Our employer marketer Fleur reads

READING TIME: 3 minutes

Employee Experience: key insights from the HEART model

This summer our Employer Marketer Fleur turned her attention to the book entitled Employee Experience by Heleen Mes and Gea Peper. A 232 page tome that makes you want to read it in one go and invites you to ponder the question: “How can I improve my organisation and my own role in it?”

 

The book zooms in on work happiness which is said to be driven by four happiness hormones: dopamine, oxytocin, serotonin and endorphins. Each hormone has a specific function and contributes to the HEART model that is the focus of the book. Specifically, the model focuses on 5 topics that drive a positive employee experience:

                  • A happy work culture
                  • Energizing workplaces
                  • Agile leadership and organisation
                  • Redesign of the employee journey
                  • Technologie that works for you

 

 

Why the Employee Experience is so important to your organisation

It is clear from the book that the employee experience is directly related to a quality customer experience. Satisfied employees contribute to a productive work environment and influence how clients perceive your organisation. Fleur describes it as follows:

“To improve the customer experience, you need happy employees. If your employees recognise its purpose, believe in what they are doing and love doing it, the client will perceive it too.”

This seems obvious, but in practice it can be undermined by something seemingly as simple as obsolete technology. Employees get frustrated with poorly functioning systems. British research shows that 1 in 5 employees would resign if technology did not work properly.

The HEART model focuses on a psychological approach and on tangible solutions for organisations. One of the keys to success is creating a work environment in which technology works for you rather than against you. This closely aligns with the results of the Doffice market survey, which ranks successfully functioning technology during the onboarding process as one of the top five most important concerns.

The book gives examples of how to improve the employee experience, including in terms of technology. Fleur emphasises: “Outdated or malfunctioning technology can be a real turn-off. Even if you love your job, a non-functioning system can quickly dampen that enthusiasm.”

By linking these insights to our Doffice data, we see that 62% of employees are open to a new job, of which 54% are latent job seekers. This once again demonstrates the importance of an optimal employee experience. If you don’t actively address this as an organisation, you risk losing talent to competitors whose employee journey is more effective.

Job crafting: the power of flexibility

One of the most interesting topics of the book is the concept of job crafting. A work methodology in which employees match their tasks and responsibilities to their strengths and preferences. Instead of fixed job descriptions, job crafting empowers workers to shape their own work. Fleur also experiences this at Doffice:

“Although we have the same job, my colleagues and I fulfil it in different ways. This not only makes the work more fun, but also ensures that everyone can focus on tasks that energise them.”

Finally, we would also like to point out that a dynamic employee experience is inseparable from employer branding. Organisations that succeed in offering an attractive and supportive work environment also strengthen their position in the labour market.

This was also demonstrated by our market research … there are still many potential candidates who can be triggered with a dynamic employer brand. The book Employee Experience provides practical tools to optimise the employee journey. Insights that will help you make a difference as a company or organisation. Good read Fleur 😉!

Want more insights from Fleur? Let me know via fleur.vanbelle@doffice.be.

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