Mobile devices are an essential part of our daily lives. You can do pretty much anything on your mobile – from seeing and talking to families and friends, to making all sorts of payments – online and mobile, shopping, buying food, and so much more. Aside from personal use, these devices are more and more essential to enabling mobile workforce productivity in businesses.
According to the Mobile Consumer Survey 2017,
- 88% of Australians now own a smartphone. That makes Australia one of the leading mobile adapters in the world.
- Within 5 minutes of waking up in the morning, 35% of people are already on their phones checking emails, reading the news or checking social media.
Such statistics suggest that mobile devices can become a distraction that hinders us, instead of one that increases productivity. But that’s simply not true. In this post, we’ll discuss all the opportunities that mobile devices bring to the workplace - particularly in increasing the productivity of remote workforces.
Freedom & flexibility
In the workplace, one of the biggest benefits of mobile use is increased employee freedom and flexibility. Smart devices are essential to mobile workforce productivity, enabling company staff to decide how, when and where they can best work and deliver results.
Workforces are no longer limited to one office location. Mobiles and tablets allow people to create and edit documents on the go remotely, respond to customer queries anywhere, or make business decisions on the run.
Having the flexibility to work anywhere lets staff create a better work-life balance – resulting in happier, more engaged and more productive employees.
Enhanced communication and collaboration
Mobile devices greatly increase team communication and collaboration. Even while working at home or out on the field, staff members can coordinate projects and tasks with their teams.
Mobile access to information can be easily implemented and used by teams across the organisation – streamlining workflows, enabling real-time information sharing, and facilitating better coordination between team members.
Mobile devices also allow remote workers to share media on the go through public or private cloud repositories. Employees can even attend virtual meetings, conferences, and training any time from virtually any part of the world.
Access to real-time data
Need staff to access relevant and timely information? A mobile device literally puts essential data in their hands, whenever and wherever they need it.
A salesperson can review relevant information stored in the Customer Relationship Management (CRM) system to close the sale. A project manager can approve the urgent invoice payment while on site. An accountant can log in to accounting systems remotely to easily lodge a Business Activity Statement (BAS). A company director can download the latest version of a presentation to secure the next round of investor funding.
These are just a few examples of how smart devices can drive mobile workforce productivity through quick access to important information when needed.
Quicker response times
In today’s digital world, everything is moving at a quick pace. Everyone wants instant access to information and immediate responses to questions. Your customers are no different. They want their queries and issues to be answered and resolved swiftly and seamlessly.
Mobile devices can improve customer response times by empowering employees to easily connect with customers. And with access to real-time data, employees can also make informed decisions quickly.
For instance, sales or business development staff can be equipped with a tablet or smartphone that can access product and customer information instantly.
This enables them to address issues on the spot, provide detailed information (like pricing) and offer instant technical assistance – resulting in better service and more satisfied customers.
Dealing with the security of mobile devices
While the use of smartphones and tablets can have numerous benefits to mobile workforce productivity, they do bring with them the issue of mobile security. Mobile devices are always connected to the internet and have access to content that can easily be misplaced, increasing the risk of data breaches occurring.
This is why we recommend reviewing your current security measures. Here are a few things to get you started:
- Allow BYOD or deploy more security controllable company devices.
- Have a documented policy (communicated to everyone) that clearly outlines mobile device use and security requirements like passwords, device locking, application download and installation etc.
- Create a culture of security across the organisation – with regular staff training on the current and potential security risks
- Update all security systems for all networks, PC’s, mobile devices and Multifunctional Printers
- Establish a team and a plan for how you will identify and respond to a data breach, or any other security issue
- Control and manage mobile access levels and usage
(For more on security, download our security guide, or request an obligation-free security audit).
Want more office productivity tips?
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