In recent years, employee productivity apps have become all the rage. Collaborative tools like Slack, Trello, and Microsoft Teams are even more useful when workers use the mobile versions to contribute from wherever they are.
Now several alternatives are making a splash in the workplace, bringing ever more business capabilities to employees’ phones. This article will look at some of the most useful mobile apps that support the modern workforce.
These up-and-coming apps are great resources for employees who work at home, in an office, or out in the world. By using cutting-edge software, you can boost your team’s productivity and job satisfaction, better manage costs, and enhance your customer service.
Skedulo is one of the latest employee mobile apps to achieve mainstream success. Last year, Skedulo raised $75 million in Series C funding, bringing its total funding to $115 million.
SkeduloThe Skedulo app lets deskless workers view assignments, accept or decline jobs, and communicate with each other. (Click image to enlarge it.)
The Skedulo app is designed for the deskless workforce — active workers who typically don’t spend their day sitting at a desk. Delivery workers, retail workers, field service workers, in-home care workers, and commercial cleaners are just some of the mobile employees Skedulo is designed to assist. The app, which supports both Android and iOS devices, gives operational managers a complete view of their deskless enterprise. It allows workers and managers to use a single system for scheduling, resource travel, time management, and analytics and data reporting.
Workers can view newly assigned jobs, access and share schedules, and message each other — all in real time. In-app routing info helps workers get to job sites, and at the site, client details and task lists help them complete the job. They can document their work by using the app to capture and send photos, signatures, notes, and more, even if they’re offline.
Managers can use Skedulo’s embedded data analytics tools to discover inefficiencies, spot performance trends, and make informed decisions to increase productivity and improve customer experiences. Factors analyzed by the tools include travel time, jobs completed, and job growth. Contact Skedulo for pricing information.
If you haven’t heard of 15Five yet, expect to see this app in the headlines more frequently in the future. 15Five was rated one of the top 10 most innovative companies in the workplace by Fast Company in 2022. 15Five is a powerful app that employees can use to track their growth and provide feedback to their managers.
15FiveIn the 15Five app, check-ins help employees give feedback about their work, track progress toward goals, and keep track of priorities. (Click image to enlarge it.)
The 15Five app works by connecting managers and employees to streamline performance. 15Five stands for the amount of time employees are expected to spend using the app per week. That’s 15 minutes for an employee to “check in” and then five minutes for managers to review their direct reports. (Companies can set different expectations for weekly or monthly check-ins.)
Check-ins, the basis of the 15Five ecosystem, are essentially a way for employees to provide direct feedback to their managers about how things are going for them. This is accomplished using pulse ratings for how employees feel about work, objectives that define clear goals and track employees’ progress toward them, and priorities (tasks that help accomplish objectives), as well as questions and high fives for celebrating employees’ wins and demonstrating their value to the company.
Objectives include statistics on how employees’ success is measured, such as by increasing monthly revenue by $1,000. Priorities are similar to objectives (and can be connected to them), but this section works as more of a rolling to-do list. Employees can plan out specific work-related tasks like “meet with 3 new potential clients” and then track their progress towards completion. When priorities are finished, they get checked off and completed for the week.
15Five also features 1-on-1s, self reviews, and an option that lets employees request real-time feedback from their peers. 1-on-1s provide a way for managers and employees to track strategic conversations and build growth by pulling information from 15Five check-ins. Employees can easily schedule their weekly 1-on-1 and integrate it with Google Calendar through the app. Once talking points have been discussed, they can be crossed off. Items that aren’t reviewed automatically carry-over to the next 1-on-1. You can also create new action items and add notes.
Finally, 15Five supports Engage, a service for distributing surveys to employees to gain meaningful insights about how they feel about their work. 15Five business plans start at $8 per user per month.
Many employee mobile apps can take some setup, but When I Work practically runs out of the box. In 2020, the scheduling, time tracking, and team messaging app received awards for Fastest Implementation and Best ROI from G2 Crowd.
When I WorkThe When I Work app lets employees and managers communicate, manage shifts, and more. (Click image to enlarge it.)
With When I Work, employees can easily view their schedule, request time off, request shift swaps, and even fill other employees’ shifts. When I Work features shift confirmations, and everyone gets notified immediately when shifts are swapped. Additionally, workers can use the app to clock in and out, review assigned tasks, and communicate with other team members in real time without revealing personal phone numbers.
Managers can use the app to quickly onboard employees, create schedules, and manage employee requests. Automated scheduling takes employee qualifications, availability, and shift preferences into account, which minimizes the need for them to request time off or swap shifts. The app also keeps track of hours worked, preventing unnecessary overtime costs.
Although scheduling is where When I Work shines, it also can also generate labor reports, forecast labor needs, and ensure that your payroll is processed quickly and accurately. When I Work plans start at $2.50 per user per month.
What started as an internal company tool has turned into a powerful productivity app. ClickUp simplifies workflows, provides a streamlined internal chat, gives solid goal overviews, and provides data-driven productivity insights.
ClickUpClickUp provides high-level and detailed views of progress toward objectives, with integrated chat. (Click image to enlarge it.)
ClickUp is designed to replace most productivity apps including those for group chat, project management, and task completion; however, if your team is attached to popular tools like Slack or Trello, you can still integrate them with ClickUp. This means that you can, for instance, use ClickUp’s own kanban tool, integrate a separate one, or both.
ClickUp features 35+ “ClickApps,” or tools within the app, designed to scale from teams of 1 to over 1,000. Among these tools are project and task boards, an integrated chat view, and a goals / progress board. ClickUp supports multiple view types, so that employees can view data in the way that’s best for them. ClickUp also features a writing app, so employees can quickly generate copy for marketing campaigns. Another one of its standout features is the whiteboard, which allows you to easily drag and drop items, rearrange them, and manage workflows.
ClickUp features iOS, Android, and web apps, so employees can use it on nearly any device. The features are the same across platforms, and users can sign in to the app on their phone or through the web. ClickUp team and business plans start at $5 per user per month.
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