Workforce Management Featured Article

Is it Time for Mobile Workforce Management?

For years, the talk surrounding workforce management has focused on the contact center and how to ensure the best use of all agent time to maximize performance. This often required accurate forecasting, perfectly aligned scheduling, parameters for changes and exceptions and automatic monitoring and measurement.

While these elements still exist and make an impact in this environment, there is now a shift occurring. We are seeing more and more regarding mobile workforce management. Why? Employees are becoming more mobile. They are working on the road, from home, at hotels and even remote branch locations.

This trend is having such an impact that Xora, a mobile workforce management provider, recently announced support for the Citrix Ready Worx Verified program. Now, Xora StreetSmart will be available to over 250,000 Citrix enterprise customers and 10,000 Citrix resellers. StreetSmart enables companies to effectively manage their mobile workers with a solution that is not only enterprise-ready, it’s also secure.

From a corporate standpoint, this security is important as it allows businesses to protect their mobile business applications and data. Plus, mobile workforce management solutions must be able to separate personal and business applications on an employee’s mobile device. It’s also important to be able to enable or disable certain features or applications.

To know whether or not a business needs mobile workforce management, it’s important to take a closer look at what such an application would offer. Key capabilities of the StreetSmart application, for instance, are mobile timesheets to reduce errors and save time; mobile forms and jobs to eliminate manual paperwork and phone tag (News - Alert); GPS location services to increase efficiency; and photo and electronic signature capture for proof of service and an increase in service quality.

For the organization that has mobile employees or the call center that leverages the virtual workforce, mobile workforce management is likely to take priority over traditional systems. Companies are finding they can reach greater levels of efficiency by employing quality individuals throughout the world to fill their staffing requirements. Being able to connect with, schedule and even track these individuals is essential.

At the same time, organizations throughout the world are adopting mobile strategies and BYOD, enabling employees to use their own devices to access the network and work from anywhere in the world. The promised efficiency only applies when activity is effectively managed through a mobile workforce management solution. It may not be necessary at every level, but it does deliver value when trying to manage multiple employees working toward the same goal.

It’s likely we will continue to see an uptake in mobile workforce management, as well as the development of solutions that cater specifically to the mobile base. As technologies continue to evolve and allow us to do more with less, this will be an exciting industry to watch.