Due to current circumstances, companies are encouraged to increasingly offer their employees the option of a home office. Teams and departments are spatially separated from each other and only connected via their work devices. Workflow is no longer available to the same extent as before because the digital infrastructure of small and medium-sized companies in particular is not adapted to this situation. Employee apps provide a remedy for this problem. But what are the real benefits of employee apps? What types are there and what can they offer?

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The most important facts in a nutshell:

• Employee apps are digital applications that simplify internal operational processes and everyday work in general.
  
• The functional scope of these mobile applications ranges from digitally fulfilling notice obligations to paperless time recording and can solve countless challenges in operational practice.
  
• The most important advantages of the applications lie above all in their location-independence and in the support they provide for internal processes that are often no longer designed for today's digital workday.
  
• The carefully thought-out choice and introduction of an employee app enables companies to discover digital potential in a simple way and to implement it directly.

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What are employee apps?

An employee app serves as a supporting platform for internal administrative activities. Tasks can be assigned quickly and easily via the app, and knowledge and information can be exchanged among the entire staff in an uncomplicated manner. Employee apps are mobile, device-independent and can be used at any location. The use is by no means limited to mobile devices. In most cases, the application is offered together with a desktop version or browser variant for laptops and PCs.

There are employee apps with different application focuses. Regardless of the core function of the digital app, it is always primarily about making everyday work easier and improving workflows. The most important types are:

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Organizational Apps

The focus here is on structuring, planning and tracking the working days. Here, duty rosters can be published or the own working time recording can be recorded. In a calendar overview, appointments, tasks or deadlines can be noted and provided with an additional reminder function.

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Continuing Education Apps

Further education and in-house training within companies are becoming more and more important. Training applications, also known as "e-learning platforms", are particularly helpful in this regard. Here, employees can individually take courses, complete them and track their progress.

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Communication apps

The focus of these applications is on simple and fast exchange. They function according to the principle of well-known messengers, such as WhatsApp, but are specialized for internal company use. Consequently, security and data protection aspects are the top priority here. As a rule, the range of functions covers all common variants of digital communication, from simple text messages to online telephone conferences.

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Hybrid apps

In hybrid apps for employees, several different functions are combined and linked in a meaningful way. For example, a hybrid app solution combines the recording of working hours with digital document management for internal company records. The combination possibilities are diverse, which means that these types of apps will become more and more important as time goes on.

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On our own behalf: In our fast-paced working world, the requirements of everyday work are developing rapidly. Rigid systems thus lose their usefulness, while hybrid solutions practically grow with them and develop their added value as permanent companions to everyday work. Sawayo thus offers a hybrid employee app whose range of functions is constantly growing and which is developed on the basis of operational practice.

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What functions can employee apps perform?

Based on the type and goals of an app, its feature set and complexity also differs. Here is an overview of the functions that mobile apps can perform:

1. working time recording

In the context of employee protection, the European Court of Justice issued the so-called time recording obligation in May 2019. In future, employers will be obliged to set up a reliable, objective and accessible system for recording the working hours of their employees. Employee apps are an excellent way to comply with these requirements. More about the time recording obligation.

2. appointments and absences

The communication of important appointments to all employees can be conveniently implemented with the help of an employee app. Data can be saved via a company calendar and accessed at any time. This often includes holiday planning and sickness notifications.

3. communication

Direct communication is a popular application example when talking about an employee app. A chat function enables employees to quickly get in touch with each other across departments or to hold more extensive meetings via video chat.

4. distribute & confirm documents

Distributing important documents to employees at different locations is often a time-consuming undertaking. Especially when a confirmation of receipt, for example in the form of a signature, is required in return. Using an app, documents can be sent quickly and securely to employees and confirmed by them directly via online signature. By subsequently archiving the documents, they can be retrieved by the recipients at any time via mobile phone or desktop. Thus, for example, the implementation of posting obligations is possible completely digitally and in compliance with the law.

5. further education & training

Continuous employee training is an important component of successful corporate management. Training on topics such as data protection, occupational safety and compliance should therefore be carried out regularly. To save time, learning content can easily be offered via an app (e.g. in video and quiz form). A popular trend in this area is micro-learning via apps.

6. feedback

Genuine employee feedback has always been a challenge for companies. Employee apps have proven to be an excellent way for companies to create an anonymous platform for authentic employee surveys for several years now. The whole thing can be supplemented with a function for submitting suggestions for improvement.

7. digital bulletin board

Mobile employee applications are used to exchange information. This can also include internal job advertisements or other offers that are traditionally found on the bulletin board. However, the benefit here usually depends on the size of the company.

8. other possible functions:

• Access to emergency plans and contacts
• Document templates for download
• FAQ section with frequently asked questions (location information, personnel etc.)
• Canteen plan
• Photo gallery
• Employee Forum
• Contests and sweepstakes

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What are the benefits of employee apps?

Regardless of the type or feature set, employee apps offer a number of benefits to a company's employees. They are quickly available and employees can use them regardless of location. The apps aim to make everyday work easier and are optimized accordingly.

Especially for companies whose employees are in the office at different times or only rarely (e.g. due to shift work, field service or home office) they have clear advantages. Important internal information can be made accessible to employees in general or specifically targeted. This strengthens internal knowledge management and helps employers to better manage distributed teams.

As already described, employee apps enable a wide range of possible applications and can thus serve to solve various internal company challenges. Digital time recording or employee-specific document management, for example, have the potential to significantly simplify internal processes. They digitize processes and show in a simple way what possibilities digital applications offer for everyday work.

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What needs to be considered when selecting and implementing an employee app?

Implementing an app for employees can be an elaborate and time-consuming project. Our experience shows that there are some criteria that need to be met for a successful implementation or at least favor it. The following checklist provides an overview:

1. define the functional scope of the app at an early stage

It is important to decide early on which functions are necessary for the company and which are optional or desirable. Only in this way is there a good chance of finding the optimal employee app for one's own goals with a manageable amount of effort, given the large number of solutions available. In addition, it should be defined whether the app merely serves as a supplement to the daily work routine or completely replaces entire processes and possibly channels. In this way, it is possible to counteract later ambiguities at an early stage.

2. consider important selection factors

As extensive as the offer is, the quality of available solutions also varies. Some factors should therefore definitely be in focus when choosing an app:

• Support and simplification of internal processes
• DSGVO-compliant data backup
• simple and intuitive operation
• Sophisticated user onboarding
• low administration costs
• free vendor support

3. plan introduction and inform employees at an early stage

For a successful introduction of the employee app, it makes sense to plan the internal publication. How should the new tool be communicated to the employees, when will it be available and when will certain processes only run via it? The clearer the communication, the easier the integration into the daily workflow. In addition to a circular email or an announcement in the company magazine, a joint release event is also conceivable.

What's more, providing information in advance about the benefits and purpose of the new app has been shown to increase acceptance of the application and increase the likelihood that it will actually be used and adopted.

4. obtain feedback and make adjustments if necessary

Asking employees at irregular intervals about their experiences with the in-house app is an important aspect that is often overlooked in everyday business. It happens time and again that the use of the application, even after an optimal start-up phase, decreases significantly over time. The reasons for this can be manifold and serve as valuable clues. After all, using an employee app only makes sense if it delivers long-term value to the company and internal processes. In addition, further ideas and wishes can crystallize through employee feedback and new optimization potentials can be identified.

Tip: "The Engagement Trick " - Certain functions, such as digital working time recording, lead to daily use of the introduced employee app and facilitate its integration into everyday operations.

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Conclusion

Employee apps can significantly help to improve internal company communication and greatly simplify the recording of working hours or operational processes such as the digitization of documents. The apps can be divided into several types, with the development moving more and more towards hybrid apps, such as Sawayo. For a successful introduction of the application, it is necessary to define the core objectives in advance and choose the right provider based on them. For large companies, by the way, the additional consideration here is whether the in-house development of a customized application makes more sense than choosing a prefabricated vendor solution. However, the high costs and time involved should not be underestimated. For SMEs, on the other hand, vendor solutions are almost always the best choice, as long as a careful selection is made.

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