Today’s best employees demand more from their jobs than a regular paycheck and standard benefits. They require an environment that not only meets but also surpasses their expectations at every turn. The employee experience is the key to unlocking this kind of engaged workforce.
Instilling an employee experience strategy will not only improve your company, but it will also impact your bottom line. According to the Center for Human Resources, investing in improved employee experiences improves retention rates by 5 percent, or about 10 percent with a combined performance bonus and stock ownership plan.
What are the different types of employee experiences? It’s essentially how your customers — whether they are prospective hires, current employees, or vendors — feel when interacting with your brand. Here are 10 ways you can improve your employee experience and make your company more attractive to potential job candidates and current employees.
Create a culture of trust and transparency
Employees crave the opportunity to be creative, solve problems, and make an impact on the world — regardless of their job title. However, without a positive and open culture, they may feel discouraged from doing so.
With trust and transparency, you can cultivate a culture where people feel comfortable to experiment and contribute their ideas. To create a culture of trust and transparency, you must make all employee data available to all employees.
This includes salary information, hiring and firing trends, and employee reviews.
Reinvent your onboarding process
Your onboarding process is how new employees get acquainted with your company. It’s crucial, therefore, to ensure it offers an onboarding experience that is on par with your brand.
A strong onboarding experience will help your employees get up to speed faster and become more productive sooner. It will also improve retention rates by up to 50 percent, as employees who experience a good onboarding process are 19 percent less likely to leave their job.
Depending on your company, onboarding can last anywhere from a few days to a few months. A great way to reinvigorate your onboarding process is to add a cultural component to it.
Holding ice-breaker exercises or introducing employees to each other through games and activities will help everyone get to know one another better.
Offer flexible working conditions
Although the majority of employees are looking for full-time work, not all of them can offer that. In fact, 37 percent of employees work part-time, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
Your company’s flexible working conditions can attract a lot of senior talent. In fact, a study by the Society for Human Resource Management found that 34 percent of employees are likely to be more loyal to an employer that offers flexible working conditions.
Give your employees a voice
Employees crave purpose, autonomy, and the ability to make a difference. Unfortunately, many employers don’t offer their employees the chance to contribute their ideas. Once you’ve developed a culture of trust and transparency, give your employees a voice.
Ask them how you can improve your company, and start holding regular town hall meetings where employees can ask questions and share their thoughts. Giving your employees a voice will not only make them feel more invested in the company, it will also make them happier in the long run.
Studies show that employees who feel they can contribute to the organization are less likely to leave their job. A good way to make sure your employees feel like they have a voice is to create an employee suggestion box.
Celebrate collaboration and creativity
Employees want to feel like their work matters. They want to know their contributions are making an impact. They want to feel like they are part of something bigger than themselves. Most companies already do this in some capacity.
However, it’s important not to become complacent. Maintaining these kinds of rituals will help reinforce your company’s culture in a positive way. Celebrate milestones, such as five years of service or hitting a certain sales goal.
Alternatively, celebrate new ideas and initiatives that have the potential to improve both your company and its employees.
Install a cloud-based communication platform
A communication platform is how you and your employees stay connected. This includes everything from emails and chat apps to video conferencing and voice calls. A communication platform is an essential tool for any modern business.
It allows you to stay in touch with your employees, provides a record of all discussions and activities, and enables easy collaboration. A good communication platform will also simplify your entire communication process and give your employees access to all the information they need — when they need it. It will also help you avoid information overload by letting you determine what information is important enough to be shared.
Commit to diversity and inclusion in your workplace
The workforce is growing more diverse every year. In fact, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, minorities will comprise half of the workforce by 2022. Despite this, many companies still struggle with embracing the full potential of their diverse workforce.
To improve the employee experience, commit to diversity and inclusion. Start by examining your company’s hiring practices. Are they inclusive and representative of the overall population? If not, you have the power to make changes.
Provide quality food at work events
We’re not just talking about your company’s holiday party. Although there are many factors that go into improving the employee experience, food quality is one of the most overlooked.
A study by the Society for Human Resource Management found that many employees are dissatisfied with the quality of food provided at work events. Take control of this part of the employee experience by hiring a catering company to prepare your food.
Select a company that specializes in providing high-quality food. You can also encourage your employees to bring food from home if they have dietary restrictions or allergies.
Wrapping up
Employees crave consistency, familiarity, and a sense of belonging. A regular work schedule, consistent feedback, and a comfortable work environment will go a long way toward improving the employee experience.
Want to boost productivity, reduce turnover, and improve engagement? Then, it’s time to start improving the employee experience. Start by creating a positive, open culture of trust and transparency.
Then, reinvent your onboarding process to make it more engaging and informative, and offer flexible working conditions to accommodate the needs of your diverse workforce. Give your employees a voice by encouraging collaboration and creativity, and commit to creating a diverse and inclusive environment.
Finally, install a cloud-based communication platform to make communication easier than ever. With these ways, you can improve the employee experience and attract the best talent around