Google LLC today introduced a new edition of its Google Workspace productivity suite aimed at frontline workers, along with a set of time management tools and enhancements to several existing products in the bundle.

Workspace Frontline, as the new edition is called, will roll out over the coming weeks. Google put together the offering to address the fact that the professionals whom it targets often don’t have immediate access to a laptop or desktop computer during much of their workday. Frontline employees in many cases access Google applications from their smartphones instead. 

Workspace Frontline includes Gmail, Chat, Docs and several other applications from the standard version, plus more specialized features. Those features will include tools for securing sensitive data on employees’ devices.

Also included: enhancements that will make it easier for companies to build AppSheet apps to support their frontline workers. AppSheet is a low-code development tool offered by Google that makes it possible to create simple programs atop Google Workspace, such as a to-do list linked to an Excel spreadsheet. 

“Despite their importance, those on the frontlines seldom have access to the same collaboration and communication tools that keep knowledge workers informed and connected, ” Javier Soltero, the vice president and general manager of Google Workspace, wrote in a blog post today. “In the coming weeks, we’ll be launching Google Workspace Frontline with these challenges in mind.”

At the same time, Google is updating the standard edition of Workspace with a set of time management features. A new tool dubbed Time insights shows users a breakdown of their workday so they can compare how they spend their time with their productivity goals. To help workers reduce distractions, Google has also added a Focus Time feature that turns off notifications at specific time frames and an option to set recurring out-of-office events.

The other new time management features introduced in the update are more specialized. Google has introduced location indicators that allow users who split their work week between their home and corporate offices to highlight where they’ll be on each given day.

Joining the new features are enhancements to a number of existing capabilities in Workspace. Workspace’s Google Assistant integration is now generally available, allowing the assistant to perform tasks such as retrieving business information, while Google Meet is receiving second screen support and automatic live captions. Additionally, the search giant is expanding the low-cost Essentials edition of Workplace with several more applications that weren’t included in the bundle before, including the Jamfboard virtual whiteboard.

Administrators are receiving new features as well. In a separate announcement, Google said that it’s adding settings that will allow administrators to control the region where account information from Workspace user indices is stored, which can make it easier to comply with certain data regulations. 

Image: Google