Technology has changed the way people conduct their business. The emergence of apps and mobile devices has certainly made things a lot easier and convenient for the typically busy corporate individual.
For example, can you remember the days when it was a must for people to be in the same place in order to have a meeting? But now, it is possible to have a meeting with a business partner in New York even if you are based in Bangkok. Through Skype and other similar apps, video conferencing has become very convenient and affordable.
Mobile technology has also been spurred by the growing number of mobile users. In the United States, a recent Pew study showed that 64 percent of adults own a smartphone and the number is further expected to grow.
Companies, too, have tapped the use of mobile alert app to make communicating internally more efficient. Mobile alert app can be harnessed by corporate decision makers to share information with employees, and warn them of potential harm during emergencies.
Various institutions have been using mobile alert app for the following purposes:
1. Sharing real-time information
Most employees these days are no longer confined in their cubicles. They’re out in the field, meeting up with clients and suppliers. Many, too, are telecommuting as indicated by a recent Gallup survey suggesting that 37 percent of US-based workers were allowed to work from home in 2015. This makes traditional communication channels in the workplace such as email no longer as effective as they were once before in delivering information to employees.
On the other hand, a smartphone or tablet is something that any employee owns. Thus, mobile alerts can be “pushed” to these devices so that employees will be updated on company news and policies. Important information like president’s message or an update on a vital HR or IT policy can be relayed to all employees, so everyone in the organization will be updated regardless of where they are.
In the corporate world, mobile alerts are being delivered to the smartphones of employees so they will know when activities like employee orientation, town hall meeting, or corporate conference are scheduled. These apps are also used to collect feedback and suggestions from the rank-and-file.
Even educational institutions have been tapped mobile apps so that their teaching and non-teaching personnel can get important information like shuttle bus schedules, parking information, security and corporate directories.
Aside from allowing seamless sharing of information, mobile apps can also have an impact on employee engagement. Employees will feel more valued if their management consistently reaches out to them. In turn, employee engagement levels increase which can have an impact on a company’s profitability.
2. Alerts during emergencies
Companies know that emergencies can happen anytime, and that not everyone in the office would be in front of the computer, or would be able to hear an announcement over the PA system.
Moreover, companies that have workers out in the field like drivers and delivery crew need to be updated as well about weather updates or tsunami warnings. This is where a mobile alert app can come in handy.
Employees who are out of the office will be able to receive warnings via text messages or push notifications. While making phone calls appear to be the faster way of reaching out to employees in the field, the reality is that networks are often clogged during an emergency that placing a call may be difficult, if not impossible to do.
Moreover, alerts coursed through text and push notifications can reach as many people as possible. It’s unlike a phone call, wherein only one or two parties can learn of the time-sensitive information.
Indeed, mobile alerts have changed the way people do business.
