Connecteam’s All-In-One Employee App Creates a Central Portal for Managing Deskless Workforces Across the Globe

TL; DR: Connecteam provides a central portal from which deskless workforces can streamline communications, enhance operations, and improve skills, among other use cases. The simple and intuitive nature of the software — a product of the company’s eagerness to use client feedback to inform ongoing development— makes it easy to leverage sophisticated capabilities. As Connecteam expands its mobile-first approach to a broader audience with the introduction of its free plan, the company hopes to help as many users as possible build better businesses.

For those of us who work in front of a computer all day, it can be difficult to imagine earning money beyond the confines of cubicle walls.

Still, 80% of the global working population, or 2.7 billion people, perform their tasks in desk-free environments.

To understand their views on technology, the researchers behind Emergence’s 2018 report “The Rise of the Deskless Workforce” surveyed 100 companies from the top eight deskless industries, which include agriculture, construction, education, healthcare, hospitality, manufacturing, and transportation.

Though these industries have traditionally been underserved when it comes to emerging technology, momentum is building. Of those surveyed, 82% plan to increase spending on technology for desk-free workers, with the transportation and manufacturing industries leading the pack.

And Connecteam, an all-in-one mobile optimization solution for non-office personnel, will be there to help them do it. The multifunctional and brandable app delivers a suite of productivity tools designed to manage, supervise, and train employees easily and efficiently.

“There are all kinds of employees out there with different types of needs but few resources to satisfy them,” said Yuval Magid, Head of Business Development at Connecteam. “We are on a mission to help them address everything from communications and management to operations and training. We don’t know if we can reach all 2.7 billion people in need of such services, but we sure will try.”

The Connecteam application is simple, affordable, and easy to use, yet it provides sophisticated capabilities in terms of enhancing operations, strengthening connections, and improving skills. As ongoing developments continue to enhance the product, Connecteam’s focus on understanding the customer will ensure a positive reception.

Connecteam, headquartered in New York City, was founded in 2014 to serve as a central portal for dispersed, non-office workforces via a customizable and feature-rich app for mobile phones. At the time, Yuval said similar mobile tools were popular in tech-based industries but faced slow adoption in sectors such as construction and manufacturing.

“One of the key challenges that we still face today is keeping things simple,” he said. “These businesses tend to be traditional in nature — they don’t want to devote hours to training or spend three months preparing for a rollout. The market demands a simple smartphone app with sophisticated, high-end capabilities.”

The out-of-the-box solution allows companies to create a fully branded app in just four steps (mapping objectives, choosing features, building the app, and adding content) with a fixed price for all employees and no hidden fees.

Once the Connecteam app is set up, personnel at restaurants, hotels, construction sites, factories, logistics services, and retail stores are armed with on-the-go tools to boost job performance while managers analyze engagement data for areas of possible improvement.

Yuval said the app was also designed to help managers at enterprises and mom-and-pop shops alike reach their target employee audiences.

“We can serve companies with 10 people as well as those with tens of thousands of people,” he said. “Of course, when you’re communicating in a group of five people versus 5,000 people, there are some elements that must be adjusted. But the beauty is that the core need remains the same.”

Connecteam’s full feature set helps employees boost efficiency through tools such as an employee time clock, forms and checklists, a communications portal, scheduling assets, and training resources.

Each feature empowers users to accomplish a variety of tasks. The communication tool, for example, includes a team chat, social update tools, an employee directory, templates for polls and surveys, a suggestion box, and an admin dashboard featuring data analytics.

The employee time clock, on the other hand, features tools for tracking and managing work hours, such as GPS location stamps, notifications, reminders, timesheets, payroll information, a kiosk station, and custom shift attachments.

These features provide users with immediate benefits, from increased revenue and cost savings to improved morale, through better connections between dispersed non-office workers. But Yuval said it’s as difficult to pinpoint his favorite tool as it is for a parent to select his or her most beloved child.

“Of course, we do see a difference in the features utilized depending on the nature of the organization — bigger organizations, for example, may already have a solution in place for a time clock,” he said. “But generally, customers tend to come to us looking for something specific and later explore all the different aspects of the product.”

Amir Nehemia, Co-Founder and CEO of Connecteam, agreed.

“You can start with one feature, but within days you will learn that you can manage all your business within the app,” he added. “I think this is the value in Connecteam: It’s a basic app that changes the way your business runs. In a matter of minutes, you can digitize the majority of your processes.”

Thousands of customers from small businesses to enterprises, including Nike, Billabong, Hitachi Koki Co., Ltd., and Mason Construction, trust Connecteam’s customer support team when building and maintaining their employee apps.

“From initial startup to becoming familiar with the program, the support has been second to none,” said Andy F., a dispatcher at an environmental services organization with 51 to 200 employees. “It is very user-friendly and has improved our ability to respond in a timely manner as well as decreased the number of phone calls into dispatch operations, allowing them to concentrate on customers and, in turn, increase orders.”

When it comes to internal development, Connecteam takes an equally customer-centric approach. Yuval said that while some tech companies attempt to automate the customer experience, Connecteam encourages constant engagement with customers.

“We are always chasing feedback and logging every request we receive from a customer,” he said. “Staying attuned to our customers is an important part of our culture.”

A member of the company’s customer service team recently connected with a user who provided candid feedback and suggestions for improvement. Yuval said Connecteam has already put plans in place to implement a related feature as soon as next year.

“I think the philosophy of keeping things simple includes listening to the customer and understanding not just what they’re asking for, but why they’re asking for it and what’s behind their request,” he said. “Then, you can translate that into execution, considering user experience, and so on.”

Yuval told us that Connecteam’s app was built using a mobile-first approach, empowering managers and employees to accomplish essential tasks on the go.

With the belief that everyone should have access to that type of power when communicating and managing desk-free employees, the company recently revamped its pricing models to include a free option in addition to premium plans.

For no charge, companies can now tap into Connecteam’s time tracking, employee scheduling, checklists and forms, engagement tools, chat and employee directory, training and knowledge center, and customer support.

“We take a lot of pleasure from seeing users adopt the product and change the way they operate,” Yuval said. “That’s pretty much what keeps us going.”