Abellio London has rolled out the Blink mobile app designed to connect management with front-line or deskless workers. The operator, which runs bus services on behalf of Transport for London and serves 430,000 customers across Greater London every day, plans to use the app to connect with its 2,800 employees across six depots. Employees can connect, share information and communicate with each other from any location, giving every worker digital connectivity to the organisation and each other, which Blink says improves convenience, flexibility and inclusion.
The investment forms part of Abellio’s ongoing range of initiatives to support inclusion within the business and tackle the national bus driver shortage. The Blink app has been designed to tackle issues which drivers face to help improve working conditions and so improve driver recruitment and retention rates. Drivers can access key systems and information including the driver allocation system (DAS), payslip information and payslips, and company updates and information that have traditionally been shared by depot notice boards, social media groups or via their line managers.
“Abellio actively champions inclusivity, as a business that employs 43 different nationalities, we have always prided ourselves on our inclusive culture,” commented Abellio Operations and HR Director Lorna Murphy. “Differences are very much valued, and our company’s success depends on it. We needed an inclusive and simple way to bring our teams together and wanted to offer greater access to information and process for our front-line drivers. Blink fosters inclusiveness because everyone in the organisation has a mobile phone, meaning they can log in and access everything they need from wherever they are. It enables two-way conversations and brings connectivity to everyone in the business.”
CEO and co-founder of Blink Sean Nolan added: “Abellio London is on a mission to put a stop to the front-line worker gap and bring a sense of belonging to employees wherever they are. It recognises just how much an engaged front-line directly impacts how successful they are as a team. Amongst our customers we have seen that by fostering a more engaged and inclusive culture, productivity, quality, care, commitment, and retention will surely follow.
“The company is doing this by putting better company information at their drivers’ fingertips, while giving managers real-time access to front-line intelligence on employee performance and engagement. This will save them hundreds of hours, which they had been previously losing to disparate communications channels.”
Lorna added: “Using Blink, Abellio bus drivers can access a system of simple pathways that makes it easy for them to report issues, start a conversation with management or colleagues, or go about their day-to-day tasks such as checking shifts and accessing payslips, reconnecting them back to the organisation they work for via one simple, easy-to-use app.
“At a time when recruitment and retention in the industry is paramount, we hope that Blink, and tools like it, will support teams to feel connected to the business. Blink will help us to create a vibrant and open culture that champions better employee engagement, and give our drivers a channel through which they can voice their queries, ideas and concerns.”