4 Ways You May Be Frustrating Your Mobile Workers

By Sarah Nicastro, publisher/editor in chief, Field Technologies
Follow Us

When your workers spend the majority of their day in the field, or perhaps don’t visit an office regularly at all, it is easy to become disconnected. Not necessarily in a literal sense as most companies today are connected through some sort of mobile technology, but in the sense that it can be challenging to stay in tune with what those workers are thinking and feeling. Even companies with the best of intentions tend to fall short in one of the following categories.

1 – Failing To Ask Their Opinion

One of the most critical aspects of employee satisfaction is to feel as though you have a voice that is heard and considered. All too often I speak with companies that are not communicating with their mobile workforce as much as they should. Your frontline workers are a wealth of knowledge that can help you improve your business. They deal firsthand with your customers day in and day out, and those interactions provide insight that no one else has. Not only are you doing your employees a disservice by not having regular “brain dump” interactions, but you’re doing your business a disservice as well.

This issue is compounded as you make changes that impact your workers without first consulting with them. Whether that’s the introduction of a new technology, a process change, shaping your service offerings or customer interactions, or the introduction of new products, your mobile workforce deserves to be involved long before decisions are made. Not only will that communication make them feel more valued and appreciated, but it will serve as a source of untapped information that you’ll likely find very valuable.

2 – Being Unclear on Expectations

Nothing is more frustrating than failing at a job you didn’t understand. Unclear expectations are impossible to meet, and are the source of a lot of mobile workers’ frustrations. Whatever your company’s current focus areas and objectives are, make them clear to your mobile workforce. In fact, make it a point to have your expectations of them documented and visible, regularly reviewed and discussed, and consider incentivizing them to achieve certain goals tied to specific areas of opportunity.

Using technology to define KPIs that you measure the success or failure of your operations by is very helpful. Doing so makes the expectations not only clear, but far less subjective than trying to define a “job well done” otherwise.

3 – Not Providing Ample or Effective Training

Most workers want to do a good job, but sadly many aren’t given the training or tools to do so. Set your employees up for success. When you hire new employees, offer ample onboard training to ensure they are well equipped to do the job you’re asking them to do. As you make changes to your offerings, your products, with technology, and so on, be sure to devise a training program and change management strategy to ensure your workforce is comfortable and can be effective in their redefined roles.

Consider offering training and communicating about it in various ways – in person, train the trainer, through webinars, etc. Different employees learn in different ways, so the more diversity you can provide on how they can access the information, the better. Allow them access to the information on demand so that as they need to reference it, they can find it easily. Ask for feedback! Make sure there is a system in place for them to ask questions as they come up. A designated employee, a hotline, a messaging board, or a specific (monitored) email address are all options. The idea is that you should be anticipating what information your workforce will need to do its job the way you’d like, then provide that information to them in an easy-to-digest way.

4 – Dropping The Ball on Recognition and Rewards

Every employee wants to feel appreciated. It is easy to underestimate the impact just a verbal “you did a great job!” can have. Let your employees know you value them and their efforts. Celebrate small wins. As you see good work being done, acknowledge it – and encourage your other managers to do the same. Consider putting recognition or rewards programs in place. This can be anything from plaques or certificates to gift cards or dinners out to a company goal trip to monthly or annual bonuses. What works will be different for each company (and to a degree, each employee), but the point is that you should be taking steps regularly to make your workers feel valued.