Technology is changing every day and the number of deskless workers is only increasing. More than 36% of U.S. workers are in the gig economy, which is approximately 57 million people. This rapidly-expanding, mobile workforce is in need of engagement technology that caters to their on-the-go lifestyle.
Why? Because as traditional models of business change, the need for newer and more creative ways to engage and retain talent increases. How can you establish the same feeling of company culture and belonging if your workers aren’t in the same physical workspace every day? Here are some reasons why mobile-facing tech built for deskless workers can benefit your business:
Faster Updates and Improved Communications
It’s important for deskless workers to have information at their fingertips. Creating a cohesive, connected work environment, whether mobile or in-office, is a crucial part of any engagement plan because communication is the foundation of any relationship. If you’re looking for a way to combat turnover rates, you have to continuously update your employees on the latest information. But when your workforce is deskless, i.e. they’re mobile and work out-of-office more frequently, mobile-facing technology is the tool your business model desperately needs.
Mobile engagement technology fits the deskless worker lifestyle because it improves employee access to information and communication with management and other employees. Deskless workers may work in direct contact with maybe 5 people, but a company mobile app could connect them to 50 (or more). For example, a flight crew has only a few flight attendants on each flight, and an app would give those few access to others who they may not otherwise interact with. It improves vital communication that facilitates and simplifies critical job functions.
43% of employees in the U.S. work remotely at least some of the time.
It is important for employees to communicate and receive important messages, even when they are not in the physical office space. Mobile engagement apps give employees access to everything they need without having to be at a desk. Above all else, it’s important to your employees to keep them up-to-date on company procedures, work policies, strategies and everything in-between.
57% of employees in India telecommute on a frequent basis and nearly one-third work remotely every day.
In a similar way, employees need access to other employees to improve their sense of belonging in the company. Employee relationships with coworkers can have a major impact on how long they will stay at the company. With remote employment, it can be difficult to get the same sense of company culture when employees aren’t in the same physical workspace with their co-workers. Having mobile communications like an engagement app designed to improve communications with deskless workers helps pick up the missing pieces remote employment lacks.
Feedback is an essential form of communication. When employees have access to other employees, it improves their sense of belonging in the company and can impact how long they stay at the company. But this goes beyond just email. Culture can be lacking for deskless employees without a diverse feedback and engagement system, and using this kind of technology can give them a sense of culture they’re looking for.
Increased Workforce Collaboration
Mobile technologies are a great way to enhance connectedness between co-workers and the company. For gig-economy employees, who are only at a company (if ever) for a specific amount of time as a contractor, this technology is their lifeline. The gig economy, an increasingly mobile workforce, lives and breathes on mobile apps and on-the-go software. Since there is no office space within the gig workforce, they need that connectivity to collaborate and work. For non-gig economy workers, it could mean increased engagement through increases in flexibility, so mobile technology has a positive influence on both deskless and in-desk workers alike.
Employee mobility leads to 30% better processes and 23% more productivity — and 100% more satisfied employees.
If workers can take their technology with them and work more efficiently, remotely, then work concepts such as “work from home” or “work-flex” and “flex-time” becomes more feasible and manageable. Managers and employees can collaborate from anywhere and everywhere while giving employees a voice in corporate communication.
Enhanced Employee Productivity
Technology built for deskless workers allows for problems to be solved faster and more efficiently with open communication and feedback. Not to be confused with performance management, mobile employee engagement creates a hub for questions and answers to problems that improve the way managers and employees incorporate change.
For example, a manufacturing engineer on the job may need his manager’s advice on a certain project and instead of waiting for a text back, the engineer could hop on the company’s mobile engagement and feedback app to quickly find a solution. This also prevents employees from Googling a question and finding the wrong answer.
85% of non-desk employees say the communication they receive on the job is not enough.
If your company is looking for a way to increase productivity and employee satisfaction, making information available on-the-go should be your top priority. The more engaged your employees are, the more productive they are able to be. Mobile engagement brings autonomy and collaboration into a single, dynamic function. Apps built for deskless workers allow employees a part in the management of efficiency and overall process improvement from anywhere, anytime.
Apps to help employees communicate are necessary, especially for those who do not work in an office with all of their coworkers every day. An app like Betterworks Engage would be valuable in this case as it allows you to utilize people analytics and increase employee engagement. With real-time mobile engagements, managers are able to get insights from employees to build a stronger workforce. Betterworks Engage gives you the opportunity to create the best strategies for your company. Request a demo today!
