Lokesh Nigam
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October 31, 2022
Creating experiences that last
Businesses today have moved from being customer-centric to workforce-centric. While great customer experience is the final goal of any business, it is indisputable that businesses cannot achieve consistent positive customer experience is impossible to achieve when employee experience in your organisation is not on point.
To tap into employee potential, it is important that they are happy, motivated and inspired. This is where employee experience comes into play.
Before we dive deeper into creating lasting employee experience, it is essential to differentiate between employee engagement and loyalty and how they differ from employee experience.
Employee engagement is a level of enthusiasm and dedication that an individual feels towards their job and indicates how much they care about their job or the company’s performance. Engaged employees are more likely to be productive.
A recent report stated that employee engagement is declining for the first time in a decade. The report also stated that while 32% of employees in the survey felt actively engaged in working for the organisation, 17% felt actively disengaged. A 2021 survey stated that nearly 73% of employees are looking to quit their jobs.
What organisations must understand is that engagement does not make employees happy. It does not mean employees are happy or satisfied. Yes, the concepts are connected, but they are not the same thing. Infact, for this reason, employee engagement does not translate to loyalty.
In a 2018 survey, it was found that 44% of employees would switch jobs if they were not recognised for their efforts.53% of employees also stated that they would stay in a company longer if they felt appreciated.
The discrepancy in high employee engagement but low employee loyalty is the lack of positive employee experience. Recognition has a critical role to play in positive employee experience. 90% of people who participated in a recent survey stated that an effective recognition program drives business outcomes, and 91% of them agreed that it positively affects retention. Of the 540 HR leaders who were part of the survey and had recognition programs in their organisations, 89% said recognition helped with their employee experience.
To create unbeatable and memorable employee experiences, here’s what it must comprise of:
Company culture is one of the biggest factors that can make or break employee experience. Company culture influences how people feel about their jobs and their organisations. A positive company culture influences employee satisfaction and, therefore, employee experience.
The workplace environment is vital for a positive employee experience. Employees who struggle at work or find negative vibes are more likely to leave the organisation. Companies can use feedback and suggestions from employee surveys to improve the workplace environment and employee experience.
The world is on the way to complete digitisation, and the internet has changed how we communicate. While organisations were contemplating hybrid work, the COVID-19 pandemic only accelerated its implementation.
Employees can not only work remotely today, but organisations are finding new ways to make work productive. Modern work is inconceivable without technology, and it plays an important role in creating a positive and seamless employee experience.
Here are 9 ways to make a compelling employer brand by creating an unbeatable employee experience:
Onboarding is one of the first touch points where employees get a taste of the organisation’s experience. While it is okay to have a snag or two during the recruitment process, organisations can fine-tune their processes to help new employees settle into their new roles.
Conducting research and analysis on your organisation’s onboarding process can help boost employee experience and create a positive one for them from the word go!
Pulse surveys, 360-degree feedback mechanisms and employee surveys available 365 days a week help employers obtain feedback on their employees’ overall well-being. These surveys help organisations collect important insights, many of which may be actionable. Using the right employee feedback platform also helps organisations develop customised actions for employees, making them feel empowered. These feedbacks also help boost employee engagement, improving their overall experience.
Employee recognition is important to boost their morale and engagement. Though employees may be engaged for various internal reasons, frequent recognition makes them feel good about their work. Creating a culture where leaders and co-workers reward their team members and peers helps them develop a sense of belonging at their workplace.
A 2017 study by the University of Birmingham stated that autonomy in the workplace has positive effects on employee well-being and job satisfaction. Autonomy can mean the nature or prioritisation of job tasks, timing and location of work, and the ability to take decisions, among other activities.
Inclusivity is a big tick when it comes to creating positive employee experiences. It must be ingrained in your company culture so every employee is heard, even the vocally introverted. With new ways of working, the definition of inclusivity is also changing. While organisations today may focus on inclusivity, most of them make the mistake of not keeping it fair. Inclusivity without fairness can create a bad employee experience.
When employees join an organisation, they often seek what they are promised. However, when organisations fail to deliver their promises, it demotivates employees, often prompting them to look externally. Delivering promises given to employees is important in creating a culture of trust, and honesty, both of which are critical in creating an unbeatable employee experience.
An important activity in organisations with successful employee experiences is open communication channels between employees and management. Regardless of how busy the top management and senior leadership may be, they must listen to their employees, making them feel their voice is heard and appreciated.
Engaged employees are inspired and motivated, but empowering them creates an enticing employee experience. For example, giving employees a framework to work makes them feel they are doing a job, not a role they enjoy. But, empowering them to make decisions and drive a project gives them an impetus to give their best, often leading to innovation.
Smart and creative design thinking can be deployed to design employee experiences that drive company culture but motivate employees to thrive and grow in the organisation. Design thinking also inculcates a culture of innovation in the organisation.
Creating a positive employee experience is challenging, but when you get the rhythm right, you are unleashing their productivity and business outcomes. While companies navigate their daily workflows, creating and sustaining positive employee experiences is an ongoing process, which, if done right, is not just irreplicable but also unbeatable.
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