From public phone booths to beepers and pagers, the smartphones that we use today have been a long time coming. The technology today is almost unrecognizable from a mere 3 decades ago. But floppies, faxes, and phonebooks are just some of the things that’ll be ‘weird’ for the next generation.
And if these haven’t been replaced in your workplace already, you have a major problem at your hands.
According to research by Unisys Corporation, 44% of workers are frustrated with their employers for taking a slowpoke approach towards technology up-gradation and due to outdated technology in the workplace. They are also 600% more likely to leave their jobs, as compared to their counterparts at tech-forward firms.
The data is clear, the future is digital.
If your workplace is still stuck in analog, you are at the risk of losing your most valuable assets – your employees. A Gallup survey found that actively disengaged employees can cost up to $605 billion in lost productivity each year.
So it’s time to stand up and take a look around to make sure that the following technologies are on the outer at your office.
Every few years, someone pronounces them dead, and yet somehow, fax machines have still managed to stick around in many offices.
These electronic devices are used to send official documents over a telephone network, between computers, or between fax services. But since these need a phone to function, fax machines have been phased out in many offices – who even has a landline these days?
Besides, there are much faster, better and safer ways to send documents digitally – mainly email. Also, try instant messaging services like Google Hangouts or apps like Slack that make communication between team members easier and a lot more secure.
Has anyone even seen one of these in the last 20 years or so?
For those of you who have no idea what it is, a Rolodex is a rotating file device that stores all-important office contact information. It’s like a filing cabinet but for all the business cards you have collected.
Now you have contact info saved in your phone, so a physical record-keeping system is no longer necessary or even feasible. After all, it’s not about how many numbers you’ve got saved, but about how quickly you pull one up when the need be!
This is another one of those annoying obsolete technologies that just won’t die.
Sometimes, outdated technology in the workplace, like desktop computers, is about safety in a convoluted way. Employers believe that it’s harder to make off with a desktop computer than it is with laptops, tablets and iPads.
But, they are compromising on ease-of-work and better tech for their employees who are restricted by the lack of mobility of desktops.
Tech champion organizations are implementing Bring-Your-Own-Device (BYOD) solutions to facilitate their staff, so the onus falls on you as the employer to find other ways to secure internal data and let portable devices rule.
Wired landlines are no longer cost-effective, secure, or even necessary.
Mobile phones, online phones, and even apps like Zoom and Teams have rendered desk phones obsolete. There are much faster ways for employees to connect with each other, even when they are off-site or working remotely.
The availability of internet services has made it possible for workers and managers to make use of video applications, conference calls, and ease of access to information.
USB drives used to be all the rage at one time, letting people store vast amounts of information in a portable device.
However, with the innovation of online cloud storage platforms like OneDrive, Google Drive, and iCloud, storage has become more accessible. These USB drives have physical limitations for storage, can get lost or destroyed and are easy to misplace. That’s not the case with cloud storage.
These platforms also allow the data to be easily edited from most digital devices. This ease of sharing information can enable your team to store all their data in one place, which makes it easy for everyone to stay updated.
Paper sign-in books are used by businesses to keep track of visitors and employees coming in and going out of the workplace. These are time-consuming, prone to errors, and labor fraud.
To avoid the inefficiencies inherent to this outdated technology in the workplace, employers now have other options. Time and attendance keeping gets far more accurate with apps like Sine that allow for workplace productivity as well as the security of employees and contractors.
Sine lets you keep track of employees’ time and attendance with digital check-in and check-out features. Employees no longer have to wait for a receptionist to sign them in manually. They can make use of Sine free smartphone app that allows workers to sign-in from their phones.
In fact, it’s also possible to keep track of contractors. The geofencing technology lets you keep an eye on who’s on-site and get daily reports sent to their inbox. They can also customize notifications for each contractor by company, name, and purpose of visit for ease of information.
This results in enhanced security at the workplace. You can even use the facial recognition feature to identify all visitors before they enter the worksite.
If you are looking to enhance productivity at your workplace and make it more efficient for your staff, get rid of all outdated technology stat! Adopting new tech will not only benefit your organization but also make it easier and safer for your team to do their jobs.
