Engage frontline employees: 10 tactics your team will love

Ten powerful frontline employee engagement tactics that work

Frontline employee engagement is the difference between teams that run smoothly and ones that burn out, churn out, and check out. Engaged employees care more, stay longer, and perform better. In fact, companies with high employee engagement see up to a 23% boost in profitability, according to Gallup.

But here’s the problem: most engagement strategies were built for office workers. The tools, the tactics, the tone — none of it fits the fast, physical, always-on nature of frontline work.

If you want to engage frontline employees, you need to meet them where they are. At Beekeeper, we’ve partnered with frontline leaders across industries to understand what really works. One of them is Maulik Bhatt, Director of IT Service Delivery at a world-class resort, who’s seen firsthand how the right communication and recognition tools can drive real change on the ground.

In this post, we share 10 frontline employee engagement strategies that boost morale, reduce turnover, and help your teams thrive, regardless of industry.

1. Boost frontline employee engagement through recognition

Recognition is a key driver of engagement and one of the most impactful employee motivation ideas, but frontline workers are often excluded from traditional employee recognition programs. Shift work, fast-paced environments, and limited contact with HR or managers mean their contributions can go unnoticed.

And it’s a costly oversight: 26% of frontline workers say a lack of recognition affects their productivity. 

Employee recognition programs and initiatives tailored to the frontline can change that. Celebrating employee achievements with shout-outs in newsletters and team chats helps create a culture of recognition where every employee feels as though their hard work is appreciated. Facilitating peer-to-peer recognition is a powerful way to promote collaboration and strengthen relationships between frontline workers. Boosting employee morale through personalized rewards on platforms like Snappy can also show employees that their hard work is valued. 

2. Keep frontline workers connected 

Our 2024 Frontline Workforce Pulse Report found that nearly a third of frontline workers say traditional communication methods negatively impact their job performance. Given that the majority of companies use between four and six different employee apps, that’s no surprise. Rather than concentrate on the task at hand, employees waste time navigating through siloed information and trying to find what they need.

These fragmented systems can impact trust, with 75% of frontline employees saying they don’t trust that their company communicates transparently. 

Implementing an all-in-one employee app like Beekeeper can help fix this frontline disconnect. Real-time updates, simplified workflows, and easy access to information help foster transparency and build trust, ultimately boosting employee morale and performance. When employees can easily find what they need, they can focus on what matters: getting the job done.

3. Give frontline employees a voice with two-way feedback

One of the most overlooked workplace engagement tips is simply to listen. Frontline employees know what’s working — and what’s not. But too often, there’s a gap between what corporate leaders think impacts frontline employee retention and productivity, and what actually does. For example, our report found that employees cited unstaffed shifts, lack of recognition, and poor communication as top issues — none of which made leadership’s list.

A frontline engagement platform like Beekeeper that enables two-way communication can empower employees to share real-time feedback and surface their concerns or ideas. It’s a powerful way to support frontline employee retention by ensuring workers feel heard and included.

Just ask Cache Creek Casino Resort, where frontline feedback skyrocketed after implementing Beekeeper.

“Some of the best ideas come from our employees on the floor. Before, they had to call or visit the service desk,” said Maulik Bhatt, the resort’s Director of IT Service Delivery. “Now, they can easily reach us and share their thoughts using Beekeeper. And we can learn from what they tell us.”

4. Increase frontline retention with employee referral programs

Frontline workers who are engaged and happy in their roles make fantastic recruiters. And one of the best ways to tap into this kind of organic recruitment is to encourage employee referrals.

By regularly notifying workers of upcoming job openings and making it easy to submit referrals through an employee app, companies can boost the chances of receiving applications from high-quality candidates who already know what working there might look like.

Not only does this reduce time-to-hire and boost frontline employee retention, but it also helps avoid understaffing, one of the top stressors for frontline workers. By allowing existing employees to play a key role in hiring, companies can streamline recruitment and create an engaged, productive workforce.

5. Engage new frontline hires from day one

You never get a second chance to make a first impression. But too often, onboarding for frontline workers is clunky, outdated, and paper-heavy, leaving new hires feeling disconnected and frustrated from the beginning. And with frontline employee retention a growing concern, frontline worker attrition is now between 35 and 50% across most industries — companies can’t overlook the impact of a poor start.

Digitizing the onboarding process is one of the most powerful employee motivation ideas as it sets the tone for long-term engagement. Automated check-ins, team introductions, 30-60-90 day tasks, and resource sharing help new employees feel prepared, informed, and part of the team from the very first day

6. Create growth opportunities

Frontline employees want to grow, but many don’t see clear paths for development. Without opportunities to upskill or advance, they can become disengaged and unmotivated. In fact, 21% of frontline employees say learning and development opportunities are their top workplace motivators. Investing in your team’s growth makes them more likely to stay invested in your company.

The right technology can promote and enable these development opportunities, helping frontline employees upskill through assessments, quizzes, and mobile training courses. Tools like Beekeeper that integrate with learning platforms like eduMe, Coursepath, and Absorb make it even easier for frontline workers to access training with just a tap, right from the home screen.

7. Foster an inclusive environment

Building inclusive work environments means actively listening to the needs of your frontline employees. However, our research shows that many workers feel their concerns, especially around safety and security, aren’t being heard.

With tools like Beekeeper’s pulse surveys, managers can identify concerns early and act quickly. Fostering inclusion isn’t a one-time initiative — it’s an ongoing practice that helps build a stronger, more engaged frontline workforce.

8. Give people the right technology

Frontline employees aren’t sitting at desks — they’re prepping food, supervising construction sites, helping customers at a cash register, and working in the field. When it comes to helping them feel connected, traditional office-based communication tools like email and Slack don’t cut it. 

That’s where mobile-first platforms like Beekeeper shine. With a single app, employees can access everything they need — no desktop required. Beekeeper’s mobile app makes everything accessible all in one place, from onboarding and training to pay stubs, shift scheduling, and time-off requests. It’s one of the most practical workplace engagement tips: give frontline employees tools that work the way they do.

9. Support work-life balance to boost frontline morale

Many companies assume that departing employees seek higher pay, but that’s not always true. In high-turnover industries like hospitality and manufacturing, the top reason employees leave isn’t pay — it’s work-life balance.

Supporting this balance means giving workers more control over their schedules. The right frontline technology will simplify shift management, reduce absenteeism, and help employees balance their priorities inside and outside work. An app that allows employees to check their schedules quickly, request shift swaps, report sick leave, and request time off goes a long way in boosting employee morale and preventing burnout.

10. Use real-time data to continually improve engagement

Engagement isn’t static. It shifts with seasons, workloads, and even team dynamics. For hospitality employees, for example, what worked over busy summer periods might not work during the quieter off-season. 

Keeping a continual pulse on employee sentiment can help managers respond to changes in engagement and morale over time. One of the best ways to achieve this is to use real-time data to track what’s working and adjust your employee engagement strategies accordingly. Short surveys, analytics dashboards, and AI-driven sentiment analysis give you the data-driven insights you need to continually improve frontline employee retention, satisfaction, and engagement.

Boosting frontline employee engagement with Beekeeper

Frontline employees are the backbone of your business. When they’re engaged, everything runs more smoothly — from productivity and safety to customer satisfaction and team morale. But frontline engagement doesn’t happen by accident. It takes intention, consistency, and tools designed with their unique needs in mind.

The employee engagement strategies and workplace engagement tips outlined above are a great starting point for creating a more connected, motivated, and engaged frontline workforce. But the real magic happens when you power them with the right technology.

With Beekeeper’s Frontline Success Platform, you can centralize communication, streamline daily tasks, and create a culture of recognition that drives lasting engagement. From onboarding to communication and recognition to retention, we help companies improve frontline employee engagement at every step.

Want more real-world frontline employee engagement strategies? See how Beekeeper helped Royal Farms keep thousands of convenience store workers informed, engaged, and connected.

About the author

Beekeeper

We make frontline lives easier, work safer, and teams more connected so businesses can reach new heights. At Beekeeper, we’re dedicated to making frontline lives easier by connecting workers with the tools, support, and information they need to feel valued, do their best work, and drive the business forward.