HR strategies have shifted under the weight of the pandemic, and advanced technologies are now a driving force for ensuring a successful and superior employee experience, writes Louise Willoughby-Petit, VP of people at Beekeeper.
As companies look to the year ahead, the role of HR leaders will become more critical than ever to ensure the continued adaptability of the workforces they serve, with technology being a critical component to the success of HR initiatives. Last year ushered in a wave of change for organizations across industries, with the COVID-19 pandemic exponentially accelerating the slow shift to remote work and upending internal operations processes.
The U.S. economy as a whole has seen dramatic changes as a result of the pandemic, and the ripple effects will continue in 2021. The entire workforce has become more fluid, with workers requiring remote options and more flexible hours. This means HR departments will be tasked with meeting new demands and structural changes to the workplace.
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Ramping up Transparent Communication
Top-notch internal communications is important for building a solid company foundation and ensuring work performance and productivity are on track. Not to mention, employee morale increases when workers feel like their company leaders are keeping communication lines open. Today, organizations are using mobile collaboration tools to achieve these goals and to make workers’ lives easier, especially those on the frontlines, by giving them access to the systems, information, and people they need in one platform.
Empowering employees with the information they need to get the job done, Wells Enterprises, a producer of ice cream and frozen treats, recently created a mobile communication infrastructureOpens a new window to bolster communicationsOpens a new window for its diverse workforce. Developing a streamlined and unified channel for the most updated information, like safety protocols and procedures, surveys, and more has been a big support for senior and administrative staff as well as frontline employees working across the company’s facilities. Digital communication became a critical factor in facilitating safety and efficient operations during the company’s recent expansion.
Fostering Improved Employee Engagement
Beyond the physical changes the pandemic has introduced into the workplace — from social distancing measures, to changing health protocols, to remote work — the ongoing health crisis has also highlighted the need for improved employee engagement, as well as mental health resources in some cases. With many workers juggling childcare and homeschooling, and others suffering from challenges like anxiety, employees are confronted with additional mounting pressures outside of their day-to-day workloads.
Tim Sackett, CEO of HRUTech.com, agrees with this sentiment. He says, “In 2021, HR will be tasked with rebuilding the mental health and wellness of workers, and employee experience in a new flexible work world will be priority number one. How do we as HR pros deliver a great experience to all of our employees, remote, hybrid, and in-office? World-class organizations will utilize their HR tech stack to its fullest to ensure no employee is missed.â€
With some workforces now entirely remote, and others continuing frontline operations under new health and safety restrictions, HR leaders must seek out new ways to engage all employees. As employee engagement and well-being continue to be a concern, 80 percentOpens a new window of the workers claim the pandemic has materially impacted their everyday work lives. It is the role of HR to determine how they can help support workers.
To gain a sense of this, HR leaders will need to leverage data and ultimately use internal research to define the employee experience within their unique company cultureOpens a new window . One solution is to deploy an employee survey solution that checks a regular pulse on employees. Betterworks EngageOpens a new window , for example, is a feedback solution for conducting employee surveys across an entire workforce. It helps leaders track metrics like eNPS, favorability, and sentiment which can be valuable for determining areas of improvement and ways to drive engagement.
Others, like ButterflyOpens a new window , connect HR teams, delivering pulse surveys directly onto employees’ mobile devices. These types of tools can enable upper management to monitor workers’ satisfaction and well-being, ultimately improving retention and employee experience.
By implementing digital tools that facilitate real-time feedback, HR departments can spearhead targeted initiatives to understand how employees are coping with the changes and uncertainties brought on during the pandemic.
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Training Tools Support Onboarding and an Informed Workforce
COVID-19 has presented immense barriers to maintaining employee engagement and avoiding potential burnout. This is also contributing to employee turnover. However, technology platforms like CoursepathOpens a new window , a Learning Management System for employee training, are helping bridge any learning gaps in the workplace. Flexibility in the system allows organizations to seamlessly update training courses ensuring employees have the knowledge they need to do their job right at their fingertips.
An informed workforce is truly an engaged workforce, and empowering employees with increased learning opportunities goes a long way to improving morale and increasing engagement.
Given the challenges that lie ahead in 2021, there is no doubt that HR departments will be looking to technology for further support to help ensure employees are motivated and prepared to do their job. By measuring key markers like employee satisfaction, well-being, and increasing learning opportunities, HR leaders can help maintain the health, happiness, and sustainability of the workforce.