How To Improve Frontline Employee Engagement

When it comes to looking after frontline employees, very few businesses can say they’re doing a good job. 

Or they can say they are, but in reality, employees feel disconnected from their desk-based colleagues and like they’re always on the back foot.

This is where frontline employee engagement comes into play. The conscious act of including deskless workers, often the first line of defense or the only people our customers see, in our internal communications strategy must be a consideration if we’re to keep them engaged, connected, and productive.

What is frontline employee engagement and why does it matter?

Frontline employee engagement is the process of ensuring your deskless workers are included in company initiatives, can access documentation and information, and can easily collaborate with their office-based peers.

These frontline workers are the lifeblood of many organizations. Common roles include customer-facing or remotely-located jobs like:

• Oil rig technicians
• Construction workers
• Warehouse staff
• Hospitality front of house
• On-call social workers
• Healthcare professionals
• Department store staff
• Public transport operators

These core personnel deliver the services your business markets and sells. Their output reflects your brand and your value. Yet, these team members, as crucial as they are, get left out when it comes to internal communications, personal development, and recognition—simply because they’re not on-site or as contactable as other desk-based staff.

In the long run, poor employee engagement impacts employee retention. The knock-on effect here is detrimental to the whole business, with profitability and morale suffering. 

Making the unconscious decision to leave frontline staff out on their own (physically, mentally, or digitally) can have a monumental business impact.

Understanding frontline employee engagement

There are major differences between frontline employees and desk-based workers:

When we appreciate the vast differences in these working styles, despite all working for the same business and with the same common goal, it’s easy to see how frontline employee engagement must differ.

The connection between engagement, job satisfaction, and frontline employee experience is the glue that holds your business together. We must thoroughly understand the challenges and barriers before we put in place new strategies specific to frontline staff.

Common challenges and barriers to engaging the frontline workforce

Disconnection

Working solo or spending time with the same small team can take a toll.

The same is true for being out of contact with base camp in extreme circumstances. For the frontline workers who must be away from regular WiFi and cell service, they lose the connection desk-based teams thrive off.

The camaraderie—even if online or virtual—disappears, and it can become a lonely work experience.

Burnout

Unlike desk-based workers, who can nip to a cozy cafe for their mid-morning latte or take their lunch break to walk their dog, frontline workers are at their outpost until the job is done.

Lunch breaks are either in a busy canteen rushing to get back to the shop floor or at the side of a road between jobs.

There are countless studies that prove the importance of rest for productivity and success. So when you remove the autonomy from any job, employees are more likely to suffer burnout.

Without the mechanisms to flag this, frontline workers remain on their own.

Absenteeism

When reporting on the 2023 CIPD Health and Wellbeing at Work Report, which highlights a new record high of 7.8 being the average number of sick days taken per year, the question of why was asked:

Are people becoming more unwell, or are organizations not managing sickness absence as effectively?

In the case of frontline workers, it’s not necessarily managing sickness absence that’s the problem. The issue is preventing it.

Health and safety when operating heavy machinery is one thing. But what about mental health, job satisfaction, and connectedness?

Without these core considerations, you can’t expect frontline workers to turn up every day and feel inspired to carry out their role to the best of their ability.

The business impact of engaged frontline teams

If your frontline staff are taking 7.8 sick days per year, there’s an obvious impact on your business and your customer experience. Either tasks don’t get done and deadlines get missed, or you hire expensive temporary staff to cover. Either way, there’s a financial and skill impact.

Flipped the other way, when you take steps to ensure frontline engagement, you see a rise in customer satisfaction and feel a strong sense of company culture.

As a rule of thumb, more engaged employees stay at a business longer and do better work. This encourages personal development and career growth internally and reduces the cost of recruitment and upskilling.

It boils down to one simple fact: When frontline employees—or any for that matter—are looked after, you see a positive business impact.

Key engagement strategies for frontline staff

1. Internal communications

Using technology like company intranets as your hub for all internal communications means there’s a single app for frontline employees to check in with.

Rather than having to catch up on multiple apps, they get a one-stop shop for company updates, the latest documentation, and both real-time and asynchronous messages.

Taking this a step further, choosing a social intranet with an intuitive mobile app means frontline staff can access this while on the move between jobs. Travel time can become comms and admin time rather than waiting until they get to a point where they can plug in their laptop and connect to the internet.

2. Employee feedback & two-way communication

Encouraging open dialogue requires both a safe space to express yourself and the knowledge that something will be done when you make a request.

If your intranet app doubles as a genuine employee engagement platform, you can implement features like polls and surveys to gauge the sentiment of frontline employees.

Choose from anonymized responses to get a better insight into how people are really feeling or opt for longer-form responses with more personal detail.

3. Recognition and incentives

When shift work takes its toll, frontline employees need a pat on the back. Unlike their desk-based counterparts, they don’t get to go home and see their families at 5 pm.

Boosting motivation and commitment can be simple. Shout-outs, badges, and incentives play a small but mighty part in keeping frontline workers motivated and on top of their game.

Make sure to look out for these simple components that make a big difference when thinking about frontline employee engagement.

4. Growth and development opportunities

Discovering new career paths and skill-building shouldn’t be on hold until a staff member’s next review. Instead, make a companywide job board available to all types of employees.

This means those precious moments between shifts and tasks can be used for self-development. Even the awareness that your business promotes this kind of progression can be enough to keep frontline employees engaged.

Be it more senior roles in their current skill set or a desk-based move where they can use their current skills—or learn new ones—an internal job board is a great move.

The role of leadership in frontline employee engagement

It’s one thing coming up with engagement strategies and looking at new tech. But you’ll need buy-in from leadership if you’re taking frontline employee engagement seriously.

How frontline managers influence engagement levels

Frontline managers set the tone for company or department culture.

When proactive engagement comes from the top, it sets the expectation that using a new app is part and parcel of your day. People naturally feel more empowered to leave feedback and take part in an open loop of communication.

Moreover, when frontline staff realize it’s okay to check in with the rest of the organization and stay up to date with company movements, they’ll feel less pressure to make this a rush job.

Best practices for effective communication and team motivation

• Company intranet onboarding: Set aside time for users to learn how to thoroughly use their new internal communications tool.
• Set expectations for usage: Make it clear that regular communication is a positive.
• Balance internal communication with core deliverables: Encourage when and where to check in with the rest of the company; scheduled time slots/in between jobs.
• Align engagement initiatives with company goals: Reward good work as it equates to business growth and customer retention.
• Use employee engagement tracking to make sure it’s working: Check metrics for usage and adoption as new employees start using digital tools and features.

3 steps to implement a successful employee engagement strategy

1. The importance of a structured communications strategy

When thinking about frontline employee engagement, you must factor in their connection to the rest of your company.

If it’s accepted—and even expected—that all employees come together in a central hub environment, communicate that from day one.

Instead of having multiple areas for different departments to work in silos, bring them together so it’s a company program.

Frontline workers should have access to the same templates, digital work environment, and communication channels. So structure your internal communications this way.

When you’ve decided that access to company information and colleagues must be equal, app selection proves vital.

2. Using an employee app or intranet for seamless engagement

You can’t rely on specific apps per department if you’re serious about the inclusion of all staff.

An app that doubles as an intranet and an employee engagement platform, like Workvivo, means you get an equal playing field cross-department. It also opens up accessibility to frontline employees who traditionally get less access due to things like connectivity and mobility.

When you’ve got a single source of truth for the latest documents, the right policies, and access to desk-based workers, frontline staff have everything they need to feel connected and part of your company.

3. Measuring success: metrics and feedback loops

Putting a new app in place isn’t enough. You must always be asking questions:

• What if nobody uses it?
• Why has adoption plummeted?
• Which features get used the most?
• What do users try to use but never pick up?

The answer to these questions lies in metrics and analytics available in the best intranet platforms.

Track these key intranet metrics as a minimum:

• Active intranet users
• Time spent on intranet
• Number of document downloads
• (Successful) search queries
• Discussion forum activity
• Page load time
• Uptime/downtime
• User satisfaction scores
• Net Promoter Score
• Onboarding completion rates

Workvivo case studies

Hickory’s Smokehouse

At Hickory’s, there was a goal to connect frontline and office-based staff alike. Enabling two-way communication via a central hub between sites and different worker types was the obvious solution.

Now using Workvivo, Hickory’s has 94% of its 3,000 hospitality staff registered—with a whopping 86% active every month. Since launching in the back end of 2023, post impressions have reached over 2.5 million; demonstrating the adoption and importance of connecting frontline and desk-based employees.

Workvivo means that people don’t go unnoticed. People are doing a lot of good things at Hickory’s; Workvivo gives us an opportunity to shine a light on this, and to celebrate it as well. Workvivo enhances our culture.

John Welsh, Managing Director

Mater Private Hospital

With a legacy intranet in place, there were some clear cracks in internal communications and engagement.

77% of the staff at Mater are now registered Workvivo users, with 75% of those active on a monthly basis. Even with the hectic schedules of frontline hospital staff, over 1,000 posts were uploaded to Workvivo in the first six months of implementation.

Mater has changed its culture across all 10 sites, now focused more on employee recognition and appreciation.

Traditionally, communication can be challenging in healthcare; a lot of our staff are frontline and don’t always have access to email or large departmental meetings. The Workvivo app has really allowed us to communicate on a very accessible basis.

Nikki Kane, COO

Evri

Any logistics company will suffer employee engagement problems. With such an intense focus on delivery rates (720 million per year no less), it’s easy to put customers first and let employees come second.

Since Evri started using Workvivo, however, they’ve had the best of both worlds. 90% of employees are active every month and 53% of employees are using the mobile app.

Now operating with a “digital hub for everybody,” Evri has seen an increase in its employee engagement score of 0.5. It's a measure out of 10, so that's a massive increase across the whole business.

You can make connections through Workvivo that matter, and that make your life better. And because it's a work application, it's making your work life better.

Anita Marquina, Community Delivery Manager

Workvivo: The ideal solution

For frontline workers and desk-based workers to come together with equal access, you need a platform dedicated to becoming the digital heart of your company.

Workvivo specializes in engaging frontline employees while connecting them to the rest of your business. We know a thing or two about this; so why not give us a whirl?

Ready to connect your frontline employees?

See how Workvivo helps frontline workers here.