Wearable tech made a big splash in 2015, making it a popular holiday gift idea this season. With the release of the Apple watch in April and influx of Fitbit sales this year (the company reports its revenue is up 168% year over year), businesses have begun to factor in how they can incorporate the wearables their employees are already using into overall productivity, performance, and wellness. According to the 2015 Salesforce Research special report, Putting Wearables to Work, 79% of enterprise tech adopters agree that wearables are or will be strategic to their company’s future business success.
If you know a forward-thinking, busy, and savvy business professional, you may be considering buying them a wearable device this holiday to help them stay ahead of the pack. You probably are looking for something that won’t become obsolete and will get the most use inside and out of the office. Here are our recommendations for the best wearable devices to gift your business professional this year, based on the statistics:
According to the report, 56% of enterprise tech adopters said they are interested in the Apple Watch. During the Apple Watch announcement, Apple demonstrated a “day in the life of Apple Watch” at work — showing how a business professional can read VIP emails, check flight notifications from American Airlines, pay with MasterCard, view business analytics with Salesforce Wave, check into a room at the W Hotel, see recent scores from MLB.com, and much more. This is a great device for the busy, modern day business professional who will be able to do work, track progress, and communicate all from his or her Apple Watch.
The Apple Watch isn’t your only option. Three out of the top five devices that enterprise adopters reported they were interested in were smartwatches, including Samsung Galaxy Gear and Android Wear. Forty-nine percent of companies surveyed said they expect smartwatches to have the biggest impact on the enterprise. As companies begin to develop more applications for wearable devices (29% of those surveyed have already started), your business professional could help lead the smartwatches-for-business trend within their own company with one of these intelligent gadgets.
If you are looking for something more affordable and easy to adopt, try a fitness band like Fitbit. These devices may not offer the same variety of apps as a smartwatch, but they do track physical activity, are able to connect across devices and companies are beginning to use their competitive social features to encourage employee wellness. Forty-eight percent of companies surveyed said they were interested in Fitbit for enterprise use. You also have the option of purchasing the higher grade Charge HR Fitbit, which can receive call notifications, so your business professional will never miss an important work call. This is a great gift for someone who is looking to stay connected while leading a healthy, balanced lifestyle at work and at home.
We’ve only just begun to tap into the capabilities of wearables in our daily lives, including at the office. Companies are dipping their toes into wearable tech for business by starting with basic use cases such as workplace security access (23%), employee time management (20%) and real-time employee communication (20%). However, the use of wearables in the enterprise is expected to grow 3x in the next two years. The right wearable tech device can be the gift that keeps on giving this season. Want to learn more about how businesses are planning to use wearable tech? Download the complete report.