Change and innovation are inevitable in every sector. They keep organizations competitive, or they become viable again. Do you want more growth, more efficient processes, better ROI on investments or better ability to retain employees? Then something often has to change. But we are not so good at that, this is because we forget the employee.
McKinsey concluded that 70% of change processes fail. Seventy percent, you read that right. A 7 out of 10 chance that you will gain valuable insights from this article.
Learning from customer experience
This is the seventh year that Mixit is co-creator of the Employee Experience Event, this year on November 5th. And that is not without reason. There is still a lot of work to be done to successfully change organizations. Something fundamental has to change in how we change.
What does that have to do with employee experience? We believe that a change is only successful if the employees involved experience it that way. The employee must therefore be central; that is, in our opinion, the definition of employee experience (EX).
I see many parallels with its big brother customer experience (CX). A discipline that once started as a small project in marketing, but now stands for an organization-wide assignment to put the customer first. For a good EX we can (must?) learn a lot from that. If we want to successfully achieve our objectives, everyone must put the employee first: management, IT, payroll administration, line managers. Everyone.
From problem to a measurable solution
They sometimes say: everyone wants change, but no one wants to change. Could that be the reason why so many changes fail? And if so, how can you still implement changes successfully? This requires a whole new approach to change. From a purely functional assignment to a business case in which the value for the employee is structurally one of your variables. Sounds very logical, right? But hardly anyone thinks that way.
Whether we like it or not, we change our processes and methods all the time. Sometimes because we have to, because of new legislation, because we have to do more with less, or because things are simply not going well. But more often, we change because we can. For example, because AI gives new ways to better organize care or serve citizens more effectively.
The key to the success of these changes lies in putting employees first. And come on, put your money where your mouth is: success is highly measurable and controllable. For that, we need to consider the experience of employees as the only reality.
Why put employees first?
I see – broadly speaking – four reasons why happy employees are synonymous with successful organizations. And why you can only be successful as an organization if you put people first.
1. Increased engagement and productivity
Employees who feel heard and valued are more committed to their work and the organization. This commitment translates directly into higher productivity and better results. Happy employees are more motivated to contribute to the organization’s goals. And vice versa.
2. Lower resistance to change
Changes often provoke resistance. As said: everyone wants change, but no one wants to change. However, if employees are involved from the start and the benefits are clear to them, they will embrace the change more often and faster. In this way, you not only make a change successful on paper, but you also make a measurable impact on the daily business and results.
3. Sustainable solutions
When employees actively participate in the process, you get better solutions that are better aligned with their real needs and challenges. This results in more sustainable and effective solutions that also hold up in the long term. That feature is suddenly used, that new complaints procedure is suddenly followed, that reporting is suddenly always correct.
4. Positive organizational culture
A focus on employee well-being contributes to a positive culture. This has a snowball effect, because satisfied employees create a better work environment, which leads to more connectedness, which leads to higher satisfaction and loyalty. This in turn leads to less churn and more retention of knowledge and skills. And that in turn leads to more productivity and success.
Keep talking about successful change
Sounds great, the employee central. But how do you do that effectively? In one or more follow-up articles I will discuss a proven approach for this. Want to join the discussion about successful change? You can do that in a new podcast series which you can sign up for. Or leave a comment in the comments.
Source: www.frankwatching.com
