It is no question that technology has reached unparalleled heights in this time and age.
Gadgets have become more powerful, been designated the word “smart,” and the term “mobile devices” is not taken to mean smartphones exclusively. Rather, mobile devices these days can mean any portable electronic equipment that can connect to the internet, such as a tablet computer, a smartphone, or even a watch. With the myriad of ways one can connect online complemented by smarter processors, these relatively diminutive devices hold quite a lot of potential. Such potential can be used to leverage your company’s productivity—whether big or small. As many businesses continually strive to increase productivity while simultaneously reducing costs, it is inevitable for more and more companies to invest in these technological innovations.
As mobile devices are ubiquitous pieces of technology that almost everyone has, it should come as no wonder that businesses would look into mobile apps in improving operational productivity. Despite groundbreaking innovations for workplace efficiency, studies have shown that company productivity is on a steady decline. Diminishing productivity can pose detrimental consequences to your company—a pressing predicament that, as a business owner, you need to address and rectify.
By using custom-built mobile apps designed to support your business’s unique workforce, you can reverse the trend of declining productivity. Today’s workforce needs corporate support in the form of apps that work seamlessly across all devices—desktops, phones, tablets, and laptops. The experience should be the same as employees move from one app to the next. People in business have long been advocating the use of mobile apps to save businesses that have taken a dip in productivity. The results are a testament to their effectiveness. With the right mobile apps in place, your company’s productivity will improve. What makes it even better is that they do not need to be at their workstations either as these mobile apps work whether they are in or out of the office.
Here are just some of the ways mobile apps help employees across all industries work effectively and more efficiently:
1.) Mobile apps increase employee engagement
By now, we are already aware of how mobile apps are great for customer engagement. The good news is they have a similar effect on employees. Your employees become more engaged when they are able to use modern tools that allow them to perform their work tasks faster and easier. As a result, they can accomplish so much more. Having an engaged workforce is paramount as they tend to be more productive than their non-engaged counterparts. Moreover, engaged employees are more profitable than those who are not. Studies have also indicated that an engaged employee is less likely to leave their employer while those who are unengaged at work are more likely to be looking for their next job prospects.
As it costs more to replace an employee (not to mention the length of time it would take to fill a position), it should come as no question that this not only has productivity implications but budgetary ones as well. If you wish to build or increase employee engagement further, start using a no-code development platform that allows your employees to create and develop the custom apps they need. Utilizing no-code platforms enables everyone on your team to have a hand in the app creation process—even the non-technical workers. Apart from increasing efficiency and engagement, this approach is also a learning avenue for your employees to learn how to use new tools.
2.) Mobile apps eliminate mundane tasks
By eliminating mundane tasks, mobile apps are shown to increase efficiency.Repeating the same time-consuming tasks over and over again can be tedious, and there is nothing an employee dreads more than to be sucked into that kind of monotony. Studies have shown that office workers tend to spend an average of 69 days each year doing administrative tasks. Collectively, the time spent on mundane tasks by your employees would quickly add up. As a result, your company spends hours wasted, potentially leading to monetary loss for your company. So, how do mobile apps increase efficiency, you ask? Developing a custom mobile app enables organizations to collect, share and unify data. The very same app can be then used to support different use cases. That said, employees would no longer have to toggle between numerous spreadsheets just to do their job. They can use a custom mobile app they helped design and build instead.
A good example of this is Optimind’s developed app for Unilab Reimbursement. By converting an old web based app into a mobile app, the enterprising solution allowed finance managers to approve reimbursements with a single slide, thereby minimizing their mundane tasks. As a result, Unilab was able to increase their timely reimbursement by more than a hundred percent.
3.) Mobile apps help facilitate employees working remotely
Modern employees expect flexibility from their workplace. That said, a significant fraction of them may want to work from home—especially in light of the recent and current pandemic. With remote work forming part of the new normal, it would make sense for companies to adapt. While most business owners may find themselves on the fence about this kind of work setup, studies have shown that employees are actually more productive when working from home. Even with the lack of supervision, employees working remotely tend to be more efficient than their in-office counterparts. Additionally, they are less distracted, take less sick time, and are 50% less likely to leave their employers. However, if your company relies on employees filling out desks and manual forms in the office, they are not expected to be working remotely anytime soon.
While you can grant them direct supervision, this setup can be somewhat limiting as it is harder to attract top talent. What makes remote working so enticing is that you are able to attract employees all over the country—or even the world. This is where mobile apps come into play as they enable your workforce to collaborate on various documents, spreadsheets, and other critical business tools from any connected device. Simply said, your employees can get their jobs done at any time and from any part of the world.
4.) Mobile apps reduce errors and improve quality
Companies that rely on paper filing systems should start to consider upgrading. With a mobile app such as Appsheet, you can build a custom mobile app that can digitalize your inventories—wherever they might be in the world. Manually counting inventory and storing that data on paper can leave data vulnerable, not to mention that it can be time-consuming. With a custom mobile app in place, you can expect productivity gains, fewer tracking errors, increased employee engagement, more visibility into key metrics, and a myriad more benefits.
5.) Mobile apps connect data
Another way mobile apps increase productivity is by connecting data. Back then, companies utilized several various software solutions to facilitate daily operations. Typically, a software suite includes tools to manage inventory, customer transactions, security, payroll, manage HR, accounting, and the like. These are all made by different vendors. However, with custom apps, businesses can centralize all of this data, which means employees can access each system through just a single interface. Centralized data is typically more accurate, which leads to greater productivity and profitability across your organization.
6.) Mobile apps reduce overhead costs
You can delegate several work processes to mobile apps. This means your business will not have to pay as much for ink and toner for your printers and copiers. In a similar vein, you will not be paying as much for their maintenance either. That said, employees can submit their work wherever they are, which reduces the fuel costs associated with delivering it personally to the office to accomplish specific tasks. With innovative mobile application development, companies in every industry can find ways to save the business money.
A good example of this is Optimind’s developed app for Ayala Land Showroom Registration. With this application, Ayala Land no longer needed an employee to oversee the visitor log book. By digitizing the traditional log book, the app was able to give the marketing department real-time ata of their showroom visitors.
With mobile apps, your company can streamline various processes. AS a result, your business can expect a significant return on investment through cost reduction, time savings, and significantly improved operational efficiency. That said, mobile apps may just be the secret to a happier and more loyal workforce.
