Picture yourself arriving at work in the morning, groggily cradling your coffee mug while greeting your coworkers en route to your desk. Rather than fumbling with a lanyard or juggling items while searching through the bottom of your bag for a misplaced keycard, you casually reach for your phone and wave it by the door reader, granting you immediate access to the building.
As you stroll through the hallways, you don’t have to worry about where you left your keycard or whether you can access common areas. Your mobile phone ensures you can easily navigate through various doors with proximity-based technology without wasting time or accidentally spilling your morning coffee. Thanks to the convenience of your digital wallet, your workday is simplified.
According to Forbes over half of Americans use digital wallets more than traditional payment methods, so why are businesses lagging when it comes to digital wallet adoption for workplace access? In this article, we explore digital wallet solutions, their benefits, and how to prepare your workplace for the implementation of digital wallet technologies.
What is a Digital Wallet?
A digital wallet, also known as an e-wallet or mobile wallet, is a virtual container that lives on your smartphone. When digital wallets were first introduced to the market, they primarily allowed you to securely store your financial information such as credit card details on your mobile device.
Now digital wallets are capable of much more, such as storing credentials, and are used for everyday tasks like paying for your morning cup of coffee, scanning your boarding pass, or accessing your workplace. When it comes to managing our finances or entering buildings, digital wallets have emerged as the ultimate solution.
What is the difference between digital wallets and mobile wallets?
Digital wallets are known by a few different names like digital wallet or mobile wallet, so is there a difference?
A digital wallet is an application that houses things such as your event tickets, boarding passes, and workplace access credentials as well as your payment information. Apple Wallet is a popular digital wallet that comes with iPhones.
In comparison, mobile wallets can make contact payments at retailers. Popular examples of mobile wallets include Apple Pay and Samsung Pay. A mobile wallet is simply a specific category of digital wallet technology.
Examples of digital wallets
As digital wallets continue to grow in popularity, many types of digital wallet solutions are emerging in the market. The most well-known and used types include:
Apple Wallet: Apple Wallet lives on your iPhone or Apple Watch and securely keeps your eligible credit and debit cards, boarding passes, tickets, car keys and more — all in one place.
Google Wallet: Google Wallet is a secure and private digital wallet that gives you quick access to forms of payment, passes, tickets, keys, or IDs that you choose to store.
Samsung Wallet: Samsung Wallet lets you carry your essentials in a single app — payment cards, ID, home and car keys, movie tickets, and more. Make payments, open doors, and gain access by tapping your device.
Alipay: Alipay is digital wallet primarily used for payments and sending and receiving money. It is one of the most popular types of digital wallet across China and other countries in Asia.
How does a digital wallet work?
A digital wallet works by employing the technologies built into your digital device, including QR Codes or Near-Field Communication (NFC). These technologies then transmit data to other QR Code and NFC-equipped technologies such as a door reader to allow the desired action to take place.
In some cases, digital wallet providers have created proprietary technologies to offer a better user experience. An example of this is Enhanced Contactless Polling (ECP) which was developed by Apple. It enables a terminal or reader to choose the appropriate card from a digital wallet automatically, without the user having to select from multiple cards stored in their digital wallet.
Are digital wallets safe?
Digital wallet security is one of the obstacles faced by workplaces encouraging employee adoption of these solutions. However, digital wallets are very safe and provide enhanced security for both the employer and the employee.
Their amplified level of security stems primarily from the way they are stored on the phone and transmit data. A person’s mobile credential sits within a device’s secure storage and the digital wallet offers the necessary encryption and privacy sought by organizations.
Additionally, digital wallet apps almost always require multi-factor authentication, such as biometrics or a PIN, before they allow a credit card payment or grant a person access to a building. Compared to physical cards that can be easily lost or stolen, digital wallets are currently one of the most secure ways to access buildings, giving employers peace of mind about the security of their buildings.
Benefits of using digital wallets for workplace access
There are many benefits of using digital wallets for workplace access. Digital wallet benefits include:
- Seamless access and authentication
- Continued access with a flat battery
- Convenience
- Sustainability
- Scalability
- Return on investment
Seamless access and authentication
A unified digital wallet system for access can streamline entry across various buildings and physical access control systems – from card readers to elevators and parking. Users can navigate spaces with a simple tap on their digital device, eliminating the need for multiple keys or cards and providing a level of fluidity previously unattainable.
Continued access with a flat battery
Switching to payments and workplace access through a digital wallet app raises concerns about being unable to make payments or access restricted areas if your mobile device runs out of battery. However, some digital wallet apps can still function for up to five hours even if your mobile device's battery is depleted. This is made possible by the power reserve which enables you to gain access to your office even when your mobile device runs out of battery.
Convenience
Ease of deployment is an advantage that's particularly important in situations where credentials need to be provisioned quickly and efficiently. With a digital wallet-based access system, managing and reissuing entry permissions becomes a streamlined, efficient process.
Office staff tend not to go anywhere without their phone, so the convenience of having IDs, payment methods, and credentials stored in one location on their mobile device, simplifies their workday granting them easy access to multi-building sites and offices in other cities. Additionally, they can access amenities and make payments from a single device.
Sustainability
By leveraging technology that is already in possession of the users, organizations can reduce plastic waste and emissions associated with creating and shipping access cards throughout the organization.
Scalability
Employees aren’t the only ones benefitting from the efficiencies powered by digital wallets. The burden of administrative tasks can also be lifted from businesses through the provisioning of mobile credentials via digital wallets. Credential maintenance typically requires time-consuming manual input but can be dramatically simplified - and managed remotely - reducing time-consuming tasks to mere seconds.
Return on investment
An often-overlooked benefit of a digital wallet solution is the high return on investment they provide for businesses. By adopting digital wallets, companies can see significant cost savings by reducing the need to purchase, print, and distribute access cards.
In addition to saving on card technologies, digital wallets also reduce the time spent by security teams on managing credentials, freeing them up to focus on other important tasks.
How to prepare for digital wallet implementation in your workplace
While digital wallets offer numerous advantages, transitioning to their use in the workplace requires some preparation.
Legacy access control systems might not be compatible with a digital wallet system. Therefore, implementing a digital wallet solution may often require investment in new hardware and software. This could include NFC-enabled readers at access points, software upgrades to enable new functionality, and potentially new employee smartphones or wearables.
However, upgrading these systems can be a complex and expensive process, especially for larger organizations, and can therefore be a major obstacle in the adoption of digital wallets. Consider access control systems that enable a migration pathway or phased implementation that suits your budget and timelines.
With any new technology introduced into the workplace, employee communication and training are a must. To prepare your workforce for a mobile-first access solution, develop a comprehensive communication plan to explain the benefits and address any potential concerns. Provide clear training materials to install the correct apps and troubleshoot documentation for any issues.
By taking the above steps, workplaces can prepare themselves for the implementation of a digital wallet solution.
Future outlook for digital wallets in the workplace
The COVID 19 pandemic accelerated the adoption of digital wallets when many government health agencies mandated the use of vaccination cards.
Now, digital wallets are being embraced by workplaces around the world due to the range of advantages they offer, including increased security, streamlined processes, enhanced convenience, and yields an impressive return on investment. By implementing digital wallets, businesses can unlock a new level of efficiency and productivity.
Beyond workplace adoption, the next development for digital wallet apps, isn’t just about payments and access but replacing physical IDs with secure digital versions. We will see governments across the globe begin to pilot programs to allow their citizens to store driver’s licenses, passports, and national ID cards in their digital wallets. This shift has the potential to revolutionize identification management offering increased convenience and security.
As businesses strive to stay ahead in a competitive landscape, embracing digital wallets is a strategic move that can unlock efficiency, deliver a truly premium experience for office staff, and reduce spilt coffees!
To learn about Gallagher's mobile credentials and digital wallet solutions, and to develop a strategy for implementing digital wallets in your workplace, get in touch with your local representative today.