Technology is flawlessly integrated into everyday lives, as it is used to manage records, track contacts, make products and provide speedy internal and external communication venues. Conversely, technology can also be a source of lost profits
Employees’ training to use tablets requires time
Technology is constantly being improved, which requires continuous and costly upgrading. The use of tablets at work place requires employee training and the struggle to learn new applications and to meet new performance standards while educating them about the use of tablets. This will minimize the employee’s attention and dedication towards production, which will cause a loss of productivity. This loss of productivity combined with costs of software and implementation can decrease overall profit.
Office Distractions
Technology demands attention. The time saving advantages are often outweighed by the continuous distractions. This can lead to dissatisfaction or workplace dullness.
Younger workers are more easily distracted at work with technology. Employees readily go to Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and YouTube, or email, play games, and surf the web from a personal phone or from tablets. So there is no surprise that 51% of U.S. workers believe using social media at work slows productivity (Source: Kelly Services)
Cost and maintenance Expenses
There are initial tablet purchasing costs, as well as ongoing maintenance, updates and training expenses. The cost of actually purchasing the tablets varies extensively depending on the options selected for storage and Internet connectivity. A tablets’ failure increase expenses, which ultimately reduce profit.
The next question is who is going to maintain the Internet technology side of maintaining these new tablets. Who is capable in your office to debug these devices? Does the software on the tablet require a wifi connection in order to function? What happens if invoices won’t sync from the tablet to the office computer daily? Don’t forget about the handheld protective cases to protect your investment.
British businesses are paying a very high price for the introduction of tablets in the workplace with 47% of users experiencing failures of tablet in the past two years. Those with tablet problems have experienced an average of the three failures during this period and an average repair or replacement time of two weeks. (Source: http://ow.ly/QJmIL)
The most common causes of the failures are battery problems (27%), touchscreen issues (16%) and another 10% suffering screen breakages or button failure and 11% out in the cold, such as in a car overnight. (Source:http://ow.ly/QJmIL)
Apart from temperature-related issues, the most common accident was a fall, being dropped or knocked off a desk (21%) and (17%) includes spillages of water, coffee, tea and soft drinks. (Source: http://ow.ly/QJmy3)
Consumer tablet devices are not typically built to operate in a wide range of temperatures. Does your company work in below 0 or 120° climate weather? Will you need a heater for you tablet while your working on the job in zero degree weather? Some popular consumer devices have been commonly reported problems with working at temperatures above 35°C (95°F)
Most tablets today are on their way to becoming the way of the future for small businesses. However, not right now. The need for each user in the workplace to have a tablet may not be the most economical option. We are not discouraging the use of Tablets in the field. Start out with one employee using a table to see how things go. Tablets look professional when companies use them. They look like they are keeping up with technology and taking their company to the next level. There comes a time though were you need to look at reality, cost and efficiency. There is nothing wrong with the good old-fashioned flat rate price book. No electricity required and no monthly payment!