Here’s links to recent reports we’ve come across that we’ve found interesting and some of our key takeaways from them.
KPMG's The future of HR: From flux to flow, Voices from Kuwait
Takeaways:
- 61% of respondents say they’re having to alter their EVP in response to the external labour market - and so they should as we're now in an era of personalising the Employee Experience rather than 'mass catering'.
- 57% of respondents say that improving EX is a key focus - the figure should be higher, of course, perhaps a sign that not everyone in HR is aware of the ROI of EX?
- The most popular reason for introducing HR Tech is to boost productivity (34%) with a likely rise to 49% for the year ahead - the majority of people do come to work to work and being able to perform a role to its fullest through having the right tools is a major motivation booster, which will lead to wellbeing benefits.
- 85% of respondents say that the mental health and wellbeing of employees has become a bigger focus - you can't work if you're sick, so this is positive news; but be wary of 'one-size-fits-all' solutions.
It’s always great to read a report with a localised flavour. It’s clear that many HR voices in Kuwait are seeking to put the ‘human’ into ‘Human Resources’ by focussing more on aspects such as EX, wellbeing and updated EVPs. As we always say, EX should be built ‘from the people, for the people’ and organisations in Kuwait (or any other market) who involve their employees in shaping their future of work will have a competitive advantage. You can learn more about creating great employee experiences here.
Link to report: https://kpmg.com/kw/en/home/insights/2023/05/the-future-of-hr-2023-voices-from-kuwait.html
Josh Bersin's The Big Reset Playbook: Organizational Culture & Performance
Takeaways:
- Companies that strive to ensure communication reflects their culture are 5X more likely to have productive employees - of course, most organisations communicate with their employees, but certainly not all communicate in a way which reflects their culture.
- Companies that have support embedded in their culture are 7X more likely to be recognised as great places to work - this is the trickiest part of the Employee Lifecycle to define and certainly the largest stage, so will take great focus and care to get it right.
- Companies that have appreciation embedded in their culture are 6X more likely to have high engagement and retention - appreciation doesn't have to have monetary value and shouldn't be just left to 'set piece events' such as awards ceremonies.
- Companies that have wellbeing embedded in their culture are 10X more likely to have lower absenteeism - this will have an impact on the bottom line as absence is a cost.
Organisations (and Consultants) must strive to create a bespoke Employee Experience – one which befits the type of organisation and its employees. The way in which, say, a firm of Stockbrokers communicate and rewards should be different to the way in which, say, a pet store communicate and rewards. There definitely is an ROI of EX and you can see what it is for your organisation by using our EXO ROI Calculator.
Link to report: https://joshbersin.com/the-big-reset-playbook-organizational-culture-and-performance/
Lens' Future of Work — Services and Solutions Archetype report
Takeaways:
- The report claims that: 'Many clients are beginning to pursue engagements with providers based on experience level agreements (XLAs) — designed to meet expectations for how products and services actually affect EX — rather than on traditional service level agreements (SLAs)' - hopefully this could signal an end to 'deliver it and move on'.
- The report lists four (client) EX Archetypes: Explorer, Tech, Line of Business and Corporate - at Brand Experiences, we utilise mojo to help to define Employee Archetypes through their intrinsic motivation; this report views organisations as 'tech' Archetypes.
It's fascinating to see EX through the eyes of Services and Solutions providers and it would be a worthwhile question for organisations to pose: which Archetype are we?
Link to report: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20230317005055/en/Varied-Strategies-Enhance-Companies%E2%80%99-Employee-Experience
HqO's The State of Workplace Experience
Takeaways:
- The report predicts that corporate workspace allocation will flip from 70% individual workstations and 30% collaborative space to 30% individual and 70% collaborative space - it's a bit of a cliche already but few see the benefit of coming into an office just to do Teams/Zoom calls all day but most see the benefit of in-person collaboration, so office space needs to be designed around this.
- The report tells that a whopping 96% of property teams are looking to spend on workplace experience software - of course, mojo should be first on their list, but the important thing is to ask employees what suits them, not simply introducing the latest or more popular tools.
- The report shares that access to technological tools that make hybrid work possible has increased in importance - in a work from anywhere era, access to the right tools in the office and on-the-go are vital.
- The report claims that 30% of today’s employees do not agree that their workplace environment enables them to work productively - environment is one of the 3 Es of Productivity (Energy/Emotion/Environment), so it’s worth investing in.
Whereas some organisations are insisting that everyone is back in the office, many are operating a hybrid model; so ‘work from anywhere’ is the watch phrase. Even those who insist employees are in the office will still need the right tech and tools to work on-the-go as these can be utilised during commutes or work travel.
Link to report: https://www.hqo.com/resources/downloadable-resources/the-state-of-workplace-experience-report-2023-edition/