Globally, companies are pushing ever harder for employees to return to the office. In 2022, 9% of workers said their companies required them to be in the office five days a week. By 2025, that number jumped to 49% — with employees now averaging four days a week in the office, according to the Cisco Global Hybrid Work Study 2025.
As companies see in-office attendance rise, creating a connected, mobile-first workforce becomes a strategic priority. A modern technology stack must include mobile enablement and make information and collaboration tools accessible wherever work happens.
Here’s why financial institutions still need to embrace a mobile-first approach.
Mobility still matters
In-office attendance doesn’t make mobility less important; it requires companies to think more thoughtfully about how employees navigate their workday.
During a typical workweek at a financial institution, an employee may work from multiple locations, both in the office, outside of it and everywhere in between. When they’re in-office, they may move from their desk to a conference room, a private phone booth or an outdoor space on a corporate campus. On the days they work remotely, they may be at home, a branch location or a client’s office.
The experience between all these locations should be seamless, but too often it isn’t: Only 49% of employees in the Cisco study say their company provides consistent tools and processes to work effectively from any location.
Every minute of friction hurts productivity, whether it’s disconnected applications that make retrieving information challenging and time-consuming, or requiring employees to be at their desks to perform key functions like document reviews and client approvals.
To build a nimble, high-performing organization, financial institutions must create a more connected employee experience — one where adaptable workflows across remote, hybrid and in-office environments enable anywhere-anytime productivity.
Financial institutions can empower employees with connected, secure mobile tools and features to make this happen. A mobile-first strategy gives them the resilient operating layer they need to enable work without friction.
Build a more mobile, connected workforce
In the modern workplace, mobile devices, tablets and wearables are core infrastructure components that companies now need to work smarter and faster. They bring the mobile tools and capabilities to support their strategy, including:
AI-powered note organization and summarization
AI-driven tools and features on devices can power intelligent information synthesis, allowing employees to organize, format and surface important details, decisions and actions right from their phones.
This is probably one of the lowest-stakes, but most impactful capabilities for a mobile-first workforce because of the aggregate time it saves across meetings.
Real-time transcription tools
Another mobile-first feature turns permitted recordings into searchable transcripts and summaries. This capability isn’t just useful for meeting follow-ups; it can put valuable operational and customer intelligence at employees’ fingertips.
For example, client call transcripts can surface bottlenecks and friction points that jeopardize retention and satisfaction for commercial banking customers. Call center transcripts may uncover opportunities to improve the customer experience, whether by streamlining the account-opening process or adding new data points to a mobile app dashboard that better educates retail banking customers about their finances.
Context-aware recommendations and next steps
Context-aware mobile tools serve as an intelligent extension of the workplace, informing employees’ next steps in their current location, workflow or task.
For example, if an employee is on their tablet or mobile device, they may see a recommendation or request to add an event to their calendar or schedule a follow-up call with a client, with suggested dates and times.
This capability essentially turns an employee’s device into a digital personal assistant, saving valuable mental bandwidth that employees can apply to higher-value work rather than rote tasks.
Intelligent document capture
With modern mobile devices and tablets, employees can capture images of approved documents, whiteboards, and physical assets and incorporate them into a workflow. This enables workers to keep business moving forward, such as loan applications, document transfers, and identity verification.
Video-based service delivery
Financial institutions can use secure tablets and mobile devices to better serve customers in their neighborhood branch by connecting them with a specialist not available in person.
Through these devices, the branch can connect customers with specialists, such as a wealth management advisor, wherever they are. In this way, mobile expands access to valuable expertise for customers and enables financial institutions to deliver convenient, personalized service that drives loyalty.
Financial services’ mobile-first future
Mobility is no longer just about enabling remote work. It’s the foundation for a more resilient, flexible, productive and employee-centric workplace that adapts to evolving workforce and business demands.
A mobile-first strategy — powered by digital collaboration, context-aware and advanced note-taking and summarization tools — supports a better employee experience. And when that happens, a better customer experience usually follows.
Learn more about how mobile tools can empower your financial services workers and streamline your operations on our landing page.
