Expand the summer holiday

It's just not long enough is it? If you're self-employed or hold a management position you've probably been back at the helm for a week and are sighing over the short Christmas break and lack of sun. (Naturally, the sun has made its appearance now everyone is safely at work again.)

Though it's flippant to suggest information technology can run all aspects of a business in your absence, smart use of recently improved technologies may allow you to extend your time away from the office - and the traffic.

Advances to mobile telecommunications services make it possible to access online networks and send and receive data at broadband speeds of up to 2Mbps, or about 35 times the speed of a dial-up modem. But what can you use these services for? What kinds of business processes can be run remotely?

Communications is the obvious one. Besides having your office calls diverted to your mobile phone message service, you can wirelessly send and receive data by email from a laptop, PDA or smart phone from your home and most holiday spots around New Zealand.

If you plan doing this, first check that there is mobile data coverage from your intended location and find out how good it will be. Because the volume of people using a wireless network in one area may affect network performance, mobile telecommunications providers will often boost network performance in holiday hot spots for a temporary period.

You are not limited to email. The same mobile or landline services can be used to access the internal networks and applications of your business. Access occurs across the internet to a password protected electronic "gateway" to your business network. It's even smarter to purchase a Virtual Private Network (VPN) service from your telecommunications provider because this provides a secure "tunnel" through the public internet to your business network and makes the network less vulnerable to unauthorised access.

Once you connect to your business network remotely, you can access any software applications that have been internet-enabled and or you can take "remote control" of individual desktops through operating systems like Windows XP.

Examples of work you can complete remotely include paying people through access to payroll and financial software; updating customer details; filing reports, and completing architectural drawings by accessing computer design software.

It is also possible to engage an online service that will host your business applications. This means you access your applications through a secure online connection to the host company, rather than your own business network.

Examples of business systems that can be hosted online include payroll, human resources, call centre, financials and customer relationship management - but there are many more. Host providers are often called Application Service Providers (ASPs) or online bureaus and they may conduct simple business processes as well as host your applications. Examples include making IRD payments or processing email campaigns.

Though it isn't normal to establish an ASP service for a short period of time, it will come into its own when you need to focus on core business rather than business administration - or when you want to spend time away from the office.

If the Christmas break looks like it might last a little longer, a word of warning: when you use IT to work remotely, stay professional. Use a formal tone for email and be friendly but crisp on voice calls. A customer stuck in the office in the middle of summer won't be pleased to hear you, the lucky so-and-so who has managed to work remotely (and therefore is obviously charging too much), speaking sleepily from a beach on the Gold Coast.

Working remotely

* Don't make an online connection using your mobile computer unless you have up-to-date internet security software loaded on to it. This software should be updated daily.

* When you return to work, ensure your mobile computer is free of viruses and other security threats before connecting it to your business network.

* Insure your mobile technology and make sure it is itemised on your policy.

* Keep computers and phones away from sand and out of direct sunlight.

* When travelling, seal all technology in a waterproof container (not plastic) and tuck it under the car seat.

* Hundreds of mobile phone chargers, data cards, cables and phones are left behind in motel rooms each year. When you arrive at your holiday destination, leave a note on the bathroom mirror to remind you not to leave any technology behind.