70% of employees keep their phones “within eye contact” at work. Thus, it would make sense for employers to capitalize on this ability to connect with them throughout their workday (and sometimes outside of work hours), even though sixty-five percent of these workers will use their phone for personal messaging some time during their day. Companies must be seeing the advantage in an uptick in productivity to warrant the expense of asking employees to use a company-provided cell phone or use their (personal) cell phones for work-related purposes and financially compensating them through a mobile phone stipend.
Company-issued employee mobile cell phones for work purposes
There are two types of work cell phones: company-issued and employee-owned. Company employee-issued cell phones are quite common these days. As an example, Walmart decided to give half of its U.S. workforce (or 740,000 employees) a free Samsung smartphone by the end of 2021 so the company can be in “constant communication” with their employee. The phone, a Samsung Galaxy XCover Pro, normally retails for $499. The phones will also allow the employees to use an app to see their work schedules and request changes or time off. This app also lets the employee use a voice-activated personal assistant feature (similar to a walkie-talkie) where store employees can immediately speak with other employees within the store.
Other corporations are experiencing workforces working remotely from home or some off-site location. These businesses are taking security measures to prevent hacking and costly security breaches by requiring employees to log in via a security code that is sent to the employee’s phone via text. The assumption is that the employee has a locked phone and only the employee would be able to access the code. This is called Two-Factor Authentication (2FA), which is required for login purposes. Having a company-issued phone might help control the security of an “off-campus” phone.
In either scenario, having possession of the phone at the business workplace or while working remotely is paramount to a productive work day.
Employee-owned mobile cell phones used for work (BYOD)
Sometimes there may be legal issues concerning whether or not the company can require the employee to have a smartphone, or if the employer can require the employee to use their (personal) cell phone for work purposes. There is also a legal issue of whether or not a corporation has to provide reimbursement for employee-owned cell phones. These are matters that may vary by State. In the State of California, there are “No exceptions. Employers must always reasonably reimburse employees’ on-the-job use of personal cell phones.” Under Section 2802 of the California Labor Code, if the employee is required to use a personal cell phone to make work-related phone calls, the employee must be reimbursed.
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How to prevent employees from losing company and personal work mobile cell phones
Regardless of whether or not the work phone is corporate- or personally-owned, it is evident that the employer is highly invested in the employee not misplacing or losing their phone. A lost phone is costly in terms of lost productivity, the time necessary to get it replaced, possible data breach, and the cost of the phone itself. There needs to be some common sense in how to prevent employee phone loss. This is where a corporate work cell phone policy best practice comes into play.
Sure, the company can take out an employee company cell phone insurance policy, but like any insurance, it only replaces the cost of the phone and doesn’t cover any of the loss in productivity and confidential information. Fifty-seven percent of technology executives worry about the security of non-managed mobile devices. It comes down to how you manage work-related mobile cell phones that employees use and more particularly, how to reduce, stop, avoid, or prevent company employee mobile work cell phone theft and loss.
How to help protect a company work cell phone from loss or theft
Although no company can guarantee a 100% company phone theft-proof policy, managing the prevention of cell phone loss begins with alerting the employee before they walk away from their cell phone and leaving it behind. The odds of losing a phone greatly increase once the phone is left behind. One could say that the sooner the employee is alerted that they left their mobile phone behind, the better. In fact, recovery chances are best within the first 24 hours. Imagine being alerted at 50 feet, rather than 300 feet or even a quarter-mile (1,320 feet)! It is safe to say that a shorter leash on the phone is always better in this case. Once you drive away, the clock is ticking and the phone may no longer be there when you go back to retrieve it.
Next, a phone separation alert for the employees’ phones should be adjustable. There are situations where the alert distance may need to be adjusted to accommodate the employee’s environment. And the alert tune may also need to be adjusted to accommodate the hearing impaired. The employee may need to temporarily suspend alerts when working with a client.
Lastly, the phone separation alert must be reliable. There is nothing worse than experiencing unwanted or unnecessary alerts. Phone separation alerts are dependent on Bluetooth® technology and have been dependent on the use of a phone battery-draining app (which must be kept open)...until now.
The solution: The Prox PRD® – Phone Reminder Device with Advance Alert Technology
If your employee is using a company-issued phone, protect your investment with a reliable, adjustable phone reminder separation device that alerts your employee. This will also prevent any loss in productivity.
If your employee is using a personal mobile cell phone for work-related activities, help them remember and not forget their phone with the same reliable phone separation alert device.
The Prox PRD® gives your employees reliable adjustable alerts so you don’t miss a beat. Since there is no app required and no tracking (100% privacy), your business and your employees should feel comfortable that confidential company data and personal data are not being collected, sold, or compromised in any way.
If you have any questions about this new reliable alert technology, feel free to reach out to us. We look forward to answering all your questions about the Prox PRD. And, as a further note, we also can brand your corporate logo on the PRD so that your employees (or even your customers) can see your company name and logo all day long, anytime they grab their keys or purse.
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The Prox PRD® Phone Reminder Device – Separation Alert
No subscription | No data collected or sold | CR2032: 1-year battery life (typical)
No password | No app | No registration | iPhone, Samsung, Google Pixel Compatible
