How Great Leaders Use Technology to Motivate Employees

Today’s modern workplaces recognize the opportunity to motivate, inspire, and engage employees using technology in a number of ways. Business leaders have an array of options they can employ to create tech-friendly workplaces, which will allow them to reap the rewards of more creative and motivated employees. From programs that cost little to nothing to implement and Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) mobile policies, to collaborative video walls that require an initial outlay but will show a return on investment in the form of enhanced productivity—the opportunities seem almost endless.

Mobile Technology as a Motivator

In recent years, mobile technology has changed how we communicate, gather information, and shop. Mobile usage grew by 76 percent in 2014—the same year it surpassed desktop usage globally. Retailers leverage mobile technologies for sales, marketing, and branding, but they’re not the only ones.

Mobile devices in the workplace, including tablets and smartphones, give leaders and their employees the benefit and convenience of 24/7 access to work while traveling, from home, even waiting in a carpool pick-up line. By giving employees more freedom about where they can work, employers benefit from increased productivity and higher work quality.

For even better results, consider letting employees use their own mobile devices. BYOD isn’t a new concept, but are you fully leveraging its possibilities in the workplace? BYOD policies lead to enhanced satisfaction because employees know they have a choice in equipment to do their job. It also affords dedicated employees greater opportunities to transition seamlessly from work to home—and get projects done wherever they might be. Case in point, Eaton Corp., a hydraulics manufacturer, reported its order intake rate and length of sales cycles went from “days and weeks” to “hours and minutes” with the implementation of a robust BYOD policy.

The Best Apps for Collaboration

Wherever, whenever—any desktop, laptop, or mobile device will be bolstered by useful, easy-to-deploy applications. The best technologies to hit the workforce include collaborative apps accessible via the cloud across multiple devices from within the office or remotely. Options like Dropbox and virtual whiteboards allow employees to connect with each other on their own terms and upload and share content instantly onto a shared platform.

 

As teamwork in the workplace continues to rise, leaders who encourage and help facilitate immersive group experiences are more important than ever. Increased sharing and collaboration in the workplace helps enterprises create motivated personnel by eliminating frustrations such as gaps in communication and time spent sorting through emails. Apps like Slack offer more efficient alternatives to traditional communication methods, giving employees the capability to collaborative via a familiar instant message format. Employees can customize inboxes, archive interactions, and access Slack across all devices, encouraging a sense of teamwork and accessibility.

Tap into Seamless Collaboration with the Right Technology

The best technology doesn’t have to fit in employees’ pockets, though. Corporations are also breaking ground with large-scale collaborations using LED video walls. Deployed in corporate boardrooms or huddle spaces, these collections of LED screens permit meeting leaders to send a large, single image across all the screens from any source, or to display multiple images from one source or multiple sources, including laptops, smartphones, or Blu-Ray players. With the right hardware, meeting participants can send images, web pages, and data over Wi-Fi from their own mobile device to the screen for collaboration from any seat—not just from the presenter or the person in charge.

Rather than being a distraction, a properly configured video wall becomes the centerpiece of a permanent space for employees to work toward a common goal, encouraging one another to stay on task and focused.

Technology for Assessment and Training

Technology enables increased collaboration, but it also equips workforce leaders to assess individual performance. For example, management software programs introduced the workplace to nonintrusive, 360-degree access to employee performance. Leaders can give real-time feedback and instantly address any problems instead of waiting for annual performance evaluations.

In addition, when employers recognize a need for enhanced training, collaborative learning platforms can facilitate such programs on a flexible schedule, so employees can fit such sessions into their day whether they are in the office or at home.

What Else Is Possible with Today’s Technology?

Using technology to promote employee engagement, collaboration, sharing, and mobility allows leaders to optimize productivity and reap the benefits of a connected workspace. Technology in the workplace is no longer a “new” or unorthodox concept, but it’s still a growing industry. Business leaders have hardly begun to scratch the surface of its full potential. In some industries, including health care and engineering, virtual reality and augmented reality systems are even being used for research, product development, and training.

With the right AV partners to help conceptualize, design, and install the systems, employers can revolutionize the way employees work using the right mobile technologies, ultimately creating a more motivated workforce.

 

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