Member Article

Are companies that shun mobile technology in danger of being left behind?

Are Companies that Shun Mobile Technology in Danger of Being Left Behind? asks Michael Richards, Chairman of webexpenses.

According to recent webexpenses research, people who use mobile apps at work are 21% more likely to be happier in their jobs compared to those who don’t. What’s more, half (49%) of respondents saidthat their apps save them time. However, why is it that millions of workplaces still aren’t reaping the benefits of using apps?

Having employees that fail to engage with mobile apps can be a lost opportunity for many companies. In fact, these organisations run the risk of being left behind when it comes to the mobile revolution. If companies and employees choose to turn away from this technological shift, they are in danger of missing out on a range of valuable business benefits.

Mobile technology can bring huge time-saving benefits to a business. Employees can often be overheard discussing how there “isn’t enough time in the day” to complete everything on their to do list, with almost half (49%) of all the employees we surveyed confirming this and 22% reporting that they find it difficult to keep on top of their workload. However, employees using mobile technology report that this saves them almost an hour-and-a-half a week (86 minutes), which adds up to over six business hours over the course of a month.

From webexpenses’ research, it is evident to me that mobile apps help to streamline tasks and have enabled employees to work on the go (53%) and cut down their time spent on admin tasks (43%). Historically, it has been more challenging for employees to keep in touch whilst out of the office, and in particular during travel periods. However, recent mobile advances have brought valuable resources to an employee’s fingertips, with work apps such as CRM; Office for mobile; Skype; Dropbox and even webexpenses’ app now on offer – all of which can be accessed easily while out and about.

While this is positive from a business perspective, it should also help employees to manage a better work-life balance. Our research found that those using mobile apps at work are 21% more likely to be happier in their jobs compared to those who don’t use apps in the workplace. If employees feel like they have more time to keep on top of their tasks, a company is much more likely to nurture happy staff.

With these mobile technologies now in place, I believe employees should no longer feel the pressure they may have felt after returning from a business trip, such as feeling obliged to catch up on work they missed while out of the office. Instead, employees should now have all the tools they need at their disposal to deliver traditional office based work on the move. This will also help them to free up more time to spend on important tasks, enabling them to play a more strategic role within the business.

A more productive and efficient workforce can also have a positive impact on a company’s expenditure. Our survey found that on average, workplace app users say that they save their organisation over £157 a year each as a result of mobile apps. What’s more, 37% say apps make their business more profitable by saving time spent on paperwork, with a further 41% reporting that apps save their business cash by making it easy to keep track of company spending and expenses.

All of this demonstrates that if a company embraces mobile technology, they are likely to increase employee output and free-up more time to improve processes and put savings in place. Inevitably, this will have a positive impact on a company’s bottom line and the overall profit generated for a business.

Companies need to recognise the important role mobile technology is playing in today’s modern society, and embrace this technology sooner rather than later. If the adoption of mobile technology brings with it more productive and efficient employees, they will quickly see that their bottom line is boosted too. For me, it’s clear that businesses should actively encourage mobile technology in their workplace in order to stay ahead of the competition.

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by webexpenses .