Your business is running like a well-oiled machine, and nothing can stop it—except, of course, those pesky unforeseen circumstances that creep in and jam up your gears. Acts of God, political unrest, economic undulation, and other changing external conditions can negatively influence productivity when employees are forced to get to work late or simply play hooky without the option of remote working. Oh, and don’t forget instability caused by employee turnover.

But you can easily prepare for all of these contingencies by investing in video conferencing equipment. This will give you a major competitive edge over competitors who aren’t prepared to handle the curveballs life on earth will inevitably throw our way.

Remain Focused During Disruptive Local Events

When your city hosts a major event—such as the Olympics or that gargantuan annual American football finale—public transportation gets backed up and drive times go through the roof. Remote working is a proven way to avoid the resulting lost productivity and reduced morale.

According to an article in the Japan Times, London companies effectively used telecommuting to overcome such issues caused by the 2012 Summer Olympics, and Japanese businesses have considered the same for the planned Tokyo games in 2020. Other similar traffic-stalling events that remote work can help your company navigate include local protests, like ones recently seen in France, Hong Kong, and the US.

Keep the Office Open—Even When It’s Inaccessible

Things happen. Flooding, natural disasters, and fires that didn’t even start in your building all lurk in the realm of high possibility. You have insurance that covers property damage, but what about the losses you incur from shutting down operations? Keeping easily transportable video conferencing equipment like the CAM340+ on hand is a perfect insurance policy, enabling your employees to dial into meetings from home and appear in vivid 4K quality.

It’s not always disastrous emergencies that necessitate temporary remote work. Even routine maintenance or construction can squeeze your employees out of their comfort zones and produce a lack of efficiency and efficacy. Such issues are just as easily circumnavigated with a work-from-home policy that gives employees the space to thrive.

Stay On-Task When International Business Travel Is Limited

Natural disasters can also limit your ability to keep international business appointments, as can global pandemics, regional instability, and travel bans. If your trip is canceled, that doesn’t mean your collaboration has to go down the drain, too.

Just head back to your home office and give your mark a video call. An AVer CAM520 Pro is perfect, with a powerful zoom and FHD quality that let you show off your samples as if you’re in the same room with your client. When your travel channels are re-opened, you may even consider relying more heavily on video conferencing to save incredible amounts of time and money.

Hire Faster and Reduce Employee Turnover

Offering flexible remote work options is an excellent way to maintain stability in terms of your human resources. According to one large study conducted by Buffer, 99 percent of respondents indicated that telecommuting is something they’d be interested in doing in some capacity for the duration of their careers.

That means if you can offer even a blended working schedule, you’ll likely be able to quickly attract better employees and keep them around longer. The freedom to live and travel wherever they want can be equivalent to the huge pay raise required to get them to accept being sentenced to 40 hours a week in a cubicle. Changes to your office don’t have to be overwhelming—adding a simple huddle room with the compact but powerful CAM340+ will give you the space to connect with remote workers in a small-group or one-on-one setting, which can help your distant workers feel connected and build morale.