Making employees feel comfortable while nurturing and developing their unique skill sets is core to human resources thinking across organizations everywhere. The human resources department has a duty of care to international workforces and these departments tend to be filled with people who are passionate advocates of employee welfare and retention.
When the employee experience is prioritized by HR leaders, employee well-being and corresponding productivity tends to soar naturally- this is a welcome consequence that occurs when employees feel valued and motivated. It is simply good for business to prioritize the well- being of employees and create the best employee experience possible for them.
A high turnover of staff is never welcome, replacing employees tends to be a long process so if there is anything that can be done to avoid this scenario, then it should be done to improve retention. In this article, we will take a closer look at how human resources departments at multinational organizations are turning more and more towards technology in an attempt to improve employee morale and create a better overall employee experience.
Bring a tech mindset
Bringing a technology mindset can start even from the earliest interaction with a potential employee at a company - this could be as simple as an efficiently run video call when screening a potential candidate for a role in the company.
It is important to be aware that many new candidates for roles are digitally quite sophisticated and use a broad range of innovative technology in their personal lives. When they encounter similar innovation in the job seeking process it creates an immediate positive impression. Nobody wishes to work for a company that gives the impression they are behind the technology curve.
But a company who appears digitally focused and innovative right from the start can create an immediate positive impression- technology in this instance can be a valuable recruitment tool. If the very first experience an employee has, before they even join a company, is digitally innovative and one that creates a strong impression -then HR teams are off to a very good start with their goal of creating a better overall employee experience.
Provide tech tools
Next up is to ensure that the tech tools used at the start of the process continue in the onboarding process - those early days are so crucial to the employee experience that any efforts made at the early point are likely to be remembered in the long term.
This could mean providing employees with an easy-to-use digital platform to upload documents and personal information. It is best if they can do this on the device of their choosing in any location at any point they want to. This is digital innovation which has the added advantage of reducing the administrative burden on the human resources team. Self-service access to platforms means a member of the HR team does not have their time consumed with manual data entry related to a new joiner. The new starter feels empowered and digitally enabled while the HR administrator has time and freedom to focus on priority tasks. A LinkedIn study revealed that empowered employees are 47% more likely to stay with a company after three years, so empowering employees can have a positive impact on retention.
After this, thoughts should turn to the kind of new technology tools that they could use in their day-to-day job that could introduce a level of convenience, speed and efficiency. Cloud based tools for enhanced collaboration with colleagues or the very latest communication technology springs to mind here. Any workplace technology that helps them streamline workflows, reduce calls to help desks and develop connectivity with their colleagues will help create a stronger employee experience.
Digital learning
Most employees will genuinely value an organization that helps them learn new things -but to really enhance the employee experience, it is best to use technology or digital tools that allow them to learn at their pace. This will result in a greater level of engagement and also ensure that employees learn in a way that is best for them.
Digital learning could be in the form of online videos, interactive online demos, online examinations are digital video face to face learning. If learning and development is a priority at an organization, then HR professionals should be advocating the use of the latest hr technology that delivers this learning in the fastest and most effective way.
Employees learn in different ways and at different paces - if they have a range of digital learning options to choose from, they will likely appreciate the variety and feel empowered to choose the version best suited to their personality and learning style.
The success of this approach can likely be measured by observing how many employees sign up to new courses using the digital tool which matches there preferred learning style. It is quite possible that the digital software they used to learn about things in their personal lives can be made available in the workplace e.g. YouTube videos, and this can result in higher levels of employee engagement. Technology in this instance should be considered a tool for delivery- i.e. finding the fastest and most effective way to enable digital learning.
Use tech to connect with the company vision
Employee engagement is an important part of the employee experience -people want to feel connected with their jobs and understand how it relates to overall company objectives, and in turn, relate this back to their own personal objectives.
If they receive a brief PowerPoint slide detailing the company vision on their first day and they never really hear about it again, then the level of connectivity that they seek is unlikely to materialize.
This is not about avoiding apathy or disengagement - it is more about positively approaching technology with a view to using it as a continuous communication tool for the company’s vision, mission and values.
C-suite leadership teams should be engaged and asked to create videos outlining what the company vision means to them. When employees have the opportunity to hear how senior business leaders are inspired by a company, it helps them to develop an interest in connecting on a stronger level with the company vision. There are numerous opportunities to leverage technology in original ways that capture the company vision -this could be anything from small video snippets, to bite size audio recordings, all the way to the latest trending social media options.
HR professionals can research what is possible, what works best within the company brand guidelines and most importantly, they can run polls and surveys or speak to employees face to face and find out what they are most likely to engage with. These are small steps that can reap long-term rewards and foster a sense of inclusivity that can be invaluable to the overall employee experience.
Ensure self-serve access to data
Data security and access rights have become much more important to employees in recent years - issues around privacy and personal data are never far from the news these days and more and more employees want a clear understanding of what kind of data is being stored and how they can access it should they require it.
Above all else, they wish to feel in control of their personal and pay related data and be able to access it anytime they need on a self-serve basis, from any location using their preferred device. HR departments can go a long way to creating a better employee experience by introducing this very simple but effective level of access. It also has the added advantage of significantly reducing the number of administrative queries that come into the human resources department on a daily basis around employee data requests.
Company employees can access their personal online banking anytime they want, regardless of where they are in the world- supplying a similar level of empowering access with their personal and employee data is a strong indicator that they are working for an innovative and digitally capable organization that is prioritizing the employee experience.