It’s critical that employers do not hesitate in reshaping their employment experience to meet the needs of employees in the next normal. But how can employers go beyond curated experiences and creative snacks in the breakroom?
In this workplace experience series we’ve explored seven critical employee needs in the new blended workplace and how employers can foster a positive employee experience with chef-crafted food. We also discussed how maintaining outstanding facilities, that never leave guests questioning their experience, allows facility management (FM) and commercial real estate (CRE) leaders to facilitate well-being. These are all formidable approaches, certain to attract great talent and retain outstanding employees. But, to continue to progress the workplace experience into the modern age, it’s imperative that we use metrics to evaluate employee experience and other sources of workplace experience data to make strategic choices.
Without data, workplace experience managers are hypothesizing what works. Being good at what they do, they’re often on the right track to create a great experience. However, the only way to shape a workplace experience model that is both scalable, predictable, and resilient is by collecting and comparing data on what works and what doesn’t. By collecting raw data, workplace experience professionals can analyze historical trends and craft workplaces that are attractive, offer flexibility, and shift with the natural ebbs and flows of individual workplaces.
The ISS workplace team believes there’s a lot of work to be done in this area and we’re working tirelessly to improve our workplace experience services.
What can we measure?
The first question ISS believes needs to be asked is what can we measure? One aspect is segmentation as it relates to facility, roles, responsibilities, and expected outcomes. This may vary from one industry to another, between sites, and even from team to team at the same company. Workplace experience and engagement can be difficult to even quantify, let alone put into numbers and metrics. For example, employees at a technology company will likely have different expectations than workers at a manufacturing plant.
Metrics for All Industries
In the previous article, Four Metrics for Evaluating Workplace Experience, we outlined metrics that can be used across all industries to gauge overall employee happiness. Employee net promoter scores measure how likely employees are to recommend their workplace to friends or family. This can indicate high levels of employee engagement and evidence that your company’s culture and values are positive ones.
Turnover rate and absenteeism are two other measurements that can be applied in many operating environments. Although the results may mean vastly different things for a financial company compared with a research and development company, the initial indication that something is wrong, or right is equally beneficial.
Data where you might not expect it
We also discussed how facility managers can foster positive work experiences with spotless, comfortable places of business. As ISS optimizes your facility, we can employ the data from the workplace metrics to make comparisons and potentially draw conclusions. One example of this may be a reduction in service calls, thanks to preventative maintenance, correlating with a drop in absenteeism.
Measuring Engagement
For some industries, hosting employee events and curating experiences might be a good way to increase engagement. By measuring involvement in these events, we can see what works and what doesn’t. Bringing numbers and measurement to these events allows workplace experience managers to develop custom plans that drive engagement for your workforce. This may be more common in office environments than industrial or manufacturing workplaces, but this is where workplace experience managers can get creative. Manufacturing employees may engage in a food truck event more than an after-hours class or club, and the opposite may be true for office workers who regularly go out for lunch. Measuring event participation allows us to truly drive better engagement.
Bringing it all together
Our goal is to bring these elements together to create the optimal workplace experience. By using these metrics in combination with other facility data, we can draw insights, make predictions, and build a resilient workplace experience framework for your organization. Of course, our work is never done, and we’re always working to develop new ways to measure employee satisfaction in order to optimize your workplace experience.
