MAY 2022HR TECH OUTLOOK8In 2017, Forbes named creating a compelling employee experience (EX) as the topmost HR trend. And yet, as we head into 2020, the reality is that most organisations do nothing more than pay lip service to employees being their best asset. According to 2018 Gallup figures, only 15 per cent of employees worldwide feel engaged in their work, leading to the global cost of unproductivity at a staggering $7 trillion.In most organisations, HR is responsible for the people agenda--so what has gone wrong? One thing is for sure, something has to change.Defining EXThere is still some confusion about what EX is. What it isn't, is next generation employee engagement. Mike Sharples, CEO of Brand Experiences, defines it as: "The entire relationship between employee and employer. It encompasses every interaction and touchpoint with the organisation and its stakeholders."So, it's the work environment, the tech used, and relationships. Employee engagement, motivation, and productivity are all outcomes of EX.Why EX is importantIt's about the people, stupid! Only those not on LinkedIn won't have read Richard Branson's quote about if you take care of your people, they'll look after the customers--no sweat. The customer may well be king, but the king will soon look for different subjects if he's served with indifference. What's gone wrong?Put simply, EX is not treated as seriously by senior leaders as customer experience (CX). Think about it. If an organisation improves sales by 10 per cent, this would be a widely celebrated; if it decreased employee turnover by 10 per cent, few would know. And yet, depending upon scale, the money saved by keeping employees in the organisation may be greater than the extra sales revenue--and retained, motivated employees are likely to contribute to sales. Whereas, attracting new customers and attempting to keep current ones happy usually receives adequate funding; little is spent on EX, and key touchpoints on the employee lifecycle are often managed by HR employees as an add-on to their core duties. There are tech tools out there to support an effective EX, but few organisations are budgeting for them. EX is underfunded and undervalued.Nicholas Wardle, Head of Employee Engagement & Communications at One Housing and Co-founder of the Employee Experience OpportunityByThe Employee Experience OpportunityWhat HR can do?As those usually responsible for the people agenda, HR should take its fair share of the blame for the appalling worldwide engagement figures. The industry clearly hasn't made an effective case for EX--this is simply not good enough. IT has made the case for investing in tech. Governance has made the case for investing in fail safe data processes; now it's time for HR to make EX front and centre in the boardroom. (And think about it from a selfish point of view... how much more money than you do your counterparts in IT and Governance make? If EX becomes central to an organisation, those involved should receive more rewards...)
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