The labour shortage in Quebec is intense and has marked history! Companies are struggling to attract talent and find themselves in despair facing their job vacancies. It has become crucial that employers invest time and effort to make sure that employees and future additions to their team enjoy their experience in the workplace. The link between employees’ happiness and wellness at work and their overall performance and success is undeniable.
What is employee experience?
Just like a customer walking into a store or visiting an online shop, it is the overall experience and feelings employees encounter throughout their journey with you. What makes people enjoy a particular store? What makes them become a loyal customer? What is this store offering that others are not?
Reasons employees have positive perceptions and feeling about their workplace include:
- Being aligned with the company’s vision and values;
- Understanding their role and contribution to the achievement of the company’s goals;
- Maintaining good relationships with colleagues;
- The overall morale and climate in the workplace;
- Having skilled managers that will guide, coach and mentor them;
- Room for personal and professional growth;
- And much more…
These factors have a big impact on an employee’s sense of engagement towards their role and the company’s mission. Good employee experience leads to higher levels of employee engagement.
How do I ensure that I’m offering what it takes?
Employers often look for THE answer that will make their team happy. Truth is, it’s not a one size fits all experience/engagement t-shirt!
Employees are not looking for the same thing. It will all depend on their values, experience, desires, goals and also your work climate, culture, HR practices, etc. The key is to recognize what they want and see how your organization can meet this, or not…
However, investing in your leadership team, making sure they’re happy in their role and feeling that they have the ability to offer employees the support they need and the career they desire will go a long way.
Ask them for feedback on the company’s practices. Ask them to rate their experience. Make sure an open dialogue is created.
Listen carefully
Having an employer ready to listen to how employees feel and what is important to them, is step number one to the discovery of the level of engagement in their company. It can be done anonymously using surveys, whether by taking a snapshot of the level of engagement through an annual survey or by measuring it on an ongoing basis using a tool such as Officevibe, for example. Other ways could include retention interviews, focus group meetings, and exit interviews.
Be open minded
Listening goes hand in hand with having the right mindset: being open minded and remaining positive no matter what the outcome is. This does not mean that the employer must implement all the recommendations made by employees, but rather being ready to tackle urgent and top priority matters.
Focus on the positive
Positive feedback – what employees enjoy most about their workplace experience – gives employers a precious retention tool to build on, to promote to the rest of the world and continue to attract talent.
QUESTIONS?
Looking for guidance in measuring and maintaining employee engagement? Contact one of our HR, People and Culture Advisors for a free one-hour consultation. Small and medium-sized businesses can be eligible for subsidies with Emploi-Québec covering up to 50% of our fees.
