Employee experience (EX) isn’t about just making employees feel great at work; it’s about driving business value. A growing body of research shows that positive EX not only enhances the well-being of employees but also drives value by attracting top talent, boosting retention and increasing productivity.

With the pressure on Chief People Officers (CPOs) and HR leaders to deliver bottom-line value, building a compelling employee value proposition (EVP) and investing in employee experience has never been more important (Gallup, “State of the Global Workplace: 2023 Report”).

Increase engagement and drive productivity

An exceptional EX means that employees are more likely to be engaged and productive.

The EX equation is at the heart of our LACE EX approach and highlights the important relationship between the EVP (promise) that you are making to your employees and how it is enabled through your experience. If the experience your employees have matches up to or exceeds the promises you’ve made to them, they will be more engaged. Conversely, if you fail to deliver on your promises as an employer, engagement levels are likely to be reduced.

According to recent research from Gallup, engaged teams are 18% more productive than disengaged teams, and the organisations they work for are reporting higher levels of customer loyalty (10%) and profitability (23%).

Having a clearly defined proposition AND an aligned and actively managed experience is critical to delivering business value – demonstrating the indisputable case for EX.

Read more about setting out compelling promises that attract the best talent and how to deliver on those promises with purposeful employee experiences.

Retain top talent

If your employees are happier, they are more likely to stay.

According to Gallup’s recent research, more employees than ever are in pursuit of new opportunities, with 51% reporting that they are watching the market or actively seeking a new job.

While some employee churn is desirable, high employee turnover can be incredibly costly for organisations. Recruiters and managers end up spending endless hours filling open requisitions, onboarding new employees and training them in the critical knowledge and skills required to perform.

In addition to lost productivity and opportunity cost, high attrition can harm the remaining employees and overall morale. Investing in purposeful EX will deliver direct savings through improved retention.

Happy employees = Happy customers

When employees understand their customer needs, they are more likely to deliver exceptional customer experiences (CX).

Research from our partners at Dragonfish has found that EX, CX and culture alignment are all key drivers of business performance. Customers want to interact with brands that really get them and organisations that deliver superior experiences to both consumers and employees.

An organisation with a poor EX cannot expect its employees to deliver a genuine experience for their customers. Closing the gaps between your EX and CX will make your employees more likely to deliver empathetic, personalised and caring services to your customers. A clear line of sight of an employee’s impact on the customer is critical in enabling performance.

Organisations that take EX seriously know that their investments will translate to superior customer experiences, which in turn will positively impact customer loyalty and revenue.

Attract the best talent

The best talent is attracted to organisations that prioritise their people.

In today’s competitive talent marketplace, prospective employees are likely to have a number of choices about where they could work and will have researched each organisation extensively. This includes researching Glassdoor and LinkedIn and reaching out to existing employees to get an honest, unfiltered opinion.

Organisations that invest in EX are more likely to show up on lists such as ‘Best Companies to Work for’. Your employees are your best advocates for your organisation, and investing in making their experience as positive as possible will pay off and help attract more top talent to join your organisation.

What’s coming up

We will explore and debate how EX can deliver commercial value, with a focus on identifying the measures of success and the connections between EVP, EX and CX.

We will be joined by our partners at Dragonfish, who will share key findings from their new research and focus on how CX and HR can work more closely together to deliver value.

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