8 Crucial Tips to Improve Employee Experience at Your Company

What are the best ways to improve employee experience at an organization? In this article, you’ll discover 8 of them.

Employee experience, or “EX,” is a term used to describe the overall perception of the workplace environment and all its components. This includes culture, values, processes, job satisfaction, development opportunities, and recognition.

It’s an important concept for employers to consider as it has a direct impact on employee engagement, and ultimately on productivity and profitability.

But while relatively easy to define, how can an organization enhance and improve it? In this article, you’ll learn 8 tips to help you create a great employee experience framework at your company.

Why does employee experience matter?

We know what it is, but why does it pay to improve employee experience? What’s the tangible benefit for organizations? Well, as it turns out, there’s not just one benefit, but many. Investing in employee experience is beneficial for employers in terms of:

Employee Satisfaction.

When employees feel valued, they are more engaged in their work, leading to increased efficiency and better customer loyalty. According to Gallup research, disengaged employees can cost companies between $450 and $550 billion a year.

Talent Recruitment.

Creating an environment that is welcoming and supportive can help attract talented individuals. Moreover, when employees feel good at work, they are more apt to stay longer. According to a study conducted by Gallup, engaged employees are 87% less likely to leave their job than those who are not engaged.

Customer Experience.

A culture of collaboration and positivity leads to improved customer experiences. Research from IBM found that companies who focus on providing an improved employee experience have 89% higher customer satisfaction scores than those who do not. 

Profitability.

All these investments bring greater overall profits as customers return due to the positive experiences they have with the company. Another study, conducted by MIT, says that EX leaders have 25% higher profits than competitors with poor EX.

Additionally, a study by Gallup also revealed that companies with highly engaged employees had 20% higher sales and 21% greater profitability than those without. Employees who are not engaged or who are actively disengaged cost their employers $7.8 trillion in lost productivity globally, according to Gallup’s State of the Global Workplace: 2022 Report.

To summarize :

What makes up a positive employee experience?

Before delving into specific steps employers can take to improve employee experience, it makes sense to explore what different components make up that experience. Employee experience is a holistic view of the employee journey throughout their entire employment with an organization.

It includes everything from recruitment, onboarding and training, to development, feedback and recognition, as well as benefits and rewards. Employee experience also encompasses aspects such as culture, values and leadership, workload, job security, independence, office design, technology, wellbeing programs, and communication.

All these elements contribute to form a positive environment that helps create loyal employees who are highly engaged in the long-term success of their organization. To improve employee experience, employers need to focus on all of these various facets, and not just one aspect of the experience.

A new experience in the workplace, both digital and physical

However, there is another factor to consider regarding the employee journey: today, when talking about EX, we need a more holistic approach that combines both digital and physical experiences.

Offices and business environments have changed in recent years, with remote work and hybrid scenarios becoming far more prevalent, incorporating both aspects. Digital and physical experiences need to be considered by employers, as both are crucial to the employee experience overall.

Digital employee experience focuses on utilizing technology to provide employees with a more efficient and effective workplace. This includes things like using messaging systems, automated workflow software, collaboration tools, virtual training resources, mobile apps, and other digital solutions. A great digital employee experience can help streamline processes, enhance communication, make data more accessible, increase productivity, and improve business outcomes.

On the other hand, physical employee experience focuses on creating an environment that is conducive to career growth opportunities. This means providing employees with comfortable workspaces, ergonomically designed furniture, natural lighting, and high-quality amenities such as recreational areas or private meeting rooms. The workspace should be safe, clean, and conducive to work.

Both digital and physical employee experiences are essential to ensure high levels of engagement among employees and promote long-term success for the organization. To only focus on one can have negative consequences for employers, and for the employee journey.

8 ways to enhance employee experience 

The next task, then, is to lay out direct ways employers can improve employee experience and enhance the work environment. No, there’s no one magic solution for transforming the office into a perfect environment, but there are steps you can take to bring your organization’s EX to the next level. Here are 8 ways all employers can improve their employee experience.

1. Prioritize Employee Needs and Manage Feedback

Understand the needs and values of your employees to ensure they feel heard, supported, and appreciated. Gathering meaningful feedback from employees is an important part of creating a positive employee experience.

By collecting feedback, organizations can better understand what their employees need and expect, to have an optimal working environment. It also helps them identify areas for improvement and make necessary changes that can benefit the whole organization.

Additionally, employee feedback provides insight into how employees perceive the company culture and how they are feeling about their role within the organization. Knowing this information helps management make informed decisions that promote engagement and loyalty among employees, which in turn can lead to improved productivity, better customer service, and greater overall success for the business.

The right employee communication platform can help people facilitate this. For example, Sociabble allows managers to collect feedback in a quick and easy way. Specific audiences can be targeted to address specific teams and issues, and answers can be anonymous or not. Results of the survey can be shared with respondents via Sociabble, with actions taken accordingly by employers.

2. Make Employees Feel Valued and Show Recognition

Show your team that you appreciate their efforts and contributions by rewarding them with recognition, bonuses, or other perks. Providing people with recognition is essential for creating a positive working environment and ensuring long-term success for the organization.

Showing recognition to employees is one of the most effective ways of boosting morale and engagement among staff. By taking the time to acknowledge an employee’s hard work and commitment, it sends the message that their efforts are appreciated and valued by managers.

Furthermore, recognizing accomplishments can help motivate employees to work even harder toward meeting their goals. It can also encourage collaboration and teamwork, as it promotes a culture of mutual respect and support between colleagues. 

Sociabble encourages this through a peer-to-peer recognition feature, for the exchange of regular praise between employees, strengthening the company culture and your colleague’s commitment. The platform also allows for the awarding of badges, for example, and custom badges can be created in terms of look and feel.

And as a CSR element, the Sociabble Trees feature helps award employee engagement and helps the environment by awarding real trees to individual employees, to be replanted in vulnerable forests around the world.

3. Engage in Open Communication

Create an open dialogue between employees and managers to ensure everyone is on the same page. Open communication is essential for any successful organization as it allows for the free flow of ideas, feedback, and advice among people.

Doing so promotes a sense of trust and creates an environment where everyone feels their voice is heard. By having open communication channels, organizations can ensure that all employees are on the same page regarding goals and objectives. This also helps reduce miscommunications and misunderstandings that can lead to a breakdown in operations.

Additionally, open communication encourages collaboration between departments which leads to higher levels of creativity and productivity. Ultimately, deploying open communication with employees is key for boosting workplace satisfaction and creating a more efficient work environment.

Sociabble gives companies the tools to reach all employees, wherever they are, whether they are equipped with a professional device or not, thanks to its mobile app. Admins can communicate through multiple formats like images, gifs, and videos, including live video broadcasts, too.

Far from only being top-down, it allows for 2-way communication, as employees can react, comment and, when allowed, share publications on social networks in the form of UGC (user generated content).

4. Create Flexible Working Arrangements 

Allow employees to work remotely or have a flexible work environment so they can be productive while balancing multiple responsibilities outside of work. Deploying flexible working arrangements with employees is beneficial in a number of ways.

For one, it allows your workforce to take control over their time, which can lead to higher levels of productivity and job satisfaction among staff. Furthermore, providing access to flexible working options gives workers the opportunity to balance their work-life commitments in order to maintain a healthy lifestyle.

It also eliminates the need for long and unnecessary commutes, which helps reduce environmental impact and saves money for both the employee and employer. Finally, offering flexible working arrangements boosts morale by showing that employees are trusted and respected by the organization.

Ultimately, deploying flexible working arrangements is an effective way of increasing employee engagement, satisfaction, and retention while simultaneously driving down operating costs and employee turnover.

Gallup recently asked 13,085 U.S. employees what was most important to them when deciding whether to accept a job offered by a new employer. The majority of employees (64%) say a role that allows them to have greater work-life balance and better personal wellbeing is “very important” to them.

Sociabble is the perfect tool for synchronous and asynchronous communication, which facilitates remote work scenarios. With the “Quiet Hours” feature, admins can set designated time constraints and messaging guidelines, ensuring that employees feel that their personal time is respected, and users will not receive Sociabble push notifications on their mobile during these time slots. Admins can enforce quiet hours for their workforce or let users edit and set up their own timeframes.

5. Foster Enjoyable Work Environments

Provide comfortable workspaces, social activities, and exciting opportunities for growth so employees feel engaged with their workplace throughout the employee lifecycle. Fostering an enjoyable work environment for employees is essential for a successful organization.

When employees feel comfortable and supported in their workplace, they are more likely to be motivated, productive, and engaged. A positive working culture also encourages collaboration between colleagues, which leads to higher levels of creativity and innovation.

Additionally, providing an atmosphere that employees find enjoyable helps boost morale and reduce stress levels, which can lead to improved physical and mental health; fostering enjoyable working environments allows organizations to attract top talent and create a sense of loyalty in existing staff.

Ultimately, creating enjoyable work environments is key for increasing job satisfaction, motivation, and productivity among your workforce, and ultimately, producing satisfied employees.

6. Invest in in Professional Development

Offer trainings, workshops, or mentor programs for employees to develop their skills and advance their career paths. Investing in professional development for employees is essential for any organization that wants to remain competitive.

Employees who are given the opportunity to further their knowledge and skillset through training and development courses will be more likely to stay loyal to their employer and be willing to put in extra effort. Professional development can also lead to greater innovation as employees are more likely to come up with creative solutions if they have learned new ways of approaching problems.

Investing in employee growth leads to an overall better workplace culture, which can help create a positive environment where employees feel valued and respected.

Sociabble encourages best practice exchange, with the possibility for employees to publish educational UGC for their colleagues. It can be addressed to a specific audience as well. Specific comms channels can be created to monitor competitors or market updates, to keep employees aware of what’s happening within their sector.

Sociabble’s live video feature makes it easy to host educational seminars, with follow-up quizzes to test knowledge retention.

7. Encourage Collaboration and Teamwork

Implement initiatives such as group projects or team building activities that encourage collaboration and strengthen relationships employees need. Encouraging collaboration and teamwork among employees is essential for any organization as it helps build camaraderie and trust.

Working together on tasks can ensure that ideas are properly disseminated, resulting in more creative solutions. Teamwork also helps to develop interpersonal skills such as communication, negotiation, problem solving, and decision-making.

Furthermore, when employees work together, they gain a better understanding of each other which leads to greater respect among colleagues and a healthier working environment. Finally, collaborative efforts help to increase productivity thanks to the combined knowledge and skills of multiple team members.

Sociabble comes with a mobile chat feature that can help employees strengthen collaboration and teamwork. It also creates a connection between employees who are working remotely, including frontline workers who do not have access to the company’s collaboration tools.

Thanks to Sociabble, they remain part of daily conversation, and they stay connected with their office colleagues. Moreover, Sociabble also benefits from direct access from within Microsoft Teams, and end-users never have to leave the environment they work in to access the information and achieve results.

8. Nurture a Culture of Respect and Inclusion

Develop policies that promote diversity within the workplace and create an environment where everyone feels respected regardless of race, gender, religion, or any other factor. Nurturing a culture of recognition, respect, and inclusion for employees is essential to any organization as it helps create a positive and welcoming work environment.

When employees feel respected, they are more likely to be engaged in their work and contribute ideas that can help push the company forward. Additionally, fostering an inclusive workplace culture allows individuals from all backgrounds to feel accepted, thus promoting diversity and innovation.

Finally, when respect is demonstrated between colleagues, it encourages better communication which leads to improved problem resolution and better collaboration among team members.

Sociabble helps unify employees coming from different backgrounds. It’s possible for employees to publish content in order to make their global colleagues aware of their job, their country, and their passions.

Moreover, content is understandable by everybody thanks to instant translation, available on demand in over 50 languages. For example, Edenred, a Sociabble client, uses their Sociabble communication platform to unite 10,000 employees in 46 countries. 

Sociabble, the solution to enhance a positive employee experience strategy

If you’re ready to improve employee experience at your organization, Sociabble is the employee communication platform that can help. A total communication solution, it’s designed to create employees who are informed, engaged, and influential, both at their organizations and in their field.

We’ve already worked with industry leaders like Coca-Cola CCEP, Primark, L’Occitane en Provence, and Renault Group, and we’d love to talk to you about ways we can help your company.

You can sign up for a free personalized Sociabble demo to learn more.