Linux – VPN server on Arch Linux

vpnc works well for this. I have used this script in the past to convert pcf files to a configuration that works for vpnc.

I wrote a blog post on how to do this if you want some hand holding with the script, this is a bit old though ...

Well, I'm not sure why you're discounting OpenVPN as a viable option. It is not only one of the most simple VPN servers to set up, but it is also one of the most secure. If you are not able to grok OpenVPN setup, then perhaps you ought to consider hiring someone to help you out and give you some training along the way.

If these remote employees only need access to a couple of applications, then perhaps you could consider getting them set up with SSH tunnels. That would be very simple, but probably not as flexible as you'd like.

The moral of the story here is that VPN systems have quite a bit of complexity, regardless of which system you choose. Short of outsourcing VPN to something like Hamachi, you're going to have to do a bit of setup.