5 Essential Tools for Managing Deskless Workers Effectively

Technology is crucial for team management, especially if you manage deskless teams that work in multiple locations. Software bridges geographical gaps by making it easier for teams to stay connected and productive, regardless of their physical locations.
Between creating schedules, tracking employee hours, keeping teams connected, or managing HR and payroll, technology makes it all a whole lot easier.
Here are my 5 top picks of essential software for deskless workers.

1. Spike – Good for Team Communication

Spike completely simplifies team collaboration and messaging. With multiple secured communication channels, your entire team can stay connected with ease.
Features include private and group messaging, email, voice messaging, video meetings, and collaborative notes and documents–and not just with other employees. Spike makes it possible for you to communicate with anyone from one place, whether it’s other teammates, customers, or clients.
One of the things I love about Spike is its emphasis on real-time messaging, bridging the distance between teams and speeding up tasks and projects. Spike even has its own AI tool, branded as Magic AI, which acts as your own personal assistant, helping you craft well-written and impactful messages in a fraction of the time.
Other features include a calendar, file management, and even email hosting, which makes Spike a well-rounded and extremely effective solution for managing deskless teams.

2. Connecteam – Good for Tracking Employee Hours

Connecteam’s employee management software comes with a rich set of features to completely manage your team on the go. The employee time clock is one of the app’s standout features and one of the best time tracking apps on the market.
The user-friendly time clock makes it possible for employees to clock in and out of jobs right from their phones with just a tap. What’s even better is that this feature is GPS-enabled so you can set a geofence around each job site, making sure employees only clock in and out while they’re on the job, which can reduce and even eliminate time theft.
Another great feature is that the time clock is directly integrated with Connecteam’s employee scheduler, which allows you to create customized schedules with ease and efficiency. Employees can view their upcoming shifts and automatically clock in, reducing any logistical headaches.
Connecteam comes with tons of other features, too, such as in-app chat, task management, document storage, and payroll integrations, making it a shoo-in for this list.

3. Monday.com – Good for Project Management

One of the leading project management tools on the market, Monday.com makes it easy for teams to keep track of tasks and create customizable workflows using project boards. In addition to its versatility and user-friendly interface, Monday has a highly mobile-responsive design.
You can tailor all workflows to fit the requirements of specific projects, which ensures that teams can manage tasks in a way that aligns with their unique operational processes. As tasks are completed, Monday sends real-time notifications so you can stay up-to-date with the status of each project.
Collaboration tools, like shared project boards, document sharing, time tracking, tagging, and reporting also help you stay in the know and keep your entire team connected, no matter where everyone is located.
Another great thing about Monday is that it offers multiple integrations with popular tools like Google, Zoom, and Microsoft Excel.

Shiftbase – Good for Creating Employee Schedules

If you’ve ever struggled to create employee schedules, Shiftbase may be your new best friend, especially if you’re juggling teams across multiple locations.
Shiftbase is incredibly user-friendly, with a gentle learning curve that makes it easy to learn how to use. Employees can submit time off requests directly in the app so you know exactly who’s available to work and when. You can also keep track of everyone’s specific job skills so you never accidentally schedule the wrong person.
With scheduling templates, tools to manage labor costs, detailed reports, and automatic timesheets, Shiftbase makes employee scheduling simple.
Plus, you can manage employee time off and even handle payroll. Shiftbase is like having a personal assistant for all of your scheduling and time-tracking needs.

Paychex – Good for HR Management and Payroll

Paychex offers a robust mobile app, which means you can handle payroll, employee benefits, and other HR matters right from your phone. This makes it possible to keep things rolling, no matter where your team members are.
Paychex helps you track hours with its employee time clock, manage time off, and automate payroll by handling tax calculations and deductions. You can also set up direct deposit so all your employees get paid on time.
The software comes with employee tax services, too. With Paychex’s automatic tax administrative service, Taxpay, businesses can keep up with payroll tax rates, accurately calculate liabilities, and make timely payments. The software also comes with an employee retention tax credit (ERTC) service that helps businesses of all sizes claim tax credits retroactively.

Streamline Your Business Processes With Technology

The right digital tools are crucial in shaping an engaging and and dynamic work environment for deskless employees. Technology bridges the gap between remote locations and central operations, ensuring that deskless teams remain connected and informed.
By implementing these tools into their businesses, organizations can maintain productivity, foster collaboration, and enhance the overall efficiency of their mobile workforce.