Top 6 Types of Tech Employees Need to Work Efficiently
With constant and rapid advances in technology, many businesses struggle to determine what equipment will be most effective for employees to do their jobs securely and efficiently. So what tech do employees need in today's workplace?
In recent years, the prevalence of businesses letting employees bring and use personal devices for work has cut costs, but it has also raised some security issues. Whether a company is considering purchasing electronic devices to boost employee performance or trying to take advantage of technical equipment that employees already own, these are the technologies that are essential for your workforce.
Top 6 types of tech employees need today
1. Cloud storage and sharing services
A Forrester survey found that out of nearly 10,000 information workers, the average employee uses 2.3 devices for work purposes—whether these are personal electronics or company-provided devices. Of the survey participants, 52% used three or more devices.
Since the average employee is managing documents and other data in roughly three different places, it becomes challenging to manage information on separate devices. The use of multiple gadgets such as smartphones, laptops, and tablets make a cloud-based means of sharing data a necessity. Multidevice access is made possible with services such as:
- Dropbox
- Box
- SugarSync
- Google Docs
- Windows Live
- Apple iCloud
2. Smartphones
Although tablets are increasingly useful in the workplace, smartphones are still the most common device in use, whether a company phone or a personal device. Smartphones are helpful in a variety of manners from navigation, to contact managing, to sharing data and looking up information. BOYD Insights reported for Cisco that “90% of American workers use their own smartphones for work.” This implies that whether or not many companies are taking advantage of the “bring your own device” trend, most employees rely heavily on mobile device technology.
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3. Laptops
Despite the reliance on smartphones, laptops are still a preferred device as they can be used like a traditional desktop PC in the office and also transported much like a mobile device. Laptops allow employees to take work home with them or work while traveling.
4. Tablet computers
Forbes magazine suggests that companies invest in tablets to help at trade shows, with executive travel, to enhance presentations and allow for easy document sharing all on “a much more user-friendly screen size” than a tiny smartphone or a bulky laptop.
5. Headphones and headsets
While you may not think of simple headphones as tech employees need, your employees greatly benefit from having quality headphones and headsets. Whether it is video conference calling or learning new skills from instructional videos while at work, a means of privately listening to audio from their computer or mobile device is important to efficient functioning in the workplace.
6. Portable printers
While many offices are working toward going paperless, there are still some important documents which must be run off hard copy. Specialty businesses or sales departments which employ door-to-door personnel might benefit from providing their employees with personal portable printers. PCmag.com recommends several different printing options that connect to devices via Bluetooth or other easy means.
When thinking about the growth of your company, it is important to factor in how new technologies can help to optimize your employees’ work output and overall success. While investing in new devices or subscribing to software as a service (SaaS) providers can be an added expense to operating costs, the right technology can also be an important investment in your business.
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