According to Willis Towers Watson 2021 Employee Experience Survey, 92% of employers say improving employee experience will be a key priority for their organization over the next three years.
In Nepal, HR management is still in a primitive stage, observes Shailendra Raj Giri, founder and managing director of Merojob. People management is stuck at simply implementing basic HR functions that include tasks such as managing daily activities like payroll management, salary disbursement, employee attendance and leave management.
A few companies are concerned about their employees well being and working towards enhancing their employee experience.
Ncell for example, Nepal’s first private mobile service provider, conducts various activities to boost employee engagement and experience like the recent one “conversation with CEO”, health awareness programs or refreshment activities like ‘inter-departmental football tournament’.
These kinds of thoughtful activities are what helps to increase employees morale and increase belongings among employees.
In this article you will learn more about how to measure employee experience in your company and how you can improve your current employee experience.
What is employee experience?
Candidate experience is the overall impression and perception an employee has of your company. Employee experience is what is experienced by the employee, lived and felt in your organization.
It can have a significant impact on your ability to attract and retain top talent. Companies are prioritizing employee experience, as it drives engagement (81%) and employee wellbeing (80%) as well as productivity (79%) and overall business performance (78%).
Ways to measure employee experience
There are four primary sources of employee data companies can use to measure the employee experience and assess the employee journey:
HR Technology
In current times, most organizations have some version of a human resource management system (HRMS) like in Nepal big companies use Real HR Software developed by Merojob.
These softwares store information about employees and give insights into metrics such as turnover rate, referrals, complaints etc.
They also make it easier to manage any or all of the following HR functions:
- Attendance Tracking and Timekeeping
- Applicant Tracking
- Payroll
- Benefits Management
- HR Development Management, including integrated training and ongoing education through Learning Management Systems (LMS)
- Succession Planning
- Employee Communication
Most of them are integrated into the enterprise resource planning system “ERP” which helps collect employee data from other departments in the company.
For example, customer service data such as customer feedback helps us measure the performance of our customer service representatives. A look at the list of data sources that may be stored within your organization reveals how information from these systems can be used to measure employee experience.
Let’s take a closer look at some of these and see some of his KPIs associated with them.
Surveys
Employee surveys are another source of important data for measuring employee experience.
Here are his six ways to measure employee experience through surveys at different stages of the employee journey. They include:
- Candidate feedback Survey
- Onboarding Experience Survey
- Employee Engagement (Feedback) Survey
- Exit Survey
Candidate feedback Survey
The candidate feedback survey asks new hires about their hiring experience. These surveys evaluate the overall experience from the interview process, the clarity of the job description, ease of interview, the efficiency of phone and email communication, and possible suggestions for improvements.
This type of survey collects feedback on all parts of the hiring process. Example questions are:
- What made you decide to apply for the new role?
- How well did you understand the job description for your new role?
- Overall, how satisfied are you with the recruiting process through the offer?
- What changes would you make to improve this process for future candidates interested in joining us?
For the best feedback, surveys should be anonymous and employees should respond within two weeks of being hired.
Onboarding survey
Onboarding surveys collect data from new hires from offer acceptance to the end of the organization’s formal onboarding period.
This type of survey measures a new hire’s integration into the company, assesses their perception of the onboarding process, and provides insight into the employee’s performance during that period.
Example of how to measure workplace experience:
- How long was the onboarding process? Were you provided with the required resources before starting?
- How clearly did your mentor explain your roles and responsibilities? What questions did you have after the initial conversation?
- What additional training or resources would make your job easier?
These check-ins help gain insight into the onboarding experience and are designed to reinforce a new hire’s decision to join the team.
Employee engagement survey
Employee engagement refers to the extent to which employees feel engaged and involved in their role, team, and company as a whole.
They measure how dedicated your employees are to their company, management, and colleagues to measure employee satisfaction.
Topics typically addressed in these employee surveys include working conditions, work styles, total compensation, communication, belonging, growth opportunities, and trust in leadership. .
Example of how to measure workplace experience:
- Are you given a fair salary and opportunities to learn and grow?
- Are you having meaningful career discussions with your manager on a regular basis?
- How will you describe your bond with your co-workers and bosses?
- How has your career grown since you started your career with us?
These surveys are usually done once a year but nowadays many organizations are moving away from the trend of measuring employee engagement once a year and act accordingly.
Exit survey
An exit survey collects feedback at the end of an employee’s tenure with your organization. Through exit interviews you can understand why your employees are leaving the firm, did they have any bad experience that made them leave the firm and gather information that will help you retain other valuable employees.
Example of how to measure workplace experience:
- Why are you leaving the company?
- What would you change about your job?
- Did you experience any kind of ill treatment during your tenure?
- Were your concerns or feedback heard by your manager?
- What does the new company or position work that we don’t?
Interview
There are three types of interviews that can be used to measure an employee’s experience:
Stay interviews
Stay interviews are conducted by managers to find out why employees choose to stay with the company.
They provide valuable insight into what the company is doing good to continuously improve the employee experience and retain high-potential talent.
Example of how to measure workplace experience:
- What motivates you to come to work every day?
- When was the last time you thought about leaving? Why didn’t you?
- What makes your experience at the company even better?
- What should we stop doing and what should we start doing as a company?
The key to a valuable stay interview is trust and action. Teams need to trust managers to share feedback openly, and leaders need to be willing to act on what they learn.
Exit interview
Exit interviews, like exit surveys, focus on employees who are preparing to leave the company. Exit interviews are a reactive way to identify an employee’s motivations for leaving, identify unsuccessful experiences, and identify areas for improvement.
Some example of exit interview questions are:
- What made you decide to leave the organization?
- What is your impression of your manager, your team, and management?
- Did you have the training and resources you needed for the job?
- What does the new company or position work that we don’t?
Best ways to improve employee experience
Now that you know how to assess your current employee experience, let’s look at some of the best ways to improve employee experience in your company.
Prioritize employee satisfaction
Improving employee satisfaction is key to employee retention and productivity. But a positive employee experience isn’t just about financial benefits. Besides big salaries, raises, or promotions, there are other ways to keep employees happy.
Understanding what employees expect from a caring organization can be achieved through real conversations where employers listen to their employees.
The current trend is for companies to use flexible work environments that allow employees to control their schedules and improve satisfaction. This flexibility allows employees to complete work in a way that suits them by shifting their focus from where work is done to how work is done.
Lead with empathy and integrity
Research shows that people who don’t feel a sense of trust and belonging move away and find it elsewhere. Therefore, we need to focus on the entire employee journey in the workplace.
A better work culture is a better way for employees to connect. Connection creates trust, meaning, growth, happiness and belonging, which builds resilient and growth-oriented communities.
Respond to feedback
The best way to find out what your employees want from you is to ask them questions and hear their answers.
Many organizations implement employee engagement and feedback surveys to understand where their employees are at. You can run various types of surveys to uncover the attributes of your company like onboarding surveys, exit surveys, employee engagement surveys, training feedback surveys.
However, to receive honest feedback, it is essential that a culture of respect and open communication already exists within your organization. If employees feel neglected or disrespected in their day-to-day communications, they may not take the time to communicate honestly with you.
Create a positive and collaborative company culture
When employees are in an environment that encourages them to share ideas, thoughts and questions, they are more connected not only to the company’s goals and successes, but also to their own goals.
Diversity in the workplace encourages collaborative culture, creativityTo promote this kind of environment, enjoy the way your company communicates with its employees.
Provide employee development opportunities and coaching
It is important to provide continuous performance development across the organization. Maximize individual productivity by helping your employees be the best they can be at work. An investment in human resource development is an investment in the future of the company.
Recognize employee contributions, understand career goals, and support career growth and development. Be their mentor by participating in informal conversations and providing appropriate learning opportunities that can take the form of training, webinars, seminars, or simple life stories, helping them shine through the different stages.
Invest in employee health and well-being
By continuously monitoring the emotional health of your employees, you can ensure that appropriate actions are taken to keep employees happy.
A healthy workplace leads to entrepreneurial success. To improve employee health and well-being, companies should implement health and fitness programs, sick leave, paid vacation, paid parental leave, on-site gyms and clinics, healthy snacks, and more.
Develop recognition and reward programs
The simple act of recognizing achievement can greatly improve employee morale and performance. “Thank you” at work is like “I love you” at home.
When employees are rewarded for their contributions, they feel proud and ready to work just as hard, or even harder, on their next project. To show their appreciation for their hard work, many companies recognize and motivate their employees by giving them awards such as free movie tickets to employees of the month and their families.
An effective employee recognition program can help attract and retain top talent and ensure that employees are valued, recognized and motivated to achieve organizational goals.
