12 WAYS TO IMPROVE THE EMPLOYEE EXPERIENCE

How your employees feel about their workplace can have a huge impact on their performance. People’s skills and abilities contribute towards productivity, but employees need to enjoy their work and appreciate the value of what they are doing to feel genuinely engaged. The greater the connection they have with their workplace and colleagues, the better work they will produce.

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Attracting and retaining the best talent can be a real challenge though, but if you want to avoid losing good people you need to deliver a great employee experience.

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In this article, I talk about the employee experience and why it’s so important for businesses to pay close attention.

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What is the employee experience?

The employee experience focuses on the level of satisfaction and happiness employees feel at work and it encompasses every interaction an employee has with an employer from day one.

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Not to be confused with employee engagement, which is about the connection people feel with others at work, employee experience delves more into how comfortable and content people are in their role and how they feel about their employer.

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It’s important to look at the whole picture when considering the employee experience – for instance, you may have an employee who is satisfied with their work, but does not view their employer or co-workers in a positive light. This employee may be productive but could feel disconnected from the company culture and other employees.

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Why does the employee experience matter?

The employee experience is one of the most valuable investments a leader can make because it aligns closely with employee engagement. Do your people look forward to going to work? Do they interact with their co-workers? If they don’t, it’s likely that they are not as satisfied with the workplace as they could be and they might not be as invested in their work as you’d like them to be.

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If an employee doesn’t feel happy at work, it can impact on their morale, even if they enjoy the work they do. Knowing how to strike a balance is the key to improving the employee experience.

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How do you improve the employee experience?

Managing and sustaining the employee experience doesn’t just happen – it needs to be planned and your employees need to be receptive to it. Every workplace is different though, so it’s important to work out what strategies will work in your business and tailor them to fit your company culture.

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Here are 12 ways to improve the employee experience:

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#1 Communicate openly

If you want your employees to care about the company and its success, they need to be involved in your company culture and to interact with their colleagues. The key to improving relationships is through open communication – share good and bad news, celebrate achievements and thank people for their hard work.

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#2 Respond to feedback

Establishing two-way communication between employees and management helps to gather feedback, which will provide some valuable insights. Ask your people what they like and don’t like about their work and invite them to share their ideas on what they would like to see. Take people’s opinions seriously and show them that they can influence their workplace for the better by implementing some of their ideas and suggestions.

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#3 Provide incentives that motivate people

For employees to care about your business, they need to feel that their work is valued and appreciated. Employee incentives can extend beyond financial rewards – show that your business cares about people by supporting their health and wellbeing and promoting a good work/life balance.

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#4 Encourage autonomy

Empower your people by encouraging them to take the initiative without feeling they are being judged. Allow people to influence a work environment that helps them to perform better and don’t overreact if people make mistakes.

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#5 Create a positive work environment

A good management team can make employees feel supported at work and create a culture of recognition. Foster a positive culture by providing learning and development opportunities that help to build skills and confidence among people. Job flexibility can boost performance, reduce absenteeism and decrease stress, so allow workers job flexibility where possible.

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#6 Offer growth and development

Employees increasingly want meaningful roles that challenge them, so make sure your business offers growth opportunities for people and genuine career progression. More job responsibilities, role-specific training and social gatherings away from work, can improve their experience with your company.

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#7 Build trust

Trust is an essential element of the employee experience, so be honest and transparent with people. Show employees that you trust them, provide incentives to encourage them to perform at their best and include employees in decision-making.

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#8 Be clear about expectations

The employee experience begins before they have even joined your company, so make starting a new job a positive experience. Treat onboarding seriously by providing all the information people need and clearly communicating their job expectations and responsibilities.

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#9 Remember your offboarding process

Departing employees play an important part in the employee experience too – if they are treated well during the offboarding process, they are more likely to speak positively about your business to others. Ask people for feedback before they leave the business – they can provide useful insights on how your business connects with its people and where improvements could be made.

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#10 Encourage diversity, equity and inclusion

Celebrating the unique differences of employees shows that you promote greater representation and welcome people of all backgrounds into your business, which helps to increase creativity, improve employee belonging and build greater loyalty.

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#11 Reach out to your community

Getting involved with your local community can have a positive impact on the employee experience. Developing volunteering opportunities for employees can connect people, boost health and wellbeing and positively impact on their engagement.

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#12 Make sure managers understand employees

An important part of the employee experience is how managers interact with them. Ultimately, you want managers to support employees and understand the challenges they face. Train managers to coach employees and provide everything they need to succeed in their job. Promote greater collaboration, by ensuring employees are connected with each other and encouraged to learn from others.

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Final thoughts

The employee experience and engagement are closely linked and there are many strategies you can try to improve how people feel at work.

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The better the connection employees feel with the workplace and colleagues, the better the work they will do. Leaders that invest in the employee experience are more likely to be rewarded with improved employee engagement and a positive company culture.

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With businesses finding it harder and harder to retain top talent, can any leader afford to neglect the employee experience?