The Importance of Employee Experience: How You Understand, Shape and Optimize It

1. What does Employee Experience mean?
2. Why is a positive Employee Experience so important?
3. How do companies benefit from a positive Employee Experience?
4. Creation of positive working conditions
5. : In this phase, it is about making potential employees aware of your company and arousing their interest. Effective
6. A modern and personal application process: A warmly and personally designed confirmation of receipt mail, a detailed roadmap about the application process and the general human interaction. All key experiences that can make your company stand out from the competition.
7. In order to shine as an employer of choice, a strong cultural foundation is needed, that also serves as a guide for all future steps. Develop a employer vision for the long term organisational development including guiding features, values and an exceptional employer offer. For this it is advisable to actively involve existing employees and identify future employee profiles.
8. : One of the biggest challenges is ensuring the engagement and support of the entire leadership level. They must understand the importance of Employee Experience and actively promote initiatives.
9. ,
10. At the end of the day, it is your employees who make your company successful. They are your most valuable asset – and it is in your hands to make their experiences in your company as positive as possible.

Are you ready to create a workplace that people dream about? Then this is exactly the right article for you. Dive into the world of "Employee Experience" with our guest author Marcel Eberhardt - a strategy that not only improves the working life of each individual, but also can enhance the productivity and growth of your company.

Find out how to create a working environment where everyone feels seen, valued and inspired and experience the new era of the working world.

What does Employee Experience mean?

Let's start by getting to the bottom of the question early on, what Employee Experience actually means: Employee Experience, in English employee experience, refers to the sum of all experiences, experiences and emotions, which employees accumulate throughout their entire time in your company.

It therefore has an impact on the entire Employee Journey, starting with the first look at your career page, the first contact, the entire recruiting process (Candidate Experience) , including the daily work and finally the departure from your company (Exit Experience).

It is important to understand that a successful Employee Experience is the result of a holistic approach. This takes into account various aspects for the recruitment, promotion and retention of employees such as:

• Corporate Culture
• Working environment
• Working conditions
• Management style
• Development opportunities
• Communication and feedback
• Appreciation and recognition
• Meaningfulness in the activity performed

Why is a positive Employee Experience so important?

If you too are wondering why Employee Experience is so important, then we now have five reasons that you should pay special attention to:

1. By a positive Employee Experience you position your company as an employer of choice with top talents and experienced professionals. You attract people not only, but delight them at every single touch point.
2. Winning employees is one thing, binding them long-term and happily is a completely different matter. An extraordinary Employee Experience confirms the first impression of your company, gives your employees appreciation and increases the overall satisfaction in your company.
3. In a appreciative working environment, characterized by unique experiences and good processes, employees are not only more motivated, committed and productive, but also feel comfortable.
4. An increased motivation and productivity creates space for bringing in new ideas and advancing innovation. It promotes an overall culture of innovation and thus gives your company a competitive edge.
5. The experiences of your employees are directly related to the experience that customers have with your company. Satisfied employees lead to satisfied customers and this interaction typically leads to increased company success.

Not quite convinced yet? Then you should take a closer look at the following numbers:

How do companies benefit from a positive Employee Experience?

Studies around the world examine the impact of a positive Employee Experience in terms of the benefits for companies. The results are remarkable:

• Companies that invest in a positive Employee Experience are up to 23% more profitable
• About 40% of companies report increased productivity and a similar number report that the engagement of their employees leads to a improved customer satisfactionA powerful Employee Experience also plays a big role in retaining your employees to the company. Companies with an committed team show a up to 59%
• reduced turnover rateMoreover, people-centric companies are not only more creative and flexible, but can significantly increase their ability to innovate
• What Goals does the Employee Experience Pursue?In a overarching sense, the Employee Experience pursues the goal of creating a positive, stimulating and fulfilling employee experience so that employees feel comfortable, can fully develop their skills and talents and identify with the values and goals of your company.Thus, it pays into four central goals specifically:

Creation of positive working conditions

Increasing productivity, motivation and engagement

Long-term retention of employees

1. Recruitment of talents and professionals
2. To achieve these goals, it is important to understand that a positive Employee Experience is characterized by many interrelated elements that influence each other.
3. To illustrate this complex construct, these elements can be divided into three areas:
4. The cultural environment

: It refers to the values, behaviors, beliefs and attitudes that are lived in your company and influence the daily work of your employees. These include, among other things, your corporate values, leadership style, your organizational structure, as well as topics such as recognition or inclusion and diversity.

The technological environment

1. : The technological environment, often also called digital employee experience, refers to all the tools that support your employees in their daily work and collaboration. It includes, for example, tools for communication or project management and also the general digital workplace design.
   The physical space
2. : This refers to the actual, material design of the work environment. An ergonomic chair, good lighting or an inspiring office design have a direct influence on the well-being, satisfaction and motivation of your employees. It is important to note that the physical space can be found not only in the office, but also in the home office or co-working space.
   What are the phases of the Employee Experience?
3. The Employee-Experience-Journey extends over the complete employee cycle. Accordingly, the Employee Experience takes place along the following phases:Attraction

: In this phase, it is about making potential employees aware of your company and arousing their interest. Effective

Employer Branding

1. and an attractive employer offer are key points here.Recruiting: This is about recruiting processes
2. , interviews and selection procedures for identifying and filling your vacant positions with the most suitable candidates.Onboarding: Onboarding is about introducing and integrating new employees to your company. The goal is to impart the necessary skills and behaviors to them to get off to a good start in their new position.Development
3. : This phase is about the continuous further education and promotion of your employees. It supports the development of their career paths and includes, among other things, training and coaching.Retention: Recognition, work-life balance, a positive corporate culture and a holistic appreciative working environment. All topics that focus on increasing employee satisfaction and thus retain your employees to your company in the long term.Exit
4. : The Exit phase covers the entire process from the resignation interview to the issuance of certificates to the conduct of exit interviews.Alumni
5. : The Alumni Management phase is about maintaining relationships with former employees. These can serve as important advocates of the company.Every phase offers unique opportunities to positively shape the employee experience and sustainably strengthen both employee retention and satisfaction.
6. “Moments that matter”: 7 key experiences of the Employee ExperienceTo understand what Employee Experience really means in reality, it is worth taking a look at the term "Moments that matter".
7. "Moments that matter" are significant moments or touchpoints between your company and your (potential) employees, that are particularly formative and often lead to lasting memories.In the following, you will find seven Employee Experience examples along the Employee-Experience-Journey.

The first glance at your career page: What feeling do potential candidates get when they want to inform themselves about your company? Do you inspire with clear information and authentic insights into your company, or are you stamped as an uninteresting employer?

A modern and personal application process: A warmly and personally designed confirmation of receipt mail, a detailed roadmap about the application process and the general human interaction. All key experiences that can make your company stand out from the competition.

Both the welcoming of new employees and the

introduction to the new company

, as well as exceptional pre-onboarding activities shape the first impression significantly.

1. Regular conversations about professional development, proactively designed further education offers and the indication of possible promotion opportunities are not only appreciative key moments, but also increase the motivation, satisfaction and commitment of your employees.
2. Celebrate anniversaries and milestones. In doing so, you show your employees that they are valued and play an important role in the success of your company.
3. Even leaving your company can be a positive key moment. Discuss the reasons for leaving in an exit interview, offer outgoing employees your support and learn from the insights for the optimization of your Employee Experience.Goodbye or see you again? After a positive exit experience, you should for example through alumni events maintain the relationship with your former employees. Former employees can always serve as brand ambassadors
4. , or support you in future projects. A positive alumni experience also increases the chance for a possible reengagement.
5. 5 steps to positively shape the Employee Experience
6. To benefit as a company from the advantages of the Employee Experience, both strategic and operational actions are needed in the area of Employee-Experience-Management.
7. Step 1 - Decision and Commitment:Before you actually implement the Employee-Experience-Measures, it is necessary to consciously decide to align your company to be people-centered and to embark on a consistent path. For this, the support of company management and leaders is essential.Step 2 - The corporate culture as a foundation:

In order to shine as an employer of choice, a strong cultural foundation is needed, that also serves as a guide for all future steps. Develop a employer vision for the long term organisational development including guiding features, values and an exceptional employer offer. For this it is advisable to actively involve existing employees and identify future employee profiles.

Step 3 - Modern processes and an attractive working environment:

Without modern processes and an attractive working environment, even the best culture does not protect against frustration. Accordingly, design structured work processes and an inspiring work environment that promotes the productivity, motivation and satisfaction of your employees. Use the Employee-Life-Cycle to guide you and define clear areas of improvement.

Step 4 - “Moments that matter” as a certain extra:

After you were already able to shine through your company culture, modern processes and an attractive work environment, now you have the chance to sparkle and separate your company from the crowd. Design unique key moments adapted to your company, that evoke moments of happiness in your (potential) employees.

To do so, get an overview of all the touchpoints and transform them through creative concepts into unique positive moments that will never be forgotten.

Step 5 - Measure the success of your Employee-Experience Measures:

You should measure your Employee-Experience Measures every 3-6 months, in order to gain new insights for further optimizations. Even if your company's Employee Experience is rather classified as a soft factor, you can use the following metrics to identify success:

Employee Satisfaction through Employee Surveys

Change in Turnover Rate

Change in Productivity

Change in Absence and Sick Days

Cost per Hire or Time to Hire

• Employee Referral Rate
• Pro Tip
• : Be creative in developing your "Moments that matter", let your emotions guide you and open your eyes for exciting opportunities for inspiration outside the HR world.
• What challenges exist in implementing a positive Employee Experience?
• The implementation of a positive Employee Experience is not self running and therefore brings a series of challenges:
• Leadership Engagement

andCommitment

: One of the biggest challenges is ensuring the engagement and support of the entire leadership level. They must understand the importance of Employee Experience and actively promote initiatives.

Resources

1. : The implementation of Employee-Experience-Measures requires financial, time and personnel resources. Without appropriate resources, a successful implementation is difficult to achieve. Communication : Without clear communication and regular updates, employees can feel unsure and ignored. This leads to a negative Employee Experience as well as not keeping promises, jeopardizing the overall project success.Consistent
2. Implementation: Employee Experience is not a quick win for fast results, but requires a consistent and long-term oriented implementation. To avoid treating the Employee Experience as a short-term trend, it should be established as a fixed component of the corporate culture.
3. Adaptabilityand
4. Change management : To meet the needs in our fast-moving world, your company must be able to respond to changes and adapt Employee-Experience Strategies flexibly.Diversity
5. : It is impossible to fulfill everyone's needs and expectations. Accordingly, it is important to find a common denominator, to plan carefully and to ensure that none of your employees are excluded. Despite these challenges, creating a positive Employee Experience is a worthwhile decision, that will not only be treasured by your employees, but also reward you with entrepreneurial success. Which tools can support in designing an Employee Experience?To optimize the Employee Experience in your company and make it more digital, a number of
6. HR-tools, as well as software solutions for example from the areas of

applicant management

,

time recording, payroll accounting, onboarding, staff-scheduling and recruitment marketing, are available to you.You can find a small insight about the numerous and diverse tools listed here:ConclusionLet's summarize once again the most important points in our journey through the subject of People Experience.The world is changing, and with it, the working world. Employees today expect more than just a good salary. They are looking for a place where they can unfold, that meets their needs and expectations and where they are appreciated.A people-centered organization and positive Employee Experience promotes employee engagement and satisfaction, reduces turnover and improves the performance of your company.

But remember: A positive Employee Experience does not happen overnight. It requires commitment, resources and ongoing development. It requires a culture of listening and responding to the needs of your employees. It is characterized by openness to change and willingness to question existing processes and structures.

Haufe HR Services

Sage HR

Personio

HR WORKS

elearnio

Factorial

staffitpro

Greenhouse

Recruitee

JobShop von talentsconnect

Leapsome

Personizer

onlyfy Bewerbungsmanager

HRlab

At the end of the day, it is your employees who make your company successful. They are your most valuable asset – and it is in your hands to make their experiences in your company as positive as possible.

For exactly this reason one thing can be said: It is worth it!

So set off on your way, start your individual journey towards a positive Employee Experience and give your employees a smile.

Eine menschenzentrierte Organisation und eine positive Employee Experience fördert das Engagement und die Zufriedenheit deiner Mitarbeiter*innen, reduziert die Fluktuation und verbessert die Leistung deines Unternehmens.

Aber denke daran: Eine positive Employee Experience entsteht nicht über Nacht. Sie erfordert Engagement, Ressourcen und anhaltende Weiterentwicklung. Sie erfordert eine Kultur des Zuhörens und der Reaktion auf die Bedürfnisse deiner Mitarbeiter*innen. Sie ist geprägt von Offenheit für Veränderungen und der Bereitschaft, bestehende Prozesse und Strukturen zu hinterfragen.

Am Ende des Tages sind es deine Mitarbeiter*innen, die dein Unternehmen erfolgreich machen. Sie sind dein wertvollstes Gut – und es liegt in deiner Hand, ihre Erfahrungen in deinem Unternehmen so positiv wie möglich zu gestalten.

Genau ebendarum lässt sich eines sagen: Es lohnt sich!

Mach dich also auf den Weg, beginne deine individuelle Reise hin zu einer positiven Employee Experience und schenk deinen Mitarbeiter*innen ein Strahlen.