get a free demo of speakeasyIn a world of free one-day shipping and online shopping for everything, it’s no surprise that the warehouse has had to adapt… fast. The more that e-commerce and consumer demands continue to grow, the greater the need to improve warehouse processes. And of al the activities found in a warehouse, 70% of costs are attributed to order fulfillment. As a result, many warehouses are now tapping into voice-enabled technology to help them work smarter, faster, and more efficiently. Implementing voice as a tool in the warehouse has been a recent win for many organizations running to keep pace with new demands.

Picking a voice-enabled solution is an important step when going down the path towards implementing voice in your warehouse. Choosing the right product to meet your company’s needs can be challenging. We recently put together a handy checklist to help you get started. Consider these key factors before selecting the right voice-enabled solution.

  • Easy integration with all Warehouse Management Systems (WMS)

Advancements in WMS apps have eliminated the intensive, time-consuming installation and integration of advanced voice features into your WMS. Be sure your voice technology integrates easily into existing WMS systems with minimum effort and cost.

  • Cost-effective

Beware! Many vendors won’t bring up the hidden long-term maintenance costs that can total up to $100,000/year. You don’t need middleware, nor must you make any changes to your WMS system to become voice-enabled. And remember – once your workers are voice-enabled and realize productivity gains, why would you want to pay the vendor for the added cost of modifications to your host system?

  • Easy and Fast Deployment

Don’t wait from months to a year to implement. Confirm with your vendor whether they can extend voice to your terminal emulation or web apps and deploy voice on existing mobile computers. Can they do so in less than 30 days without making any changes to your WMS system?

  • Simple Employee Training

Minimize investment in an era of high employee turnover, plus look for a speaker-independent voice solution that’s proven, ready to be deployed, and can recognize voice without any upfront training time and cost.

  • Flexibility and Versatility

Chances are you have a wide variety of rugged mobile devices in the warehouse. If your warehouse workers are carrying Windows CE, or if you’re considering a hardware refresh to Android, ensure your hands-free voice picking solution works with both telnet and web apps across a spectrum of Windows and Android operating systems.

  • Multi-modal

Your floor workers using dedicated voice apps get tired sometimes and are prone to errors. Look for a voice solution that allows pickers to switch between voice-directed and on-screen modes, giving them the flexibility to choose voice or touch input.

  • Speak the Global Language of Productivity

Verify if the voice-enabled app offers features that recognize users’ spoken responses in multiple languages, regardless of accents.

Ivanti Speakeasy, powered by Wavelink, is the best voice-enabled solution for your warehouse. That’s why 24 of the world’s top 25 supply chains use Ivanti solutions. Customers using Speakeasy have experienced easy implementation in less than 30 days with minimal employee training needed. Request a demo of Speakeasy to see how flexible and efficient this solution really is.