When the COVID-19 pandemic hit no one could have anticipated that the changes in working practice it led to would have such a lasting impact. Many people took the opportunity to reassess what they wanted in life. The way companies responded to the pandemic and behaved both during it and afterwards was critical for the employee experience.
Why does employee experience matter?
Work-life balance has become a focus. Providing an exceptional employee experience is now an essential element for companies who wish to attract and retain the best personnel. People spend a huge proportion of their lives at work. Employees are no longer prepared to accept that they are stuck with spending their working lives being poorly paid or badly treated.
Companies with a positive employee experience can expect to increase productivity, improve their retention rates, and enhance their brand reputation. Happy, engaged employees are more productive: an Oxford University study found that “workers are 13% more productive when happy”. And customer experience is closely aligned with employee experience. Unhappy workers will not project a positive image to the outside world, resulting in a poor customer experience.
With the well-documented “Great Resignation”, companies are also finding that an exceptional employee experience is one of the key ways to attract and retain talent. Our series of blogs on the employee experience, including the factors that have the greatest impact on it, goes into the subject in greater depth.
What helped provide an exceptional employee experience?
The way in which companies responded to the pandemic and communicated with employees, as well as remuneration, and management should all be taken into consideration. Five companies stand out across the board.
Five top UK companies for employee experience in 2022:
- Cisco – Cisco invests in its employees. Management is transparent and they exhibit trust in their workers. Employees feel that Cisco also gives back to the community.
- Salesforce – Salesforce employees view the company as authentic. Its mission, purpose, and values are reflected in the way they behave. Personal wellbeing and growth are important values.
- ServiceNow – ServiceNow is a friendly place to work with a great environment. Employees are trusted with responsibility and management is considered trustworthy.
- Hilton – Hilton has committed to a more diverse workforce and offers great employee benefits that can be accessed as soon as an employee starts. They also have a transparent management culture that is not afraid to address difficult subjects like mental health and political problems.
- Amazon – despite a reputation for not treating its employees well, it seems that Amazon have turned a corner. They are retaining talent having increased wages and invested large sums in education and skills-training initiatives.
Before a company can design an exceptional employee experience, they need a clearly defined vison and purpose. And as we have already mentioned, companies who can align their customer and employee experience can expect to attract and retain the best people and keep their customers happier.
Please contact us for more information on service design and how Engine Service Design can help you deliver a better employee experience. Hit the link below to book an appointment with a service design expert.
