In recent years, the term employee "experience" has been increasing in popularity and is increasingly becoming an agenda item on the managers ' agenda. But what is employee experience exactly? And above all: what can you do with it? This article therefore answers the questions surrounding this relatively new phenomenon.
Employee Experience Definition
Employee experience includes everything that an employee experiences in the organization, perceives or feels during the entire employment. This total experience of the employee gives an overarching picture of the relationship between individuals and the organization.
The approach originates in marketing in which the "Customer journey" is portrayed and all "touch points" are made visible. This way, employee experience is about the most impactful moments for the employee. Examples of these moments are the recruitment, boarding, training and exit processes. It is assumed that employee experience is a variable principle that can develop over time. All organisations have a basic experience where recruitment, boarding, training, exit and alumni play an important role.
Why is employee experience important?
Any significant experience or step in employment will influence the culture, branding and performance of an organization. Ask for Feedback With each experience, organizations will help to understand how to support their employees to be successful. For example, think of the onboardingsproces. This is an important experience where employees are familiar with the culture and tools that can help them to be successful, preferably in the short term. If this is not done optimally it can take longer before the employee will make a tangible contribution.
In developing such a Feedback loop It is important to start with the main touch points. In general, the following moments are relatively well measurable and at the same time have a strong influence on the employee experience.
Recruitment
The candidate's experience should ideally, regardless of the outcome of the application, only provide promoters for the organization. This is good from employer branding point of view.
Onboarding
The boarding is relevant to all new employees. The moment of decline is important as employees can take a moment to make a good impression of the onboarding.
Employee survey
There is a relatively high amount of time between the boarding and exiting. In this way, it may be smart to also collect feedback by means of a Staff Research That gives insight into the employee satisfaction and Employee engagement.
Post Employment Benefits
Feedback from all employees through a Exit Questionnaire can provide valuable feedback for the organization. This feedback can then be used to better tie good employees to the organization.
What is the role of HR software?
Not only the above characteristic moments are affected, but also touch points with e.g. HR software contribute to the experience of the employee. By including the movement from cloud to mobile applications, a totally different experience can be created. For example, more and more employees are able to request direct leave via their smartphone or perhaps even more easily: to see their rating or salary slip. It is important to think carefully about how the organisation wants to position itself in this respect and to run in relation to other organisations. This digital movement can in any case mean much for the employee, employer branding and associated employee journey.
How can I get started with employee experience?
In order to start with the mapping of the employee experience of journey, it makes sense to look at the part that is most relevant. Consider the application of Exit questionnaires and/or interviews when the undesirable staff turnover within the organization is high.
It can then take a while for patterns to be recognized and connections can be made. The most important thing is to start with one component at any rate. With this information, the organization can create a substantiated story that can then stimulate the realization of a better and more effective employee experience.
Literature
Rewriting the rules for the digital age, Global Human Capital Trends 2017, Deloitte Consulting LLP.
Josh Bersin, "The HR Software market reinvents itself," Josh Bersin blog, July 19, 2016.
28th March 2018