Employee Experience – Airy Fairy or Game Changing?
Jun 8
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Loren Phillips
When I tell people that I work in Employee Experience, I get very polarised reactions. Either I get ‘Oh that is so cool, you must love your job’ or I get THE LOOK.
It’s a look that says ‘that isn’t a real job or a real thing’. It’s a look that is half disbelief, half pity – this poor woman must have lost her mind.
And let me tell you – I LOVE THE LOOK! It’s my favourite. Because it opens the conversation about the value that companies place in their employees.
Let me break it down for you – ’cause it always goes the same way.
First we start by examining the words. Why Human Capital? Why is someone ‘an asset to your business’? Because they have value and without them, businesses cannot run! Normally, we agree on this fairly quickly. If we don’t agree that humans have value, I start reaching for my pepper spray.
Then we move on, we discuss passion. What are your interests? What do you enjoy? What keeps you cycling when the weather is bad? We talk about fear and breaking points – about how even fear and money only have a limited motivating factor. We discuss that emotional commitment and buy in to a goal can keep you going if you believe the goal is worth achieving. About how that could make you work harder, with more passion & more energy.
We talk about how that scenario is exactly how an ENGAGED Employee feels, and how that passion can make the difference when the chips are down or a pandemic strikes for your business.
Currently, this part of the conversation is a lot easier than it used to be - people have experienced some very real truths about what companies say and what they actually do. They have seen or lived through the reality of the words painted on the wall.
Finally we talk about the experience - the sum of all the interactions. Your first communication when you join. Your introduction to leadership and your physical or digital workspace. How you get to communicate with your team. How you feedback your views and opinions. How you share your life with the company until the time that you leave. What does that look like? This is normally where I don't get to talk anymore - because suddenly we're talking about this really bad or really good experience they had with one or other employer. What they would have done differently, what they loved, the impact it has had on future choices they made.
Suddenly the industry I work in not only makes sense, but there are SEVERAL business that I MUST speak to straight away. Because the realisation has hit. An incredible employee experience is a game-changer, and those companies that are flying, know it and are using it. For some, it comes naturally, you never thought of it as 'a thing'. For others, it's more about working out how that journey looks and how to map it out. For others, its more complicated, it's about looking hard at your business and deciding what you want your Employee Experience to be.
No matter where you are, I believe it is worth looking at and re-evaluating. Maybe this jump to work from home has thrown you a curve ball.
We've made a journey for you to take - it has resources we use for our own EX (employee experience) and things that you should think about. It's free and it's colourful.
I hope you enjoy!
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