Frontline workers are critical to revenue generation for businesses in all industries, but particularly in retail, where frontline workers not only process transactions but act as the face of the company to customers, assisting them with questions and resolving their problems.
During the National Retail Federation’s Big Show in New York January 2023, Joe Hasenzahl, Director of Sales, Strategy and Business Development at Samsung’s Mobile B2B Group, sat down with the Chief Information Officer for Aramark, Baker Smith, and the Vice President of Teams and Platform at Microsoft, Nicole Herskowitz, to discuss how retailers can use technology to create great experiences for both their customers and their employees.
Their discussion highlighted the challenges retailers and their associates face in meeting customer expectations and providing the best possible customer experience.
With labor shortages and increasing demand from customers for curated experiences, retailers must make it easier for frontline workers to provide an excellent service. The best way to do this is by reducing friction from an associate’s journey. This increases operational efficiency, freeing up more time and energy for associates to focus on the customers’ needs instead of scheduling, training or other issues.
Moreover, retailers are recognizing that there’s a strong correlation between the associate’s experience and the customer’s experience. The more satisfied frontline retail workers are in their job, the better service they provide customers, which increase customers’ satisfaction.
This blurs the lines between what customers and retail associates want; both desire modern interfaces that provide relevant, actionable information on-demand. Empowering associates with quick and easy access to the information customers want means they can better meet customer needs, improving job satisfaction and driving sales.
The right mobile technology makes communication seamless, giving associates access to the information they need and making it easier to connect with colleagues for decision-making and team workflows.
Samsung’s rugged smartphones and tablets – the XCover6 Pro, Tab Active4 Pro and Tab Active3 – transform retail associates’ job performance. These light, tough devices marry powerful, capable hardware and integrated software solutions like the Microsoft Teams Walkie Talkie app, enabling seamless communication between retail associates, real-time data access and improved customer satisfaction at the point of decision.
