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Frontline. noun “The most advanced, responsible, or visible position in a field or activity.”

That definition is an accurate description of your company’s most influential people: frontline employees. They’re on the ground, leading the charge, and have the most interaction with your customers.

How many percent of your frontline workers are receiving corporate communication directly and in an instant? 

Typically, this mobile workforce is often left unattended and, as a result, is left feeling disconnected from the company. Only 13% of them are engaged at work. As a result, they’re more likely to leave for another company with a more inclusive approach and a digital workplace.

It’s important to understand why frontline employees need to be included in your business strategies.

In Singapore staff attrition rates are rather high and employee engagement is rather low when compared to our neighboring countries.

According to the Ministry of Manpower attrition rates are the highest (> 40%) in sectors that are also characterized by a high share of Non-Desk Employees like F&B and Hospitality.

These Non-Desk Employees, also referred to as frontline employees, significantly impact a company's success. Especially since they are the people that interact with your customers and guests most frequently.

Miscommunication is expensive. Due to high levels of linguistic and cultural diversity within the non-desk workforce, it is crucial that the digital platform you adopt can effectively accommodate many different types of communicators.

Organizations have to cultivate an environment for inclusivity, engagement, and diversity if they want to increase productivity as well as retain more talents.

As mobile workforce demographics reflect more diversity, companies need to implement internal communication strategies that include every single worker. 

One of the biggest operational challenges faced by companies with a large percentage of frontline workers is high turnover rates.

When your workplace becomes a revolving door of new staff members, your bottom line starts to struggle. Constantly having to recruit and train new employees gets expensive. Very expensive.

There are a number of reasons why turnover rates are so high among frontline workers. Here are just a few.

In an age when consumers can make a purchase with the click of a mouse, brick-and-mortar retailers are facing some big obstacles. But outside competition isn’t the only problem plaguing the trade. It has one of the highest employee turnover rates of any industry. To be competitive, focus on your team that delivers the customer experience: your frontline workers.

Adopting a team app to manage internal communications will give your retail store an edge by improving the employee experience and increasing retention.