Automotive News Canada - August 2020 - 13

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* AUGUST 2020

Working remotely has
significant pros and cons
ACROSS THE CANADIAN
automotive industry, working
off-site has had distinct benefits
and drawbacks that are guiding
decision-making as to how permanent work-from-home measures will become.

ADVANTAGES

GREATER PRODUCTIVITY

and through these electronic systems," he said.
This assertion has a basis
in science, according to Mahdi
Roghanizad, an organizational behaviour specialist from
Ryerson University's Ted Rogers
School of Business. He told CBC
News in a June 29 report that,
"Eye contact is required to activate [trust among teams], and
when the eye contact is not there,
the whole other signal information is
not processed by our
brain."

Reduced commute times have
allowed employees to
be better rested, less
stressed, and more
productive. "I see a
lot more throughput,"
LESS ACCESS
said Maria Soklis,
president of Cox
Another chalAutomotive Canada.
lenge is contact with
"There are long comco-workers.
mutes in Canada, in
"At work, you
particular in Toronto
can just get up off
and Montreal. [Now]
your chair and
there's a lot more
walk to the person
time, greater flexibilnext to you and ask
ity, less stress around Mahdi Roghanizad,
a question," said
the workday."
Todd Sheppelman,
organizational
CEO of Torontobehaviour expert,
GOOD FOR RECRUITING says eye contact is based automotive
plastics supplier
John Trougakos,
key to establishing
ABC Technologies.
associate professor
trust, which is
"[During remote
at the Rotman School something that a
Zoom video meeting work], you had to call
of Management, said
can't achieve.
them up or schedule a
companies that are
PHOTO: RYERSON
conference call. And
willing and able to
UNIVERSITY WEBSITE
because everybody
adapt will see remote
was doing that, people
work on a part- or
were much busier with meetings
full-time basis as an advantage
than they typically were."
they can use to attract top talent.
"I think it's a mistake for compaREDUCED WORK-LIFE BALANCE
nies to write off a hybrid system,
at least, because companies are
It can be harder to separate
going to start offering that as a
work and family life when an
perk," he said.
employee's office is at home. Cox
Automotive Canada's approach
LARGER TALENT POOL
is to offer financial assistance
with setting up dedicated home
For certain positions requiring
office spaces where required.
significant levels of skill or educaHaving a separate work space
tion such as R&D or engineering,
provides clearer separation - a
being open to remote work can
literal wall - and reduces the
provide access to a broader talent
feeling of always being at work,
pool. "That would be a huge benSoklis said.
efit if you did have R&D and you
Sheppelman said that early
had designers all over the world
in the isolation period, employthat could provide different creees were regularly holding conative ideas," said Hyundai Canada
ference calls in the evenings
CEO Don Romano.
and logging into the company's
REDUCED OPERATING COSTS
secured network late at night.
"We tried to have it set up that
If part-time remote
there were normal work hours,"
work becomes permanent,
he said. "Let's figure out how not
"[Companies might] have the
to have conference calls from 7 at
option of reducing physical
night. People do have a life that
space and saving costs there,
they're trying to live."
and reducing the costs of things
like supplies [and] energy costs,"
LACK OF HUMAN CONTACT
Trougakos said.
The one challenge that might
truly be insurmountable is that
some people no longer feel like
DIFFICULTY BUILDING TRUST
part of a something bigger.
Romano said his primary
"I'm hearing from some of
motivation for returning employ- our people about how it's lonely,
ees to centralized work is that
how they miss their colleagues,"
teams have difficulty building
Soklis said.
trust when they're not working
"We've tried to hold training
together.
sessions, little social events, but
"Once you get that trust facit's not the same. There's a certor going within a team organitain camaraderie and team spirit
zation ... it's hard to maintain
that you can't feel through a comthat through Zoom [meetings]
puter." - ANC

DISADVANTAGES

In home switch, companies
risk exposing private data
Using personal devices
or unsecured networks,
or improperly discarding
printed documents, can
jeopardize businesses
By STEPHANIE WALLCRAFT

company's networking systems," he
said. "That can be difficult if employees
are using personal devices to work from
home where the company wasn't able
to provide company-issued laptops and
other technology."

SECURE NETWORKS

Ensuring that employees understand
the distinction between secured networks and unsecured personal email
accounts or other cloud-based apps, parREMOTE WORKERS COULD BE
ticularly those not approved by their
exposing their employers to contractual
employer, is critical.
violations and legal disputes if they are
"We're starting to see [automaknot correctly handling sensitive
ers] getting very prescripinformation.
tive on where you can place
For the automotive industry,
documents," John Heaton, a
particularly within the automakToronto-based partner in the
er-supplier relationship, trade
cybersecurity advisory sersecrets often comprise the highvices practice of accounting
est-risk information.
firm KPMG, said in a webiTrade secrets are defined
nar on cybersecurity hostby the Canadian Intellectual
ed by the Automotive Parts
Property Office as "any valuManufacturers' Association on
Wasser:
able business information that
May
7.
Companies
derives its value from the secre- have to
"The German [automakers]
cy." This can include a formuguard against in particular have a very specifla, process, technology, design
ic set of rules you have to follow
low-tech
or other asset that is not or canand encryption that's required.
risks such
not be legally protected through as leaving
... If you're using a [cloudother methods such as acquiring printouts on
based] solution, there may not
patents.
be any encryption of that data."
display at
When a company-owned trade home offices.
Companies should also
secret is exposed, the lost value
ensure that their secure netFILE PHOTO
is unrecoverable. This becomes
works require login using
especially complex when one
multi-factor authentication,
company's employee exposes a
such as a password in combinatrade secret belonging to a third
tion with a code sent to a smartparty - for example, an employphone, to validate employee
ee of a Tier 1 supplier inadveridentity.
tently makes an automaker's
"Multi-factor authentication
trade secret public knowledge -
provides that extra level of secuwhich can put that employer at
rity in case the password itself is
risk of a legal battle over breach
not strong or has been previousHeaton:
of contract.
ly compromised," Wasser said.
Automakers
"There can be legal obligaWhile the current working
tions pursuant to those contracts are making
environment places an empharules for their sis on technology, Wasser said
... if appropriate steps aren't
taken to ensure that those [trade employees on companies should not oversecrets] are properly protected," how to store
look the low-tech risks of workdocuments
said Lyndsay Wasser, co-chair
ing outside of a centralized
securely.
of the privacy and data protecoffice such as leaving printouts
FILE PHOTO
tion group and the cybersecurity
exposed on home workstations
group based in the Toronto office of mul- or in municipal recycling bins.
tiservice law firm McMillan LLP.
"It is advisable to limit hard copies
Employees must be trained on how
as much as possible because many indito verify that data is encrypted whenviduals don't have the appropriate facilever being transmitted or stored, and
ities to ensure that information is propmust also understand that sensitive data erly protected in a home environment
should never be downloaded to personal
in terms of locked cabinets or shredding
devices such as smartphones or personfacilities," Wasser said. "Organizations
al computers, said Wasser.
... should have procedures and rules in
"Typically, we would want that infor- place for employees handling informamation to be maintained within the
tion in that form." - ANC
TORONTO CORRESPONDENT

Automotive News Canada - August 2020

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