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The Impact of AI on Employee Experience

Mon, 03 Jun 2024 12:33:11 GMT

The 6 Key Impacts of AI on Employee Experience

Artificial Intelligence (AI) is revolutionizing the workplace, transforming how employees engage with their tasks, interact with their colleagues, and perceive their work environment. As AI continues to integrate into various aspects of business operations, it is reshaping the employee experience in profound ways. This article explores the multifaceted impact of AI on employee experience, highlighting both the benefits and challenges that come with this technological evolution.

1. Enhancing Productivity and Efficiency

One of the most significant contributions of AI to the workplace is the enhancement of productivity and efficiency. AI-powered tools can automate repetitive tasks, allowing employees to focus on more strategic and creative aspects of their jobs. For instance, AI can handle data entry, scheduling, and even customer service through chatbots, freeing up time for employees to engage in higher-level thinking and problem-solving.

AI-driven analytics can also provide employees with insights and recommendations that improve decision-making. By analyzing large datasets quickly and accurately, AI can identify patterns and trends that might be missed by human analysis. This enables employees to make more informed decisions, ultimately leading to better business outcomes.

2. Personalized Learning and Development

AI is transforming employee learning and development by offering personalized training programs tailored to individual needs and preferences. Traditional one-size-fits-all training sessions are becoming obsolete as AI-driven platforms assess an employee's skills, performance, and career goals to create customized learning paths. These platforms can recommend courses, track progress, and provide feedback, ensuring that employees continuously develop their skills and stay relevant in a rapidly changing job market.

Moreover, AI can facilitate continuous learning through microlearning modules that fit into an employee's daily routine. By delivering short, focused learning experiences, AI helps employees acquire new knowledge and skills without disrupting their workday.

3. Enhancing Employee Engagement and Well-being

AI can play a crucial role in enhancing employee engagement and well-being. AI-powered tools can monitor employee sentiment by analyzing communication patterns and feedback, identifying potential issues before they escalate. For example, AI can detect signs of burnout or disengagement and alert managers to take proactive measures, such as adjusting workloads or providing additional support.

Furthermore, AI can enhance work-life balance by enabling flexible working arrangements. AI-driven scheduling tools can optimize work schedules to accommodate employees' personal commitments, leading to a more satisfied and motivated workforce. AI can also support remote work by providing virtual collaboration tools that mimic the in-office experience, ensuring that employees remain connected and engaged regardless of their physical location.

5. Streamlining Recruitment and Onboarding

The recruitment and onboarding process is another area where AI is making a significant impact. AI-powered recruitment tools can analyze resumes, conduct initial screenings, and even assess candidates' fit for a role based on various criteria. This not only speeds up the hiring process but also reduces biases, ensuring a more diverse and inclusive workforce.

During onboarding, AI can provide new hires with personalized experiences that help them acclimate to the company culture and their specific roles. AI-driven onboarding platforms can offer interactive training sessions, answer common questions, and connect new employees with resources and mentors, making the transition smoother and more efficient.

6. Addressing Challenges and Ethical Considerations

While the benefits of AI in enhancing the employee experience are clear, it is essential to address the challenges and ethical considerations associated with its implementation. Concerns about job displacement due to automation, data privacy, and the potential for biased algorithms must be carefully managed.

Organizations need to ensure transparency in how AI is used and involve employees in the implementation process. Providing clear communication about the purpose and benefits of AI tools can help alleviate fears and build trust. Additionally, companies should invest in upskilling and reskilling programs to prepare employees for the changing job landscape, ensuring that they remain valuable assets in an AI-driven world.

Conclusion

AI is undeniably transforming the employee experience, offering numerous benefits that enhance productivity, engagement, and overall well-being. By automating routine tasks, personalizing learning and development, and streamlining recruitment and onboarding, AI is helping to create a more dynamic and satisfying work environment. However, it is crucial for organizations to address the associated challenges and ethical considerations to ensure that the integration of AI is both effective and responsible. As AI continues to evolve, its impact on the employee experience will undoubtedly grow, making it an essential component of the modern workplace.

Carla Zilka is the founder of NexGen Human Capital and an expert in Innovation and Digital Solutions for CX and EX.

The Crucial Role of Leadership Feedback in Fostering Retention and Cultivating a Positive Organizational Culture

Fri, 26 Apr 2024 15:33:56 GMT

The Crucial Role of Leadership Feedback in Fostering Retention and Cultivating a Positive Organizational Culture

The Crucial Role of Leadership Feedback in Fostering Retention and Cultivating a Positive Organizational Culture

In the dynamic landscape of modern workplaces, effective leadership isn’t just about giving orders; it’s about fostering an environment where individuals thrive, feel valued, and contribute their best. At the heart of this lies the power of feedback.

In this blog, we delve into why leadership feedback is indispensable for both employee retention and nurturing a vibrant organizational culture. But first, let's look at some data around employee feedback.

Top Employee Feedback Statistics*

96% of employees say getting regular feedback is a good thing.
Employees who receive recognition from management are 69% more likely to do better work.
64% of employees say their workplace has an employee feedback program.
41% of employees have left a job because they felt they weren’t listened to.
20% of employees don’t share feedback with employers.
Only 10% of employees say they’re engaged after receiving negative feedback.

So what benefits does having a culture of feedback deliver? Below are quantifiable outcomes driven by good feedback processes.

Building Bridges of Trust
Leadership feedback serves as a bridge between leaders and their teams, fostering trust and transparency. When leaders provide constructive feedback, it demonstrates that they are invested in their employees’ growth and development. This cultivates a sense of trust, as employees feel supported and valued, knowing that their leaders have their best interests at heart.

Empowering Growth and Development
Feedback, when given effectively, acts as a catalyst for personal and professional growth. Constructive feedback highlights areas for improvement while also acknowledging strengths, empowering employees to continuously enhance their skills and capabilities. This culture of growth not only benefits individual employees but also contributes to the overall success of the organization.

Fostering a Culture of Open Communication
Leadership feedback sets the tone for open communication within an organization. When leaders actively seek feedback from their teams and provide it in return, it encourages a culture where ideas are freely exchanged, challenges are addressed collaboratively, and innovation thrives. This open dialogue promotes a sense of belonging and ownership among employees, leading to increased engagement and satisfaction.

Driving Employee Retention
One of the most significant impacts of effective leadership feedback is its role in employee retention. Not surprising, almost half of HR Leaders, 47%, say employee turnover is a challenge and a costly one at that.** Studies have consistently shown that employees who receive regular feedback and feel valued by their leaders are more likely to stay with their organization. By providing meaningful feedback, leaders demonstrate their commitment to their employees’ success, which, in turn, fosters loyalty and reduces turnover rates.

Linking Feedback to Organizational Culture
The relationship between leadership feedback and organizational culture is symbiotic. A culture that values feedback fosters continuous improvement, adaptability, and resilience, essential qualities in today’s fast-paced business environment. Conversely, a toxic culture, where feedback is either absent or punitive, can stifle innovation, hinder collaboration, and drive talented employees away.

Getting Feedback on Leadership
How often do employees get the chance to provide feedback on their leaders? Unless a company has an annual 360 process, employees have very little opportunities to share their true assessment of how they feel their leaders are leading.

Yet, studies prove that allowing a process of reciprocal feedback- leaders to employee, employee to leader- has the potential to drive more productivity and better overall results for the company.

How often do employers ask for feedback? Here’s a breakdown from AllVoices’ survey of 817 employees:

23.7% ask for feedback once per month .
23.5% ask once per quarter .
20.3% ask weekly .
19.3% ask once per year .
13.1% never ask for employee feedback.

What Models Can Be Used To Provide Effective Feedback?

All feedback is not created equal. If handled or given inappropriately, feedback can have a negative impact on interpersonal relationships within the organization and employee/volunteer job performance.

The best approach for feedback is to use a Survey tool that supports both forms of feedback, employee and leaders. Furthermore, consistency is critical and should be done quarterly at best and annual at least. We use a customizable survey tool created in a simple and easy format that takes into account each businesses special characteristics and culture.

Harms and Roebuck (2010) developed two models of providing effective feedback to give praise and constructive criticism described below. While an older model, it still works brilliantly.****

B.E.T. Model for Positive Feedback

B – Behavior. Describe the specific observations of desired or positive behaviors the volunteer or employee is displaying.

E – Effect. Discuss how the volunteer or employee’s behavior is beneficial to the organization or team.

T – Thank you. Showing appreciation and thanking the volunteer or employee for their contributions.

B.E.A.R. Model for Negative Feedback

B – Behavior. Explain the current behaviors or actions the volunteer or employee is taking that are negatively impacting the organization or team.

E – Effect. Describe the impact of these behaviors on the organization or team.

A – Alternative. Provide suggestions or recommendations to the volunteer or employee on how to change their current behaviors and actions.

R – Result. Describe the outcomes or results that would occur if the volunteer or employee adopts the suggested changes and recommendations.

Within these models, we can employ several strategies to ensure we communicate effectively with our employees and leaders. Sherman (2019) provides several strategies that can be used in conjunction with the two models which you see adapted below.

Give feedback promptly. Do not wait to give feedback to your employees or leadership, as issues will be more difficult to address the longer you wait to discuss them.
Give specific and factual feedback. Be very clear and specific when giving feedback and base your feedback on observations and facts without including hearsay and opinions.
Allow employees and leaders to contribute their own thoughts and perspectives to the feedback session.
Create concrete goals and benchmarks for your employee, and action plans for your leaders. Schedule a follow-up meeting to discuss their progress.

Summary
In conclusion, employee and leadership feedback is not just a tool for performance management; it’s a cornerstone of organizational success. By providing constructive feedback, leaders and employees empower their teams to grow, foster trust and open communication, and ultimately drive employee retention and cultivate a positive organizational culture. Investing in effective feedback mechanisms isn’t just beneficial; it’s essential for building resilient, high-performing teams ready to tackle the challenges of tomorrow.

For further insights on the interplay between leadership feedback, retention, and organizational culture, or if you or your management team would like to demo our feedback platform, please reach out to us here.

Author: Carla Zilka, Co-founder NexGen Human Capital

References:

*Workhuman
**Workhuman

***All Voices

****Bauer, S., & Lim, D. (2019). Effect of communication practices on volunteer organization identification and retention. Sustainability , 11(9), 2467.

Does Your Recruiting Strategy include Specialized Skills Needed to Achieve your Company Goals?

Thu, 04 Apr 2024 07:19:08 GMT

Does Your Recruiting Strategy include Specialized Skills Needed to Achieve your Company Goals?

We frequently hear comments like:

-“If I could hire just one person with the specialized skills I need, I’d be happy”

-“I don't know anything about AI, how can I support the hiring manager?”

-“No budget yet, got to use what I have in place today, we can train them on AI"
-"We can't afford to hire the best candidate"

All 100% normal comments, but aren't going to help you in the war for specialized Talent.

*According to LinkedIn, only 30% of the global workforce is actively looking for jobs, and the rest are passively searching. But of this 70% passive workforce, 87% is open to finding better job opportunities.

With Gen AI, AI Project Management, Data Science and Machine Learning, AI Research, Cloud Computing and Clinical Healthcare Skills at the top of the list for most hard to find skills, you will need a strategy to fill your jobs with the right talent.

The ability to harness AI to assist in accelerating your business forward is critical to thrive in 2024 and beyond. Even HR is modernizing how they use AI to organize their unstructured HR and recruitment data, as well as sort (unbiased) responses to job postings.

So you don't have a recruiting strategy for these skills?

Due to the speed of innovation and iteration, a good AI strategy is 6-12 months with contingencies, so as the market changes and the skills evolve, so can the strategy. Hiring is a challenge for most companies, and costly, so if your recruiting practices result no placements, thats a negative ROI. While there is no perfection in hiring, but if you are not clear about what you need, you have a 97% chance of failure *.

How can you be one of the 3% of businesses with clear, specific, and achievable Human Capital goals to meet your business strategy and grow your organization.

If you are allowing revenue to drive your hiring, you have it reversed. A proactive-12-month hiring

strategy will allow your Human Capital to drive revenue instead of the other way around. By Understanding the use cases for the skills you are recruiting, you can ask very specific questions to the candidate to filter out those who truly understand the work that needs to be performed. The right candidate who comprehends the use cases, upon hiring, will be able to hit the ground running achieving the goals faster than expected.

If you are a hiring manager, make sure you and the recruiter or HR professional are CLEAR on the use cases or the outcomes expected by the role. If you are a recruiter or HR professional, by thorough with the hiring manager on what is needed, then benchmark the compensation and agree on the package to be offered. Don't just post a job without the insights mentioned, that's just spending a lot of money and time.

What if you are on a hiring freeze or your budget is minimal so can't hire new talent? How can you ensure the right team members in the correct positions?

Research shows that 1 in 5 people are at the right organization, but in the wrong job. Having a solution

that will use your existing talent to accomplish the company goals is critical.

But how?

Using skills assessment tools will allow you to "course correct" the talent currently in the organization into roles that maximize their performance resulting is better outcomes for the company. We all have innate skills and when an employee is in the right role, it's like MAGIC...they can deliver outstanding outcomes easily vs. those who do not have the innate skills will find it to be a difficult and bumpy journey and will feel frustrated. This creates a retention risk.

What if you have open "specialized skills" jobs like AI, Data Science, Machine Learning, etc...and want to promote an internal employee? Don't do this...

We were advising a company who moved their COO into a CMO position. What a disaster! He failed because these are two totally different skills sets, behaviors and strategies. Using assessment tools stops this type of "promotion" that ultimately will hurt the company and the employee.

Instead set up simulations and case studies and the prospective candidates present to see how the person thinks, communicates and handles stress. Are they concrete thinkers or abstract? What is their preferred method and tone of communication? Are they good listeners to feedback?

Our Team will help you integrate video tools and simulations to screen candidates, AI hiring tools, and referral programs to target the right candidates.

We will help you use what you have already invested in, develop a sound and easy to execute a 6 -12 month hiring

strategy and roadmap, and teach you a few easy tools to use to find the best Talent when the timing

is right, without it costing you endless search hours of your Executives.

*Resource:
https://hqhire.com/goal-setting-statistics/

Denise Lund and Carla Zilka are Co-Founders and Managing Partners of NexGen Human Capital, whose mission is to Maximize Human Capital Performance.

A Great Employee Experience Results in Growth for the Company

Wed, 27 Mar 2024 20:27:53 GMT

A Great Employee Experience Results in Growth for the Company

In the latest research by McKinsey*, a whopping 51% of GenAI workers are looking to exit the current company they are with.

Why?

Because they aren't getting what they need to be successful. This goes for any employee who lacks support to do their job well. And almost all employees WANT to do their job well.

2024 looks very different from previous years and with the current trends in the workplace focused on work-life balance, employee well-being and social connection, are you doing enough to embed the activities into an end-to-end holistic Employee Experience?

Answering these questions will be a good indicator of where you stand. Are you:

Creating employee-centric strategies to position your company as choice for top talent?
Building your employer brand to attract top talent even in highly competitive industries?
Exploring work-life balance strategies that drive employee engagement and increase productivity?
Using tech and automation to create a seamless experience for your employees?
Creating a robust leadership feedback channel for employees to feel heard?

If you've said "NO" to any of these questions, you then you will have difficulty in maximizing your human capitals performance.

Let's start with creating employee-centric strategies , like Remote and Hybrid work models. Employees who work in a hybrid structure have the highest employee experience metrics, while employees who work five days in an office or on-site location have the lowest. ( Qualtrics’ 2024 Employee Experience Report)

By allowing people to work when and where they want creates trust and respect, which is critical to the new generation of workers. A pay check is simply not enough.

What about building your employer brand ...which is very different from your actual brand. And it starts with onboarding.

A new hire experience can and should be frictionless, easy and long term. Meaning on-boarding should last 12 months not 2 weeks. It is a critical part of the overall employee journey – one that sets the path of success for the employee. Organizations must create a roadmap with the important moments that matter in the employee journey, starting with the new hire experience and on-boarding. It’s no longer just about ticking the boxes on an on-boarding checklist.

What about work-life balance strategies, how are you supporting the new generation of employees? Work-life balance is a cornerstone of culture and in 2024, GEN Z will outnumber Baby Boomers, creating a shift in demographic wants and desires in the workplace.

Work-life balance is the most valued element of company culture by a wide margin for both employees and employers. 51% of employees and 47% of employers named work-life balance as the top priority in company culture, according to Forbes research.

Some organizations look to improve the employee experience by providing lifestyle coordinators that help employees take personal daily tasks and errands off their plates. Others are mandating leadership to set the example by taking mandatory PTO, while other organizations are creating "recharge" sessions for individuals. In these sessions they can follow a guided meditate, listen to music or just breathe without distractions for 15-30 minutes in the afternoon to provide the much needed rest for employees to perform at their best.

How automated is your Employee Experience? Are your systems separate and disparate? This is one of the areas CHRO's are focused on and should be. Employees who don't feel supported will leave in the first 6 months of their new job.

A digital roadmap with automated solutions, including AI is mandatory for companies now, even small companies. The new generation is comfortable with using online portals to get what they need, but if information is all over the place and they have to reach out to an HRM, that creates frustration. There is a direct link between how automated systems are and employee satisfaction, according to the Qualtrics report.

If you can't do it yourself, hire an expert to build out the employee experience and link the activities and systems together.

And finally, leadership feedback , or in most companies, lack thereof. How do you know what the employees think of the leadership? What leaders are inspiring, which ones are intimidating. This is a direct reflection of your culture. Culture is bad? Look to leadership.

We recommend a program using Employee Satisfaction surveys by Well-IQ. It's easy to use and delivers exactly what you need to coach leaders and drive better performance from your employees. We know satisfied employees result in satisfied customers which ultimately results in better revenue.

Have questions about any of the above? Contact us for a call.

Why Setting Up A GENAI Lab Is Critical

Thu, 21 Mar 2024 17:37:34 GMT

How to Set Up A GenAI Lab

Whether you are a small business or a mammoth corporation, the use of AI should be part of your business strategy. But who owns the strategy and its implementation is tricky. Is it the CIO or CTO?

It's none of those.

GENAI is a speciality that very few leaders are experts in, and moreover, understand the investment and time it will take to reach any ROI on. In fact, most companies aren't even sure what use cases will deliver the most bang for it's buck.

This is why it is critical to create a GENAI lab run by an AI expert. And since most companies do not have the right skill set for this, it's important you hire the right person who knows how to set up, test, run and deliver solutions that will have a positive impact to the top and bottom line. They must know how to create AI experiences by designing experiential prototypes that mimic real-world scenarios to uncover what really matters to this next generation.

GENAI is new, it's in its infancy, so hiring the right person will be challenging. It's not just about the technology, the person has to have an understanding of process, data science, machine learning, security and the precedent use cases in order to be successful. Add human behaviors and change management to it and now you have a unicorn .

What does a GENAI Lab entail?

It's an autonomous group with individual contributors that together make up the necessary elements to identify use cases, create POCs, enable testing and manage iterative improvements. It is a task force that needs the support of the CEO, which means the Lab Leader reports to the CEO. Having layers in-between will result in lackluster outcomes and lots of money wasted.

Using the right organization to help you navigate the fast changing environment of AI is also critical. A firm that specializes in GENAI recruitment will ensure you find the unicorn you are looking for, and more importantly , provide the reassurance that your investment in GENAI pays off.

Carla Zilka is the Co-Founder and Managing Partner for NexGen Human Capital.