How to Collaborate with Mobile Workers

According to industry statistics, nearly 90% of companies have a mobile workforce of some kind. Mobile workers are using smart phones, pads and tablets to perform business functions in and outside of normal office spaces, or even in tandem with them. No matter the situation, all mobile workers have the same focus- using technology to stay connected with their work.



Sales people are traveling with virtual offices to meet clients, give presentations and share digital documentation. They are offering capabilities such as digital payments and paperless signature pads on mobile devices like tablets or smart phones for unparalleled ease in meeting client’s needs and closing sales in any location. Web-based payroll and HR platforms offer streamlined mission critical tools that employers can offer their mobile workforce. And email and social media remain the most used methods of connecting mobile workers. Staying connected anywhere, anytime is the key.

Advantages of Mobility

Employing a mobile workforce lends itself to remaining competitive in the marketplace. Many companies are using the latest devices and tools to empower their workers to increase productivity. Employees are even electing to bring their own devices (BYOD) of choice to work, and integrate them into their business systems. Companies are finding this advantageous in recruiting and retaining younger workers.

Business owners may also find additional ways to save capital by employing and empowering mobile employees. Mobility allows employees to work from anywhere and at anytime. This built in flexibility can be a benefit to both employers because it offers advantages such as saving money on leasing/purchasing office space, equipment, utilities, etc. Using on demand office spaces for meetings and allowing employees to use their own mobile devices to connect to their work can impact the bottom line significantly.

Trending Mobility

With ever increasing sales of mobile devices, consumers and employees alike are saying they want to stay connected. Business owners must respond by staying connected to industry trends as well. Understanding your mobile worker’s technological needs keeps you in sync with your growing business needs as well. Staying connecting and meeting the needs of the mobile workforce increases productivity, collaboration and effectiveness. This also increases your ability to compete in the digital marketplace, and to change to meet its ever evolving technological needs.

Creative Collaboration

Understanding your employees has always been important, particularly to small business or emerging business owners. Having the right team in place to jump start your business, build its infrastructure and grow its potential is part of successfully establishing any endeavor. Knowing how to help those employees do their best work and giving them the best tools they need to get the job done is the key. Younger employees are using social media as a large part of their mobile business work mode. Yet other employees need incentives to embrace new mobile technologies in the workplace. Meeting your employees where they are in the mobile workspace offers a better opportunity for creative collaboration and success in adapting your business to meet the demands of the market.

Outsourcing: 5 Ways to Vet a Service Provider

Outsourcing work to freelancers is becoming as much a part of the normal way to do business as hiring employees. While outsourcing has always been around, the advent of reliable remote connectivity tools has fueled a new freelance economy which has made outsourcing easier and more effective than ever.

Virtual offices are helping freelancers be effective performing their contractor work in a more cost effective manner than if the job was performed in-house. It makes sense for companies, big and small, to outsource non core-activities. To find the best service provider for your needs, there are several ways to weed through the available providers.

• Find out how the provider is able to communicate with you about the project. You may need nothing more than to communicate through email during business hours. However, many business owners need to be able to get a hold of their providers at other times and in other ways. If you anticipate needing Skype or cell communications with someone, ask just how you can get a hold of the provider as well as exactly what hours they are available.

• What kind of guarantees do you get from the provider? Some providers will guarantee a certain performance from the work they provide. Some guarantee that your satisfaction will be met when the work is completed or that further steps will be taken. If you are outsourcing written work, finding out whether rewrites are included in the price is necessary. If you are outsourcing software or Website design, you will need a guarantee of usability. For product manufacturing, product specification guarantees are in order.

• How does the price stack up with the competition? As any business owner knows, choosing a provider based exclusively on the lowest price isn’t always wise. However, choosing the most expensive from among comparable providers may not be any wiser. Take a look at how prices average for providers with the same level of expertise and experience. Providers who charge very little for very complex work may be in over their heads. Those who charge far too much for moderate skills may not be worth the price.

• Ask to see examples of past work when possible. If you’re outsourcing VA tasks, that may not be possible, but for many other industries it shouldn’t be a challenge for a provider to show you a few recent work examples. If you aren’t able to directly see past samples, ask for references. Past clients should be able to tell you how competent the provider is.

• How well does each prospective provider understand your project needs? If your project is unusual or one far outside the usual scope of a provider, communicate directly with that provider with specific questions about the range of services available. If the company seems to need far more direction than necessary, a virtual form of hand holding, you may not save as much time as you should by hiring that provider. There may even be misunderstandings about what the company is expected to provide. It may be worthwhile to seek out a company with more direct experience with what you want. It may also be necessary to draw up a highly detailed contract so that neither party is surprised with the outcome of the work done by the provider.