With the proliferation of hybrid or remote working models, mobility in companies is no longer only reflected in jobs that, by their nature, require employees to be constantly on the move (installation, transport, maintenance, repair, etc.). It is now increasingly common for workers to be separated and to work from different locations.
In this context, it is necessary to ensure that all employees feel part of the organisation and receive the same information, regardless of their location. Thus, ensuring efficient communication in mobile teams has become not only advisable, but necessary.
You may now be wondering what you can do in your company to achieve this goal. That’s why today we bring you a series of tips that will help you. Read on!
Unify your internal and external communications
When a team is on the move, it is essential that employees maintain efficient communication among themselves, not only to be aware of possible changes that may affect them, but also to ensure that the service provided to customers is adequate. Thus, it is essential to provide them with communication tools not only externally, but also internally.
However, it is important that both types of interactions can be managed from the same interface, otherwise workers would have to switch from one application to another. This, on the move, is not only inefficient, but also inconvenient for them and most of the time results in an unsatisfactory customer experience.
That’s why we recommend that one of the key elements of your business is unified communications software, as all internal and external voice, chat and video conversations will be available on a single platform.
Rely on a multi-device platform
Related to the above, it is advisable that the software you choose to ensure efficient communication can be used from any device, anywhere. It should be borne in mind that when they are constantly on the move, workers do not always carry the same device with them. In fact, depending on the situation, they will choose one or the other.
For example, let’s imagine the employee of an electricity supply company who deals with emergencies that may occur on weekends. If he is at home, it is likely that, in addition to answering calls and messages, he will connect to the computer, as he can use it to check customer data as well. Or you may also want to connect on your mobile phone and tablet to attend the interaction on the one closest to you at the time. However, if you are out in an emergency, you will choose your mobile phone because it is easier to carry.
In any case, if the platform allows you to receive interactions on several devices at the same time, it will be very useful, as being able to choose from where you want to attend to them will ensure efficient communication.
What is important to note is that not all solutions allow this. Many of them charge licenses for each device you connect to simultaneously. They even require you to download softphones or executable plug-ins that you must install on each device you want to connect to, which is a waste of time. Therefore, it is important that you always choose a solution that works with WebRTC technology and does not charge you for these licenses.
Take advantage of the functionalities offered by your tools
When we talk about efficient communication, it is not the same to want to report a change in the business at a global level as it is to talk about a specific issue with a colleague. Nor is making a voice call the same as sending a message. Therefore, it is also important for efficient communication that the system we use has different elements to choose from depending on the moment.
For example, with our solution for mobile work teams, you will have at your disposal functionalities such as:
- External and internal communication on three levels: voice, chat and video. All these channels are connected to each other, so you can switch between them in the same conversation. This translates into efficient communication, not only when your team is on the move, but in any situation.
- A status change system that lets you know if your colleagues are available, absent, out of service… This is a very useful feature to choose whether it is possible to make voice calls or a video call, or if it is better to send a message through the chat.
- Possibility of creating distribution lists with which you can send information in real time to all team members or only to some of them. For example, if the company has several departments, you can create a group with the members of each one, as well as a total group.
Connecting other enterprise systems
Finally, efficient communication in mobile teams is not only based on the communication tools themselves. There are other systems such as a CRM or Helpdesk (ticketing systems) that, on their own, already bring great advantages to the business, but when connected to a communication solution, they enhance their features.
As an example, today we bring you Luis, a home appliance repair technician who receives a call while travelling from the office to a customer’s home. The number on his mobile phone looks familiar, but he does not identify who it is or whether he has actually spoken to him. When you answer the call, the customer tells you that he has spoken to a colleague of his to repair an incident and that it is an emergency.
In this case, Luis is not the only technician in the company. He has 10 other colleagues and, of course, he does not know who he has spoken to and cannot stop to check, as the service he is about to perform is also urgent. Luis tries to explain it to the customer, who tells him that he has already spoken to 4 other colleagues who have told him the same thing and that he is not going to waste any more time. And, of course, he ends up telling him that their customer service is lousy and that he will call another company.
With the integration of the communications system and the company’s CRM or Helpdesk, this would not have happened, as Luis or the other 4 colleagues the customer had spoken to would have been able to pass it on to the right colleague. As both systems are connected, the agent can identify the customer and check if there have been previous interactions with other colleagues, favouring efficient communication. In addition, the customer’s data file will be automatically raised, so we will be able to obtain other data.
Now that you know how to achieve an efficient communication in mobile work teams, you may be interested in knowing how we can help you in Fonvirtual. Do not hesitate and contact us!
