services that you've been used to, but without having to physically meet.

Following are the resources that we have set up for remote working for your convenience:

1. Communicating with us. We can be reached through the following methods during office hours:

a. Land line. Our regular telephone numbers. This can be your first resort. However, be warned that we ourselves will be practicing lots of social distancing, and consequently will be working from home more intensively from now on. If you can't reach us via our landlines, please try the following alternatives.

b. Email. No explanation needed.

c. Skype. We have installed Skype in all our computers. This communications software is downloadable at no charge. It enables sharing of a computer screen.

d. Zoom. We have installed Zoom in all our computers. This communications software is downloadable at no charge. It enables both one-on-one and large group online meetings, and also allows the sharing of a computer screen.

2. Technical support

a. Land line: You may use land line if your query does not require the showing of a software screen

b. Email: again, no explanation needed. Note: For everyone's benefit, conveying a problem in writing is preferred because it serves to document the interaction - always a good thing in business.

c. Skype: If you have a technical problem that requires you showing us your computer screen, Skype has the capability to share a screen between the participants of a call.

Balmori Software supports
your migration to the cloud

In recent weeks, many of our customers have started making serious investigations into migrating to the cloud.

We are pleased to assure our client base that all Balmori Software software solutions will run on the cloud.

Balmori Software can support cloud intenders - from the migration phase all the way to the maintenance phase. We provide configuration advice, planning, and implementation.

We can also do actual installation of apps in the cloud server of your choice, and do remote or in-person set up of the work stations at your various company geographical locations (i.e., officers' and key team members' homes).

Your migration to the cloud can be done entirely remotely. Balmori Software can handhold you, from the moment you decide you want to be in the cloud, all the way to maintaining your online resources. When the COVID-19 lockdown ends, Balmori Software can offer you the alternative of physical visitations.

What will the cloud experience be like for the typical lay user? If your organization migrates your Balmori Software solution to the cloud, your staff would be accessing it in exactly the same way they currently access it in your existing office-based LAN client-server network.

In short, the experience would be no different when your various apps are in the cloud. Except, you're likely to be pleasantly surprised: on the cloud, you'll most likely experience faster response times from whatever application you're using.
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d. Zoom: Similarly, for technical support that necessitates showing a problem on a shared screen, a Zoom session is an excellent alternative to Skype. If you are not yet familiar with Zoom, we suggest you start educating yourself now.

3. Trainings and product presentations: Because COVID-19 infection remains a danger until a vaccine can be developed, BSI will no longer conduct in-person product trainings or product presentations until further notice.

Instead, we shall conduct presentations and trainings via Zoom or Skype. Both communications software provide both sound and video. Moreover, they are both capable of showing a shared screen to meeting participants.

4. Delivery of licenses/upgrades: Until further notice, we shall deliver licenses/upgrades either (a) through e-mail, (b) download links, (c) through TeamViewer, or (d) AnyDesk.

When using the latter two modes, you, the customer will turn your computer over to be temporarily remote-controlled by one of our technical support people. In a matter of minutes, the remote-control installation of your program or upgrade is complete, and we relinquish control of your computer back to you.

Files downloaded or delivered by email can be installed by your IT Department, if you have one.

What if you don't have an IT department, but don't want to relinquish control of your computers to a remote operator, no matter how briefly? Our tech support people can instruct your (relatively) tech-savviest team member how to do it himself/herself, via Zoom or Skype.

For those who require the installation to be executed through a personal visit by our tech support people, we shall do our best to send a tech support person to your premises, subject to the constraints of government quarantine regulations.

5. Bills settlement: We encourage you to make use of online banking in paying our bills. For transactions in coming days, we shall provide our bank account details at billing time.

6. Billing
Under current BIR regulations, invoices and official receipts need to come out of a prescribed accountable booklet form.

a. Invoicing: We shall scan our invoice and email you the image.

b. Official receipts: We shall similarly scan our OR and email you the image.

The future
As time goes by, and more and more lay people become comfortable with remote working technologies, more and more organizations will also get comfortable letting employees work from home.

The COVID-19 crisis and lockdown has accelerated the adoption of these technologies. Work and lifestyle behaviors have already changed, and will continue to change. And the changes will outlive the corona virus.

These changes will bring challenges; they also bring opportunities.

From a macro point of view, a huge subset of our economy's white-collar workers should become more productive when they WFH.
cute-family-500

A couple of reasons why that is a reasonable expectation: first, you eliminate the air pollution that's produced in commuting via internal combustion vehicles. Second, you eliminate the physical fatigue and stress that the two- to four-hour commute brings. Both of these lead to better health conditions and outcomes.

Third, family life is enhanced because the WFH workers are able to spend more time with their loved ones. This helps to promote stronger family units, stronger values formation, closer parental supervision, potentially less petty crime.

Fourth, WFH forces everyone to become more proficient with the various WFH tools and technologies. This leads to a more tech-savvy workforce; this can only contribute to making this economy more competitive in the world economy.

Of course, not all workers will be able to WFH. But the population that do have this option will surely not be insignificant.

These changes, and our collective adaptations to them, will bring a very different new world for all of us. Balmori Software will be along with you for the ride.
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Balmori Software Inc.