Why employee experience is the future of the workplace

As companies become more focused on empowering and developing their employees, the rise in employee experience in the workplace is slowly changing the way that we work. There was a time when open offices were the most innovative idea that a company could think of, but times are changing.

Over the last 20 years, the employee experience at work has become largely focused on collaboration. The open office floor plans encouraged team productivity and the development in software and technology has lead to colleagues working together on documents and presentations in real time. There is now a huge shift that is turning away from collaboration and is moving swiftly toward a time of personalisation and productivity.

At work, people are now wanting to get rid of noise and distractions. They want to work smarter and more effectively. The experiences that employees are now having at work is dramatically affecting the future of the workplace and influencing the way that traditional office spaces now work, but how?

Employees using their own software

It’s well known that when it comes to productivity, there is no “one size fits all”. Employees are now more likely to choose the devices and software that they use in their day-to-day role to suit their unique working style. This is often rolled out on a departmental level, where the personalised employee experience is reaching individual users and achieving peak productivity as a result.

However, with this personalisation comes a new set of challenges. How do managers and companies ensure that individual workers are finding the right information and prioritise their workload if they are using a number of applications? And how do companies go about ensuring compliance and security?

More value on productivity

Workplaces are swinging away from collaborations and more toward personal productivity. One example of this is with meetings, where businesses only aim to meet when completely necessary and cut down on meeting times for work efficiency.

This can also be seen with alternatives being made to the traditional open office floor plans. Whilst there are legitimate and proven benefits to open offices, such as more effective communication and a sense of bonding, it can also include a lot of distractions. Open office spaces can be noisy and disruptive and can be bad for concentration.

Big companies are now trying to combat the problem by introducing quiet spaces, such as private booths or spaces, so that employees can work without distractions. As employee experience moves towards personal productivity, more organisations are providing flexible working environments which are better suited to suit the needs of the individuals.

Mobile enterprise reinvented

Over 80% of workers would identify themselves as being a “deskless worker”, yet the mobile apps which are available for business software are poor or very limited. A lot of software companies prioritise products for desktop browsers first and the mobile offerings are usually an afterthought. Employees rarely download enterprise apps onto their personal phones, which can create a huge opportunity for employees to connect.

With employees becoming more likely to work remotely or in different locations as offices transform to suit the new generation of workers, businesses are encouraged to seek out the most popular apps for their employees to increase their productivity.

Investing in a good working environment for your employees is a big focus for many employers who aim to improve workspaces and provide more training and frequent rewards and prizes for their employees work. When it comes to employing new people, many companies are finding job applications are increasing. With more happy and dedicated employees, many employment services, solicitors and providers, such as Citizens Advice, The Job Centre and dispute resolution lawyers, are seeing queries decline as employees are becoming more happier overall.