3 Location Services Myths – busted!

Map showing Man Down activated Location services can be a contentious issue for organizations but the benefits are hard to ignore: improved worker safety and increased organizational efficiency!

While these things are clear, we need to set the record straight on the three big myths about Location Services and what they mean to your organization.

Myth #1: Location Services is just another name for AVL (Automatic Vehicle Location).

Erm… wrong! Location Services moves beyond tracking vehicles because it applies to people too, and isn’t necessarily automatic. In fact, it’s a highly valuable tool which allows for asset, event and location reporting (or “tracking”). It’s this “tracking” that’s the controversial bit – you may well see Location Services as a necessary tool to help meet your organization’s KPIs, but your workforce may have different view.

Myth #2: Location Services with GPS is designed to “spy” on workers – making sure they’re not at the pub.

Implementing Location Services is not about “Big Brother” tactics to see how long workers’ lunch breaks are or why their routes seem to be via a local watering hole. Organizations need to trust that their workers are professional; likewise workers need to trust that their managers are not in the business of spying, but in the business of better business.

While tracking workforce locations is a controversial activity that could scupper the implementation of Location Services, it doesn’t mean you have to say “no” to GPS altogether. Enabling the basic functions of Location Services on your organization’s system could mean that GPS locations are only sent in an emergency, triggered by pushing the duress button, or when ‘Man Down’ or ‘Lone Worker’ functionality is enabled.

Communicating the benefits of location services for workers – including transparency around how managers use the data – will help with the adoption of the new system. Fundamentally Location Services can reduce the frequency and severity of work place incidents – workers who need help can be found faster. And that’s got to be something all workers want.

Myth #3: It’s all or nothing with Location Services.

Organizations can adopt the relevant location services functions and capabilities they need to achieve their business outcomes. The right solution depends on business priorities and how Location Services is going to be used. Consider all the potential benefits, trade-offs and user acceptance issues before deciding on the best solution for you.

For more information on the value AVL (a component of Location Services) can bring to your organization, download our White paper Location services – How they can help improve safety and efficiency for utilities

Comments

  1. John McDermott says:

    Location Services can also protect organisations from malicious or ill-informed complaints. Indisputable proof of where your workers are and at what time provides information for supporting your workers.

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