How to keep deskless colleagues engaged

04 Aug 2024, posted in Blogs

Phil Wedgwood, CEO at Engage, explores ways to keep remote and on-the-go colleagues engaged and involved in company communications.

It’s been a few years since we all entered a new era of work. One where we don’t need to be tethered to the office for five days a week to get things done. And there are more modes of work now than ever, making it increasingly important to keep colleagues engaged.

Even if they’re based miles from HQ, it’s vital that remote and on-the-go colleagues feel they are valued and at the heart of the business. An engaged workforce is happier, better informed, and 21% more profitable. It’s win-win.

But engagement is easier said than done. Here are five strategies to help boost engagement and foster a thriving colleague community, no matter where colleagues are based:

Streamlined, personalised notifications

Too often, colleagues are bombarded with countless irrelevant messages and emails, leading to critical information getting buried in the noise. This challenge is even more pronounced for remote workers who, all too often, find themselves receiving mass communications meant for those in the office. Let’s face it—remote team members don’t need to know about the office fridge breaking down.

When deskless colleagues are consistently hit with irrelevant notifications, it can send the wrong message: that their unique needs aren’t being acknowledged. The solution? Personalised notifications that ensure every message is relevant, timely, and valuable. By cutting down on unnecessary communications, we make it easier for your team to focus on what really matters, driving efficiency and enhancing the overall work experience for everyone.

An integrated platform

For colleagues on the move, juggling multiple work desktop platforms can be a frustrating and time-consuming task. When crucial documents, team notifications, reminders, and HR resources are scattered across different virtual spaces, it becomes challenging to keep track of where everything is. And if the tools for socialising with colleagues are on yet another platform, mobile team members might become disengaged from their community.

An integrated colleague platform changes this. By bringing all essential tools into one unified space, deskless colleagues have everything they need at their fingertips. This simplifies their workday, making it easier to access important resources and stay connected without the hassle of navigating multiple systems.

Customised content streams

When colleagues have everything they need—and nothing they don’t—in one virtual space, they can engage with content on their own terms. This opens the door to a more diverse range of content formats: communications teams can offer short videos and social media-style posts for on-the-go team members, alongside in-depth blogs and longer videos for those who have more time. By engaging with your people on their terms, you’ll be 87% more likely to have higher staff retention.

By integrating these varied content types with direct messaging features, we create additional opportunities for colleague engagement and interaction, ensuring that everyone stays connected and informed, regardless of how or when they choose to consume content.

Engage your people, no matter where they are

It’s time to get clued up on creating thriving colleague communities. Keeping deskless colleagues engaged is crucial in building a connected and productive team.

To bridge the gap between office-based and remote colleagues, you need a consumer-grade technology platform to enable you to leverage key functionalities that cut through the clutter and make sure every team member feels valued and informed.

A well-engaged workforce, regardless of where they are, is a more motivated and productive one. And they outperform a disengaged workforce, every single time.