{"id":6727,"date":"2019-08-05T13:11:13","date_gmt":"2019-08-05T13:11:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.walkme.com\/blog\/?p=6727"},"modified":"2023-05-02T15:46:41","modified_gmt":"2023-05-02T15:46:41","slug":"digital-employee-experience","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.walkme.com\/blog\/digital-employee-experience\/","title":{"rendered":"The Digital Employee Experience: A New \u2018Must-Have\u2019 in the Employee Hierarchy of Needs"},"content":{"rendered":"

Digital is permeating every facet of work \u2014 we can\u2019t ignore the impact of enterprise technology on the employee experience.<\/p>\n

If you expect your employees to do their jobs well, that means you also expect them to use a lot of software at a high level.<\/p>\n

Today, the average enterprise has more than 300 mission-critical apps<\/a>. A single employee could have a dozen or more tools in their daily workflow.<\/p>\n

But unless you fulfill employees\u2019 digital needs \u2014 with proper onboarding, onscreen guidance, and adequate in-app support \u2014 you should expect your digital employee experience to suffer.<\/p>\n\n

Introducing the modern employee\u2019s hierarchy of needs<\/h3>\n

In 1943, Abraham Maslow introduced the Maslow\u2019s Hierarchy of Needs<\/a>. He proposed that humans have five categories of needs that are classified in a certain order.<\/p>\n

Basic needs \u2014 like physiological needs and safety \u2014 must be fulfilled before a person can focus on fulfilling higher-level needs, including love and belonging, esteem, and self-actualization.<\/p>\n

Now that organizations are focusing greater attention on the employee experience<\/a>, the need to understand and fulfill employee needs has become a top priority.<\/p>\n

To that end, we created our own hierarchy of needs for employees.<\/p>\n\n

\"digital<\/h2>\n

How to fulfill each employee need<\/h3>\n\n

First, focus on the basics<\/h2>\n

The key to remember is, like Maslow\u2019s Hierarchy of Needs, the needs at the base of the pyramid must be satisfied before employees can fulfill higher-level needs.<\/p>\n

At work, employees want to feel part of a community. They want the ability to learn new skills<\/a>, gain valuable experience, and develop their careers. They want to know that the work they do every day makes a real impact \u2014 that their contributions are valuable and meaningful.<\/p>\n

But until their basic needs are satisfied, it\u2019s impossible to achieve these higher-level needs.<\/p>\n

If your employees don\u2019t trust you, you\u2019re in big trouble. And if they can\u2019t use the technology<\/a> they\u2019re required to use, the digital employee experience will be dismal.<\/p>\n

Deep Dive: Employee Frustration is Destroying Your Employee Experience<\/a><\/span><\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n\n

Don\u2019t just be trustworthy \u2014 show it<\/h3>\n

Trust has always been important. But I think now, in the post-truth era in which change is constant, trust in leadership is critical<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Not only is it important for you to be trustworthy, you must also be seen as trustworthy.<\/p>\n

That means you need to take concrete steps to demonstrate that you have your employees\u2019 best interests<\/a> at heart \u2014 and you\u2019re competent enough to act on them.<\/p>\n\n

How do you prove you\u2019re trustworthy?<\/h3>\n

Open communication and transparency are key pillars of trust. By asking employees about their experience, taking their answers to heart, and taking steps to better fulfill their needs, you\u2019ll show your staff they can count on you.<\/p>\n

In the era of digital transformation, in which change is constant<\/a>, trust in leadership is a fundamental precursor to transformation success.<\/p>\n

You can\u2019t expect your employees to embrace change if they don\u2019t believe in the person who is asking for it.<\/p>\n\n

\"digitalAre your employees drowning in the digital deluge?<\/h2>\n

When you consider that virtually all of your employees\u2019 work is conducted on one platform or another, the urgency to safeguard the digital employee experience rises.<\/p>\n

The modern employee is required to work on a broad range of software<\/a>. Everything from collaboration tools, project management, analytics, and reporting might be conducted on a separate platform.<\/p>\n

On top of that, employees are tasked with using the HCM, ERP, CRM, and other core platforms with maximum efficiency.<\/p>\n

Not only must they undergo software training, but they must also keep up with frequent updates<\/a> and new features.<\/p>\n

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Lack of digital adoption could be hurting your digital employee experience<\/h2>\n

The challenges of navigating complex interfaces and completing digital processes efficiently can be a major source of stress and frustration, for new and seasoned employees alike.<\/p>\n

Not only that, it can have a direct impact on their performance.<\/p>\n

We recently conducted a survey<\/a> to understand how leaders and employees perceive their workplace technology.<\/p>\n

Overall, the survey revealed that leaders \u2014 the decision-makers behind digital investments \u2014 tend to be overly optimistic about technology\u2019s usability and its ability to improve employees\u2019 work.<\/p>\n

On the other hand, employees give their digital tools far less credit.<\/p>\n\n