The employee experience and why it matters

What is it about an employee’s experience of the workplace keeps them engaged and makes them stay with that employer and how can this improve productivity?

Is it the company culture, the manager, the location, the pay, the benefits, the colleagues, the hours?

Disengagement

Employees can feel disengaged if they don’t understand the direction of the organisation, don’t feel valued, don’t feel listened to or don’t feel appreciated.  Why should an employee care when their employer doesn’t care about them?

Is there is an issue?

You may suspect there is an issue if productivity or morale is low. Why not assess engagement to foster a culture for honest feedback.  If your employees are unwilling to provide feedback then there is almost certainly a problem and perhaps a staff survey is the way to go.  Areas for improvement will be highlighted in a survey so that you can focus on what you need to work on.

Increasing engagement

Employees are likely to be more engaged if they are free to speak up, understand the importance of their work, have opportunities for learning, flexibility, advancement, challenges and are they are recognised for their achievements and commitment.

It helps to manage with empathy and flexibility.  Ideally the employer/employee relationship should be one of give and take. The managers’ engagement is the key to gaining the

employees’ engagement.

Giving employees help to achieve their goals is likely to be appreciated and an open communication style can help employees feel involved and part of the team. Clear paths for advancement are a must and clear job descriptions can help.

Helping employees settle into their roles with a structured induction is good start for the employment relationship. Good first impressions can help to avoid new starters leaving the business after a short period of time as this is the most risky time in the employee lifecycle for resignations.

Managers should pay attention to their team on a daily basis, listening is crucial.  Employees should be able to expect that conflict will be dealt to be dealt with. A team needs confidence in it’s leader.

Find a way of reaching everyone when communicating benefits, changes, new clients and be as transparent as possible. The vision should come from the top and the management team should all demonstrate their integrity and commitment to the Company vision.

How do we know that engagement has improved?

After a suitable period, another staff survey should help to check that poorer areas have improved along with encouraging feedback. Employees may visibly go the extra mile, productivity should increase.

There is much evidence to show that disengaged employees take more time off sick.  If your team is happier you may find that sickness levels decrease.

Results of an improved employee experience

Your reputation with customers may improve with employees happy to go the extra mile for them and caring more about the Company’s customers.

Potential employees may hear about the reputation of your business as a good employer to work for.  Word of mouth and online comments as regards reputation cannot be underestimated. Your recruitment costs could decrease as a result of improved engagement.

Never underestimate the importance of the employee experience!