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The following content is created in consultation with Industrial Communications & Electronics. It does not reflect the work or opinions of NBC Connecticut's editorial staff. Click here to learn more about Industrial Communications & Electronics.

Faced with rising expectations and shrinking resources, today’s businesses could turn to smartphones and apps to help maximize employee performance and boost productivity. But these multitasking devices are also the source of workplace distraction that costs companies time and money. Read on to learn how industries and businesses, from manufacturing and construction to government and public safety, can use state-of-the-art two-way radio systems to reduce workplace distraction while improving connectivity and communication.

The cost of distraction
A recent CareerBuilder survey found that 82% of employees keep a smartphone within eye contact at work. Every day, on average, we check our phones 46 times. Because the buzz of an incoming call or text can interrupt our thought process just long enough to make us think about everything from paying bills to ordering an item online to sending a Happy Birthday tweet, the cost of “smartphone distraction” is quickly apparent through compromised workplace safety, reduced quality of work and missed deadlines and deliveries—all leading to lost revenue.

Shrinking attention spans
As smartphones roll out ever-more-exciting features to engage our attention, we’re becoming increasingly unable to resist them. Human attention spans have fallen dramatically over the past decade, to the point where, some believe, we now have shorter attention spans than goldfish. On the factory floor, at a construction site, while dispatching a fleet, or repairing infrastructure, a moment of distraction can have disastrous consequences. Even driving across town in response to a customer call requires extra vigilance: Glancing at a text while driving is the equivalent of traveling blind down a football field at 55 MPH, and distracted pedestrians are become a national epidemic.

The challenge: powering communication with purpose
How can businesses benefit from smartphone mobility without sacrificing safety? How can they enhance communication among team members without interruptions that make it difficult for them to stay on task? For employers and business owners, the solution lies not in rejecting digital technology, but in harnessing it through two-way radio communication systems that can keep employees on track and in touch, regardless of their surroundings.

The solution: two-way radio
Two-way radios aren’t what they used to be—they’re better. Advanced-technology Motorola two-way radios, provided by Industrial Communications & Electronics®, not only include cellular features like location tracking and instant notifications but have error correction capabilities that filter out background noise and allow for clear audio in the most chaotic environments. Operating on a self-contained communications network, two-way radios can be counted on during emergencies, when cellular networks can be overloaded, and in remote locations, where cellular coverage is spotty or nonexistent.

Communication without distraction
Designed to withstand the harshest working conditions, able to hold their charge over twice the length of an average shift, and three times more reliable than cell phones, two-way radios keep the lines open when it counts. Your crucial messages get through clearly and efficiently: an average phone call lasts between two and three minutes while a radio call averages just eight to 15 seconds. When success depends on your employees working at their best, two-way radios empower them to focus on the job at hand and the road ahead.

Industrial Communications & Electronics® owns and operates the largest private Motorola MOTOTRBO trunked digital radio systems in New England. Click here for more information.

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