Employee experience has become more critical than ever. Whether onboarding, being recruited, managing employees, or departing, employees need an overall great experience.
This includes meaningful work, hands-on management, a productive environment, growth opportunity, and trust in leadership. They also want a healthy workplace that values health and well-being. In addition, they need a supportive environment and the right tools to do their jobs well.
Create a Meaningful Workplace
Meaningful work drives employee satisfaction and is an aspiration that many seek. In fact, according to BetterUp, a worker who finds their job highly meaningful produces an additional $9,078 per year in labor output. Creating a meaningful workplace requires more than a comfortable workspace and a competitive salary.
To give employees a sense of purpose, leaders should start by understanding what matters to their team members. This can be done by asking for their feedback during one-on-one meetings or as a group exercise at a team meeting. Once you know what sources of meaning resonate with your team, find ways to integrate these into day-to-day work activities. This can be as simple as incorporating an impact story at the beginning of a team meeting or highlighting customer feedback in a weekly recap email.
The best way to create a meaningful workplace is by aligning your employee experience with your company’s purpose, brand, and culture. This will attract top talent, encourage high performance and ultimately create valuable brand ambassadors long after they leave your organization.
Create a Productive Environment
Employees feel productive when they have the necessary tools to complete their tasks. Whether a graphic designer working on a computer or a cashier processing transactions on a register, according to what is employee experience, employees need the right equipment to do their jobs well.
Streamlined, optimized processes also help employees stay productive. Ensure that each process step is clear and efficient to ensure clarity and efficiency.
Encourage one-on-one conversations between managers and employees to discuss any issues hindering productivity. This allows you to dig deeper into any underlying issues and find solutions for them before they escalate into more significant problems.
It’s also important to recognize your employees’ achievements. A token of appreciation—such as a shout-out during a weekly meeting or an ice cream party—can significantly make your team members feel valued. You can also use your internal communications channels to communicate with your workforce about company events, benefits programs, coworker birthdays and milestones, and more. The more connected your people feel to their workplace and colleagues, the more they’ll care about the work they do.
Create a Growth Opportunity
In addition to finding purpose in their work, employees want to see professional growth. Employee experience efforts that support career progression help them feel more invested in the company and create new meaning for their roles.
For example, mentorship programs allow more tenured employees to share their hard-earned insights with their less experienced counterparts. This is a two-way street, however, and younger employees can also offer fresh perspectives, technological know-how, and other valuable knowledge to their more senior colleagues.
Another way to promote growth is through compensation strategies, including stock options, wellness, and personal development initiatives. These show that the company cares about employees’ well-being beyond their paychecks.
It’s important to remember that implementing any employee experience strategy takes time and effort. Gathering feedback from your team members regularly is crucial to ensure your efforts are on the right track. Use internal communication tools that allow for open, continuous feedback, such as ContactMonkey’s employee net promoter survey (eNPS), to monitor your progress. This can also help you identify the most impactful areas for improvement.
Build Trust in Leadership
Having strong relationships with coworkers is a crucial aspect of the employee experience, so it’s essential to encourage them to communicate and socialize. This can be done through team-building events, employee appreciation days, and initiatives that allow employees to celebrate their coworkers’ success.
Leadership plays an essential role in establishing trust for employees. They must walk their talk, keep their promises and align their behavior with the company’s mission and values. They must also show empathy and respect for their team members, even when complicated.
If your organization cannot accommodate employees’ ideas and suggestions, you must tell them you have heard and considered their feedback. This can be achieved through internal communications like newsletters, videos, and mobile alerts. In addition, you should always follow up on any concerns or questions that an employee may have. This shows that you care about their feedback and are serious about improving your company culture and processes. It can also help build trust in your management.
Create a Healthy Workplace
Creating a healthy workplace is important because it makes employees happy at work. Employees who are happy at work will have higher morale and be more likely to come into the office on time and stay through the day, reducing absenteeism rates and allowing companies to save money on lost productivity.
A company can create a healthy workplace by encouraging open communication among employees and ensuring workers feel comfortable with their working environment. This can include discussing issues such as a clean and comfortable office and a fair employee policy that treats all employees equally.
A healthy workplace can also include offering growth and development opportunities to employees. This can be done by providing training and educational workshops to employees. Employees who feel they can grow in the company will be more enticed to stick around and feel valued for their corporate contributions. It can also give employees the tools to succeed, such as clean and functional office space and a flexible schedule.