Employee engagement is something that every innovative company strives for. After all, what’s not to love about having a team of engaged, healthy, forward-thinking individuals working in alignment with your company mission and vision? It’s the absolute HR dream.
As such, it only makes sense that employers should create a working space and place where employee engagement is free to flourish. In the case of almost every modern-day business (aside from like off-the-grid, in-kind alpaca wool tradeposts, we imagine), this includes a tech stack.
And where there’s technology in the mix, you can be sure that a certain level of frustration is sure to follow. Whether it’s the spinning wheel of death, slow downloads, endless buffering, lost or forgotten passwords, app crashes or ‘connection but no internet’ that drives your people up the wall, it’s important to know where the concerns are so you can take steps to correct it.
Otherwise these seemingly insignificant irritations can add up to a major issue that can negatively affect employee engagement (for real). In fact, recent tech report findings show that almost a third of employees experience tech-related frustrations at work daily, while almost half stated that certain tools or platforms actually make their work harder.
Read more: 5 Ways HR tech can drive organisational alignment and employee engagement
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Melissa Jezior, president and CEO at Eagle Hill Consulting, the company that conducted the previously mentioned US-based tech survey in March of this year, said their findings showed that failure to engage employees at all stages of technology decisions and deployment can create more problems than it solves.
“Tech executives risk negative impacts on productivity, morale, work quality and workforce retention when technology doesn’t fit the bill – all key drivers of business outcomes,” she advised.
On the other hand, when the technology hits all the high notes (i.e. seamless access to information, satisfaction with collaboration technology, easy and effective technology security policies), engagement levels tend to improve. This is why the top 20 percentile of Forrester’s EX index tend to be satisfied with their tech environment more often than not.
So, what can you do to ensure that your tech falls on the happier side of the divide?
Here are a few ways to ensure that IT satisfaction within your company is on the up and up:
Ensure that the tech you’re considering is necessary
Before you invest in a new IT solution, check in with your team to see if it is something they really need. In fact, it might be a good idea to do a user satisfaction survey across the board to get insights from your employees with regard to the technology you already have in the mix.
After all, the people who use the tech on a regular basis are very well placed to tell you what works, what doesn’t and where the gaps lie when it comes to getting their jobs done faster, and smarter.
Do proper onboarding when new technology is introduced
Once you’ve taken the plunge and get ready to bring your team on board to use a new type of technology, always ensure that the onboarding process is as smooth and efficient as possible.
You don’t want to waste people’s valuable time with needlessly lengthy induction sessions, but you also don’t want to leave them feeling unequipped to deal with the tech. Aim to find the sweet spot in between these extremes.
Make choice the rule rather than the exception
Be open to offering employees a choice when it comes to the computers and operating systems they use. Your legal department may love Windows laptops, while your designers swear by MacBooks, and your dev team cannot even imagine working on anything other than a Windows workstation. Similarly, some folks may prefer Microsoft 365 over Google Workspace.
A good rule of thumb is to have a machine and OS standard, but to be open to discussion when employees can make a strong case for why they need something else.
Empower remote employees proactively
In the wake of ongoing COVID-19 lockdown measures, more people are working from home than ever before. If this is the case of a portion, or the bulk, of your team, be sure to instruct your IT team to proactively empower these individuals rather than reactively supporting them.
In short, this means providing employees with access to the right hardware, software and cloud services they need to perform their work to the best of their abilities while operating remotely.
Choose multi-functional solutions where possible
Strive to make your HR ecosystem as simple as possible. Where possible, choose a solution that does more than one thing so employees don’t have to adopt and ‘learn’ a whole new platform for every corporate initiative you roll out.
For instance, the bountiXP platform comes inclusive on a complete communication stack, free of charge. Built into bountiXP are hundreds of automated communications that serve to deepen engagement and drive performance, and provide your team with handy comms options at the same time.
Where before clients would have to incur the cost of creating these communications themselves, with bountiXP they come ready-made. This includes everything from a company newsfeed and page builder, to interactive profiles, personal dashboards, direct chat, in-app notifications and emails, as well as custom communication schedules. Sign up for a FREE trial here.
Read more: 4 Ways bountiXP can boost employee engagement in the workplace
Now you know! Check back soon for more helpful advice and awesome industry resources.
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