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By Jenna Stanley | April 9, 2026
Winning Together: Orchestrating the Frontline: Why Connected Teams Succeed
I recently returned from Orlando where the energy at our Channel Partner Summit was undeniable. Spending time with our partners is always a highlight for me, but this year felt different. There is a shift happening in how we talk about work, specifically, how we support the people doing the work.
We often talk about technology’s role in efficiency, but in my conversations with partners and customers at the summit, the focus was squarely on engagement. In this edition of our Winning Together series, we explore how cutting through the noise empowers frontline workers to feel seen, supported, and successful.
The Engagement Equation
In my role leading Customer Success and Software Sales, I see a direct line between employee experience and business results. When frontline associates, whether in a retail store, a warehouse, or a hospital, feel overwhelmed or disconnected, engagement plummets. And when engagement drops, attrition rises.
We are seeing a massive convergence of task management, communications, and collaboration into single initiatives. Customers are realizing that if you can make it easier for an employee to do their job, you do not just save labor costs; you keep that employee. You create a culture where they feel part of a team rather than just a cog in a machine.
When an associate knows exactly what to do and has the tools to collaborate easily, they are more productive. But more importantly, they are happier. And a happy, efficient associate has more time to spend with your customers, which directly impacts the bottom line.
Ending the "Swivel Chair" Struggle
The challenge today is not a lack of data; it is a lack of focus. A typical frontline worker might have to interact with half a dozen different apps during a shift. One app to check inventory, another to see when a distribution truck arrives, another to communicate with a manager, and yet another to help a customer.
We call this "swivel seating": constantly jumping between applications to piece together a workflow. It is exhausting, and it kills productivity.
This is where the concept of orchestration changes everything. We are moving toward a "super app" reality where these disparate data points are brought together. It is not just about giving someone a list of 100 things to do. If you give an associate a list that long without guidance, human nature dictates they will tackle the easiest tasks first, or perhaps the ones at the top of the list.
But that might not be what the business needs. Real intelligent operation means helping that associate prioritize. For example, if an RFID application signals that a customer is waiting in a fitting room for a different size, and simultaneously a truck arrives at the dock, which takes precedence? You want to serve the customer in the fitting room first. Orchestration engines allow businesses to set these rules so the associate is guided to the highest-value action without having to guess.
Your New Digital Assistant
We are also seeing AI play a pivotal role in this simplification. In August, we integrated an AI agent into our task management solutions, and the results have been incredible.
Instead of navigating through complex hamburger menus to find a function, an associate can simply ask, "What are my top priorities?" The system processes the business rules and tells them exactly what needs to be done. We have seen this drive an incremental 30% increase in productivity. That is time given back to the associate to focus on higher-value work, like helping the customer standing right in front of them.
The Power of the Ecosystem
None of this happens in a vacuum. The beauty of the Zebra community is that we do not just provide the hardware or the software; we provide the connection point for innovation.
During my interview at the summit, I mentioned a specific strength that sets us apart:
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This ecosystem approach is vital. Whether a customer uses our native interfaces or wants to integrate our orchestration engine into their own custom app, our partners are the ones making these seamless experiences a reality.
Building for the Future
As we look toward 2026, I am excited about the possibilities. We are moving beyond just "managing tasks" to truly optimizing workflows in a way that feels human. We are helping our customers build resilience and agility, ensuring that their frontline operations are digitized, automated, and intelligent.
But we cannot do it alone. Our partners are the trusted advisors who help customers navigate these changes. They understand the nuances of the local markets and the specific pain points of different verticals.
If you want to hear more about how we are bringing Independent Software Vendors together to solve the "swivel seat" problem and how AI is reshaping the connected frontline, I invite you to watch the full briefing from the Channel Partner Summit below.
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