Companies that use technology to support new models for work and provide employees with tools that make working more efficient and meaningful can deliver a superior experience, according to the latest report released by the Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU) and Citrix.
The research titled, The Experience of Work: The Role of Technology in Productivity and Engagement, noted that providing employees with the latest technologies will not only enable organisations to attract the people they need, but keep them engaged and productive, improving their business results.
It used to be that competitive salaries, benefits and career development initiatives were enough to find and keep talent. Today, these things are table stakes. To compete and win in the raging battle for talent, companies need to up their game and give employees what they really want: a simple and flexible way to get work done. Technology is a key driver of the modern employee experience.
“People today want the freedom to work when, where and how they want. And they expect things to be as easy as they are in their personal lives,” said Tim Minahan, executive vice president of strategy and chief marketing officer, Citrix. “To attract and retain talent in today’s tight labor market, companies need to rethink what “workplace” means and create digital environments that accommodate traditional, remote and gig workers and deliver the tools, and information they need to do their best work in a simple, unified way.”
Across geographies and industry sectors, many companies are recognizing – and proving—that a better employee experience can lead directly to improved business results.
According to Arthur Mazor, principal partner and HR transformation global practice leader at Deloitte, “Many organizations now see the ultimate objective of enhancing workforce experience to be the creation of new value in the market, by improving the customer experience and creating new opportunities for growth.”
The results of The Experience of Work confirm this. The report noted that 36 percent cited enhancing customer experience and satisfaction as the top reason for improving employee experience, just behind productivity and employee engagement (40 percent); 31 percent listed profitability; and 30 percent called out talent retention.
Among the key enablers of strong employee engagement identified by respondents to The Experience of Work are ease of access to information required to get work done (47 percent); applications that are simple to use (39 percent); a consumer-like user experience (33 percent); ability to work from anywhere (43 percent); and choice of devices (32 percent).
Technology is resetting the boundaries for both where and how work gets done, and traditional models won’t cut it for long, said the report.
“The future of work is dynamic and decentralized,” Tim Minahan said. “Businesses that can seamlessly shift their people and digital resources across workflows and put the right insights and information at employees’ fingertips can redefine what work means and engage their employees – and ultimately, their customers – in new ways that enhance their success.”
