CoachHub’s Juliane Sterzl shares her tips for employers who want to leverage tech to improve employee satisfaction at work.
At the end of last year, more than half (64pc) of global HR leaders surveyed by CoachHub stated that they intended to provide training on how to use new technologies for their employees.
Digital transformation has been pushed up the business agenda, with organisations increasingly understanding the real benefits that a wide range of technological innovations can bring to their business.
Employee experience is equally of high importance in the current climate, as organisations battle to retain top talent amidst the candidate crisis. Listening to employee needs and providing sufficient support for growth and development can be a real differentiator. How can technology support businesses’ efforts to provide a competitive workplace environment for employees?
An evolving employee-employer relationship
The labour market remains incredibly constrained at present. Global employment opportunities abound with a limited number of candidates across all sectors to fill the vacancies.
As a result, candidates can afford to be much more selective about the job vacancies they pursue than in the past, searching for a role that not only fulfils their professional goals and salary expectations but that aligns with their broader lifestyle requirements.
The employer-employee relationship has been shifting for many years. With the variety of social impacts we’ve experienced over the past two years, that relationship is shifting even more.
Consequently, organisations are pressured to reflect on what they can do differently to provide workplaces that are more inclusive, meaningful and supportive for everyone. This has resulted in a wide range of changes across all businesses, including overhauling talent management processes, altering employee benefits, offering flexible working arrangements and providing more professional development resources.
According to a study from Oracle and Workplace Intelligence, 85pc of the global workforce wants technology to help define their future. Organisations must step up to this request from their employees and offer the latest tools to support their workforce in thriving.
Juliane Sterzl. Image: CoachHub
Offering innovative professional development opportunities
Digital approaches to learning and development have grown in popularity in recent years, with digital tools now occupying an essential place in the professional development of the workforce. The digitisation of development programmes ensures that employees have access to regular and convenient development opportunities, as well as allowing them to benefit from personalised support.
Leveraging technology for employee development has many advantages for organisations that wish to offer a stronger employee experience. Primarily, digital approaches are much more easily accessible than traditional learning and development avenues, as employees can access materials and support from anywhere, at any time and from any device.
In addition, the interactivity and gamification that digital platforms offer through quizzes and games allows employees to develop skills in an enjoyable way. If employees are actively engaged, they are much more motivated to take part in learning and development and will reap greater benefits.
When organisations invest in employees’ personal and professional development, employee satisfaction rates can skyrocket. People want to excel and perform well in their jobs. Organisations that adequately support employee development will always come out on top.
Digital coaching as a support mechanism
Career coaching has been part of the employee support mix for decades, but now that technology in this space has advanced, its potential has become even greater. Coaching can now be delivered in a scalable fashion to all employees, simplifying the process and reducing costs for businesses. As such, technology is expanding access to coaching to all employees, allowing organisations to unlock potential at every level of seniority.
Digital coaching allows employees to connect with a qualified coach through a digital platform, eliminating the cost and time burden posed by travelling to meet a coach face-to-face. The employee is then able to connect with their coach on a regular basis, the two working in partnership to identify areas for improvement and implement success plans to reach the employee’s goal.
Coaching therefore supports employees in cultivating a sense of purpose, clarifying professional and life goals, and building skills that bolster growth. In doing so, digital coaching ensures that employees have a positive experience in their workplace.
The future of employee experience
It’s time to transform the employee experience for the better. Building a positive employee experience shouldn’t be something that organisations only think about during pivotal moments such as onboarding and performance reviews.
Employee experience is shaped and moulded every day that employees are at work. As such, businesses should offer their employees tools that drive forward a strong employee experience at regular intervals throughout their journey with a company.
In today’s digital-first world, businesses can leverage the latest in digital technologies to offer a fully personalised and engaging learning experience for their employees. A strong offer that includes a wide range of digital-first development solutions, alongside workplace coaching, is a recipe for success in enhancing employee experience.
Juliane Sterzl is senior vice-president for digital coaching platform CoachHub in EMEA.
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