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A study by Humanforce found that 74% of frontline workers in Australia believe that workplace technology plays a critical role in customer service today.
Conversely, although technology is becoming extremely vital in satisfying consumer expectations, only 28% of Australian workers believe their workplace technology is advanced, with 13% saying it is terrible or limited.
Humanforce, a provider of intelligent workforce management solutions, contracted Zoho Survey to study 500 Australian frontline workers (part-time and casual worker respondents) on technologies used in their workplaces in Q4 2021.
Humanforce CEO Clayton Pyne said, “Part-time and casual workers are at the frontline of customer service in Australia, making them commonly the first point of contact for customer queries and taking the lead for any issue resolution.”
“Importantly, these workers rely on technology to connect with their employers and colleagues, assist in their roles and meet customer needs.”.
Read also: McDonald’s partners with Meta’s Workplace for crew communications (commsroom.co)
Workers themselves recognize the importance of new technologies in their professions, with only 4% of those polled claiming that technology does not impact their capacity to service consumers.
Today’s frontline workers favor employers who provide workplace technologies that assist their work and use technology that allows them to manage their own shifts.
Out of the respondents, 83% said they would join a company if it used automated technology to help them better manage their work, such as duties, shift availability, and remuneration.
No tech, no work
In contrast, 23% of frontline workers would contemplate quitting an employer if they did not provide technologies in the workplace that assisted them in planning and managing their job.
After mobile phones, tablets, and computers, the workplace technologies reportedly most used by frontline workers in Australia were: scanners (36%), point of sale systems (29%), and wearable technologies (11%).
Workers identified training as a priority to help them adapt to new workplace technologies, with hands-on training provided by a manager or colleague and online training accounting for 49% of respondents’ preferred training methodologies.
Payne said, “In a competitive hiring environment, businesses need to focus on the employee experience by offering workers technologies that support positive customer service outcomes and enable them to better manage their work; while allowing businesses to optimise costs, improve productivity and realise compliance.”
“Workforce management solutions can help simplify workplace processes and empower employees to manage their working lives through automating shift management, onboarding, training and more while ensuring business objectives are met.”
Pyne said one bad experience or poor customer service interaction today can cause customers to abandon a purchase and develop an unfavorable impression of a business that may never change.
Pyne urged businesses to improve their customer service and provide personnel with the necessary technology to satisfy Australian consumers’ expectations.
He said, “Solutions that can speed purchase processes, instantly surface a customer’s purchase history, or provide background on a product issue or complaint, equip frontline workers with invaluable tools and information to better meet customer needs, while in the flow of work.”
You may also want to read: Unified Communications: Five essentials in the hybrid workplace – CommsRoom
Jaw de Guzman is the content producer for Comms Room, a knowledge platform and website aimed at assisting the communications industry and its professionals.
