Employee experience matters
Every organisation has an employee experience, even if it isn’t formally defined. It’s easy to prioritise customer experience – after all, it’s the most visible measure of success. However, focusing solely on external-facing improvements while neglecting internal inefficiencies can be short-termistic.
Here's why:
- Customer service quality depends on staff performance. If employees struggle with inefficient workflows or disconnected digital tools, they cannot deliver a consistently great customer experience, leading to frustration, inconsistency, and preventable service failures.
- Workarounds can reveal hidden opportunities. Staff often create their own solutions when tools or processes don’t fully meet their needs. While this adaptability is valuable, it can signal where a structured improvement could have a bigger impact.
- Staff retention and engagement suffer over time. If employees are dealing with clunky systems, communication gaps, or unpredictable workflows, their motivation can decline, leading to higher turnover, longer training times, and overall stagnation in performance improvement.
Instead, investing in how your team works and their day-to-day experience leads to sustained, long-term gains. Employees who feel fully supported and equipped with the right tools are more confident in their roles, so they deliver even better customer experiences, reduce inefficiencies, and sustain continuous.
Identify your flag in the sand
To improve your employee experience, start by defining a clear long-term goal. A well-defined strategy helps you focus on the right improvements rather than spreading resources too thin.
- Your strategy must be ambitious and measurable. Vague aspirations like “We want to be better” are difficult to track, whereas “We want to reduce service disruptions caused by internal miscommunication by 30%” is clear, actionable, and progress can be measured.
- Identify what behavioural changes you want to see. While metrics such as efficiency or cost savings are useful, some improvements – like ease of use or staff confidence in handling service issues – are harder to quantify. Observing behavioural changes – such as faster response times or increased service consistency – can act as alternative success signals.
Look inward to move forward
Before introducing new initiatives, take time to understand how employees work today. This ensures you are solving real problems rather than adding complexity through well-intended but unnecessary processes.
- Shadow employees to see their challenges firsthand. Workarounds aren’t just signs of inefficiency; they are real-world insights into how processes could be improved. Paying attention to these adaptations can uncover opportunities to design better, more intuitive systems.
- Create a safe space for honest feedback. Many inefficiencies are known to employees, but they may not feel empowered to raise concerns. Open dialogue builds trust and engages teams in shaping solutions.
- Ensure staff feel involved in decision-making. Employees who feel heard are more likely to adopt new systems and ways of working, which increases the likely success of any digital transformation efforts.
Take a small step in the right direction
Ambitious goals can feel daunting, but progress happens one step at a time. The worst thing you can do is stand still while challenges persist.
- Break big goals into smaller, actionable steps. If the end goal is a fully streamlined employee-facing digital experience, start by fixing a single friction point – like simplifying access to real-time service updates or improving internal handover processes.
- Ensure that every change is tested and iterated. The best improvements come from small, measurable interventions that build momentum over time.
Employee experience isn’t a one-time initiative – it’s an ongoing investment. The better equipped your staff are, the better your customer experience will be. Take the time to understand where you are now, define where you want to go, and take your next step forward.
