How to Decide the Types of Tech Your Employees Need

The business world has become increasingly technological. The newest generation of workers is especially good at using technology to maintain a work-life balance. Technology also enables your staff to work from anywhere and at any time, increasing overall productivity and employee satisfaction.

However, deciding what type of technology to provide your staff with can be a bit tricky. Too little may hamper your staff’s ability to perform and too much may distract them from the job. The following are a few items to consider:

Start With a Good Smartphone

There is more computing power in a current smartphone than was used to put the first man on the moon. This is the kind of muscle that you want your employees to have. A superior smartphone like the Samsung Galaxy S6 Edge should have a lot of processing power, a long battery life and a display large enough to get a variety of work done. To protect both your employees and your company, make sure the phone has security features like Samsung Knox, which separates personal documents from work documents. This lets you access mobile information without needing to break into your employee's personal account.

Choose Between a Laptop and Desktop

The choice between a laptop and a desktop is a matter of function and lifestyle. If you want your staff to be in the office to work, then a desktop is the way to go. However, there are substantial benefits to the freedom that mobile computing has to offer. Employees that telecommute, under a company with strong telecommuting policies and procedures, are more innovative, healthier and more productive, according to a study published in Sage Journals. It also saves on office space and the associated rent. CNet lists the Microsoft Surface Pro 4 as the best hybrid desktop replacement laptop for your money.

Keep Employees Connected

If you allow for full or partial telecommuting or if you want to hand your sales staff a laptop and task them with the job of bringing in revenue, then you need to keep them online. Hotspots, Wi-Fi and MiFi are portable devices that offer Internet access anywhere that has cellphone reception. In a review of providers of portable Internet connectivity, PCMag lists T-Mobile’s 4G LTE Hotspot Z915 as one of the most affordable options with some of the best rural coverage.

Put Their Office in the Cloud

The singular purpose of mobile technology is to keep your staff productive and efficient while they are on the clock. Creating a virtual office is a great way to pull all of the devices together. Cloud-based offices enable you to share documents and operating platforms in real time with everyone in your organization. Employees don't need to come into the office to get paperwork done. Instead, they can fill out contracts and have them signed while sitting at a café with a client. There are a few different ways to mirror your physical office in the cloud, so do some research before jumping in.