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Mobile workforces go beyond working from home. Mobile employees now have access to software and data previously accessible only at the company HQ; construction, healthcare and agriculture workers, in particular, can carry out complex tasks on-site or while traveling.
Why Does A Mobile Workforce Matter?
Remote work done from home offices does not constitute mobile work; mobile workers do not have fixed offices. Deskless workers or hybrid employees who can work anywhere between home or the office include deskless mobile workforce members as well as deskless hybrid staff - such as travel nurses, retail employees who move between different stores, telecoms field technicians or telecoms field technicians are examples of mobile workers.
According to a study, most employees are mobile; only 33% remain tied down in one physical place like an office, store or central hub.
Businesses were quick to adapt workforce mobility during the COVID-19 pandemic. Organizations were able to continue operations by shifting traditionally local jobs, such as teachers or bankers, into remote roles.
The growth of the mobile workforce is driven by longer-term changes to technology and the business environment; mobile workers provide a great way of increasing productivity.
Customer experience is enhanced: Employees no longer have to wait until their office to access data on mobile devices and provide answers immediately.
Global Workplace Analytics recently found that companies could save as much as USD 11000 annually per employee by having employees work outside the office two or three days every week. Rent costs can be decreased, while video conferencing reduces travel and logistics associated with getting employees together at one central location for meetings.
Employee productivity also improves: Mobility can help employees find work-life balance, reduce stress levels and enhance performance - according to survey, 54% said their move from traditional desk work to mobile work had increased productivity; businesses may use mobile working arrangements as an enabler of 24/7 customer support and continuous workflow across time zones.
Mobile workforces bring people from around the globe together in ways not possible otherwise - providing greater diversity of geography, socioeconomic standing and cultural experiences than would otherwise exist.
Mobile work may appeal to workers with disabilities and parents or caregivers looking for flexible work options.
There Are Many Challenges To Developing An Effective Mobile Workforce
The COVID-19 Pandemic and similar crises illustrate the necessity of supporting mobile work wherever it may exist.
Giving mobile workers access to the software necessary for business productivity while keeping collaboration productive, secure and collaborative are significant obstacles they face when undertaking such an endeavor.
Leaders of companies may wish to keep in mind the following when creating an on-the-go team:
The Technology
Employees who prefer mobile work environments typically seek the freedom of choosing their own device and user experience similar to consumer devices and apps.
Bring Your Device policies may be required by organizations for overseeing software and hardware such as laptops and wearables.
Data Security
Security vulnerabilities may arise when employees bring personal devices or apps from home into their work environment; unapproved IT assets can enter an organization without approval by official network administrators; approved mobile devices can cause issues over unsecure Wi-Fi networks to access sensitive information, etc.
Asset Tracking And Worker Tracking
Companies use location tracking technology to ensure compliance and optimize processes by tracking mobile workers, helping meet compliance goals while matching field technicians to nearby jobs.
Employees may not appreciate being tracked if using personal devices like their smartphones.
Build Or Buy Mobile Apps
Custom mobile app development can be costly and time-consuming. Dealing with apps maintained by multiple vendors further complicates IT management; for this reason, not only develops mobile apps directly but offers integrated solutions to manage them too.
Mobile Workforces: Current Trends And Future Developments
Many companies offered remote or mobile work arrangements during and following the COVID-19 Pandemic to maintain business continuity, with many still using such flexible arrangements today.
Thanks to technological developments, mobile workforce arrangements have also become more feasible than before.
Asana and Slack are among the many tools allowing mobile workers to collaborate remotely, providing IT managers with headaches while at the same time improving business communications.
Wireless signal reliability was once one of the significant impediments to mobile technology implementation. Still, workers can share files quickly these days without experiencing a lag between sessions on video collaboration platforms like Zoom.
Even small businesses can benefit from AR and VR technologies like 5G. AR allows workers to perform complex tasks more efficiently by providing on-demand information delivery; AR may be utilized for planning new construction projects as well as supply chain management, inventory pick-up or any number of tasks that involve receiving information quickly and delivering it instantly to workers on site.
Organizations will likely use software tools to accommodate the large-scale shift from office workers to mobile and remote work, with strategic partnerships established among software vendors, equipment suppliers and network service providers as part of this transition process.
Demographic trends also play a part in driving an increase in mobile workforces. According to research these workers tend to be more flexible.
The Mobile Workforce Management System
Many companies use mobile workforce management software to ensure the security and productivity of mobile workers.
MWM is an umbrella term for various software platforms designed to help businesses manage their employees outside the central office.
Mobile workforce management software has different functions and features, but most support task assignments, tracking, communications, and status updates. MWM solutions can also manage back-office tasks such as onboarding, payroll and other human resources management.
MWM tools designed to manage field workers that install, maintain or repair assets, equipment or systems outside the company's premises are called Field Service Management Tools.
Managers and technicians use field service management for various tasks, including job order processing and scheduling, dispatching, payment collection, etc.
UEM solutions enable companies to manage and monitor all devices, including desktops, laptops and mobiles. They can also secure them, no matter the operating system.
UEM allows a company to set mobile security policies, manage devices, and apply app management for all the devices in a network. The IT team no longer needs separate tools for managing devices in the on-premises or mobile workplace.
How Can You Enable Mobile Workers?
Six ways to make your mobile workforce more productive:
Implement A Policy For Remote Work To Start
Upwork's report projected that by 2028, 38% (of full-time workers) would be working remotely from home, yet 57% of companies had not implemented any policy governing remote working at that point in time.
An effective remote working policy should help to define your company's goals, vision and objectives with clarity and ease.
Include clear instructions and guidelines in this policy document outlining the roles, responsibilities and procedures of those working remotely.
Be sure that your remote working policy includes clear security, privacy and confidentiality guidelines to explain how remote workers can connect securely to access essential business data.
You Should Assess Your It Infrastructure
When trying to introduce a mobile workforce, you may have several questions about your current operations.
- Is your IT infrastructure capable of supporting a remote workforce?
- Can existing technologies be used?
- Need to incorporate new technologies?
- Are there any plans to change the current policies and procedures?
Security measures must be evaluated thoroughly before making changes in infrastructure or network systems. A site audit can help assess risks and vulnerabilities within your networks and systems.
Read More: How to Enhance Your Enterprise Mobility Management Strategy?
Boost The Security Of Your Networks, Devices And Systems
Security is of primary concern when companies allow staff to work from home using remote working software, with mobile workforces increasing risks of data breaches and hacker attacks.
By ensuring remote workers use VPN connections when accessing data remotely, administrators can significantly increase mobile and network security and reduce vulnerabilities by encouraging remote workers to utilize cloud storage platforms that offer more robust protections against data breach attacks and breaches.
Inculcate Effective Communication
Collaboration and teamwork are hallmarks of productivity for any mobile workforce, especially remote workers who feel part of a company team when using collaborative tools.
Real-time communication enables team members to coordinate across geographical borders while using cloud platforms for project management allows them to manage, organize and track progress towards tasks assigned to them.
Embracing BYOD
Introduce Bring Your Device (BYOD) policies so employees can utilize personal devices to access work-related data on them from home, creating the Bring Your Own Device culture.
BYOD may be cost-cutting in many aspects, but it also comes with problems; accommodating a wide range of mobile devices is undoubtedly challenging. BYOD and remote workers must find ways to comply with data security and regulations to remain compliant. Data often leaves company premises when employees take devices home from working remotely or in the field.
This data must remain safe or will become irretrievably lost when leaving office premises or being used outside. Businesses seeking to adopt BYOD need the ability to manage multiple devices with different operating systems effectively - this can be accomplished using Mobile Device Management or Cloud Computing solutions; IT administrators can manage personal and company devices through MDM while keeping data separate between both environments.
Cloud-Enabled Mobile Workforce
Cloud computing enables mobile employees to access documents and business applications from any location securely.
Businesses can also securely distribute apps, software and content through one central cloud repository.
The Importance Of Having A Mobile Workforce For Your Business
Collaboration And Management Improved
Cloud-based team communication apps enable remote workers to collaborate more efficiently without geographical restrictions.
Mobile device management software enables IT administrators to remotely manage apps, policies and device configurations and update the software from the office.
Benefits For Field Employees
Mobile technology enables employees on the client side of any organization to share and access information instantly, and field staff are empowered to make fast decisions and resolve issues more rapidly with this instant access to data.
Suppose your sales reps enjoy frequent business lunches each month. In that case, expense reporting software allows them to submit expense reports instantly at the end of every month instead of losing receipts or gathering them all up at the end of every month - perfect if sales representatives take frequent lunch trips!
Cost-Effectiveness In Operational Costs
Organizations can save on infrastructure costs and operating expenses when employees work from mobile devices or the field, with reports showing mobile workers reduce real estate expenses significantly.
Sun Microsystems saved an astonishing annual sum by switching over to mobile employees - $68 Million was actually saved this way!
Business Continuity
Mobile workforces ensure business continuity remotely during natural catastrophes or pandemic outbreaks.
How To Improve Mobile Workforce Productivity
Mobile developers teams tend to encounter productivity issues due to communication errors and cohesion issues, often caused by mistakes during communication or lack of cohesion among team members.
Teams used to be able to visit one another's offices to talk, as well as hold weekly meetings dedicated to discussing projects or communicating issues between workers. Human resource managers must implement measures to keep employees communicating freely between themselves and management.
Below are strategies you can employ when beginning with such systems in your workplace.
Emphasize Team Collaboration
Collaboration may suffer when your team comprises various people who do not interact in person often enough, making communication among members more complicated than it needs to be.
One way mobile software based on HTML 5 could bring your team closer is by offering instantaneous project updates and an efficient messaging system - it might feel like they're all working under one roof!
Consolidate Workflows And Procedures
Do you find your HR department struggling to effectively coordinate remote worker workflows, schedules and procedures? It can severely impact their productivity as an HR manager and those they work with directly.
By giving your employees mobile systems for employee scheduling, time tracking, and attendance reporting - everything will become smoother; all employees feel like they're on one team!
The Importance Of Company Culture
Owners and managers often set the culture of their company. This may involve mandatory recreation time, team building activities or emphasizing contribution to create positive work environments.
Unfortunately, having multiple workforces separated by long commutes from each office may result in fragmented corporate cultures. This is not ideal when forming cohesive teams or fostering a positive working environment. Establish communication standards among remote employees for projects while encouraging participation with feedback for projects they work on remotely.
Use Easy-To-Understand Technology
Understanding complex technology can make staying productive difficult, yet this problem can quickly be addressed by creating a system your employees can access from their smartphones or tablets.
Remote employees can clock in/out through an easy clocking-in/clocking-out system, while mobile employees use familiar devices for scheduling. By adding mobile solutions, you will save both money and time as no new equipment needs to be purchased or training will need to occur for each device you add on to.
Increase Your Feedback
Remote workers' work can become severely compromised without receiving feedback from colleagues and managers on an ongoing basis.
With an easy-to-use system in place, mobile workers' productivity can increase dramatically; many mobile systems feature easy messaging, frequent communications and regular check-ins to see how projects are progressing - this way, HR teams stay in contact with all employees; HR could even implement policies encouraging or mandating remote employees to provide regular feedback to colleagues.
Offer Training And Development Opportunities
Finding remote employees can make training and development opportunities an ongoing struggle, so utilizing video conference calls or mobile platforms that facilitate group communication as tools for scheduling training will keep these opportunities within reach and help drive employee motivation and engagement.
By giving employees opportunities for growth, engagement and motivation will increase exponentially!
An increasingly technological world calls for flexible workforces composed of remote workers and mobile technology features to remain productive and engaged employees.
Consider adopting these strategies to keep your mobile workforce motivated, productive and engaged with its tasks and productivity goals.
Mobile Workforces: Future Trends
Organizations have moved swiftly to keep their businesses thriving following COVID-19. Businesses have implemented new operating procedures enabling more workers to work outside the office.
Businesses can adopt new software like CRM, project management, or spend management to manage better large-scale transitions for employees who want to work remotely.
Subscriber services can be used to implement contracts that will help businesses minimize their cash flow impact.
Conclusion
Modern mobile workforce managers will take steps to improve employee engagement so that field workers can communicate with office staff in real-time for communication support and data access.
VR and AR are the future of mobile workforce Management. AR and VR can be integrated with mobile workforce management tools by companies that offer a flexible remote working culture.
