Here’s Why You Need to Find Employee-Centric Enterprise Solutions

When it comes to delivering a delightful digital experience, the first audience that comes to mind is consumers. After all, some of the biggest digital innovations of all time — from the advent of the mobile phone to the Apple Watch — began in the consumer marketplace. It’s where every effort is made to gain loyal followers and increase sales via customer experience (CX).

But for all the effort companies are making to reimagine and improve their customer experiences, they haven’t put enough focus on their really core audience — their own employees. They’re not listening to them and investing in the tools and technologies they say they need to do their jobs better.

The Benefits of Employee-Centric Solutions

The focus on enterprise software has always been centered around functional and business needs and processes, yet usability, user satisfaction and user friendliness is an afterthought at best. Today, when there continues to be a shortage of specific types of talent, an innovative tech stack can be a competitive differentiator. 

Beyond its ability to attract and retain employees and boost brand image, software that provides a good employee experience has financial benefits as well. When it is intuitive, easy-to-use and flexible, it makes an employee’s job easier, saves billable time, increases productivity and reduces costly errors. At a basic level, software that simply requires fewer clicks or less navigating to multiple screens can save minutes per task, which incrementally adds up to significant time.

So why has enterprise software failed to deliver when it comes to employees? Part of the problem is that they haven’t considered employees a stakeholder in the decision. They’ve made the tech decisions and thrust them upon employees, who then create their own workarounds or else procure their own solutions, which not only cause IT management chaos, but can pose security challenges as well.

According to a PwC report, 57% of procurement leaders cited the “involvement of stakeholders,” especially their employees, as the most important factor in ensuring successful digital transformation. Yet, in another PwC study, 90% of C-suite executives believe their company pays attention to people’s needs when introducing new technology, but only 53% of staff say the same.

So what exactly are employees looking for when it comes to usability, features and functionality in their digital work tools? They want solutions that are fast and easy to understand, highly searchable, collaborative and ones that can be personalized to better adapt to how they work and live. 

Related Article: Should You Allow Shadow IT and BYOD in Your Company?

Bringing Employees Into the Stakeholder Mix

Boosting the employee experience is easier said than done. While consumer marketing and customer engagement strategies have evolved over time, strategies for engaging employees in IT decision making have been largely ignored. Below are six considerations for engaging employees and delivering the digital tools that empower them.

1. Treat employees like the customer. In reality, your employees are the customer of your value, culture and mission, and should be treated as such. This means valuing their input, treating them with respect and investing in the tools that empower them to succeed.
   
   
2. Begin with human-centric design. Whether it’s a CRM, ERP, accounting or HR solution, before any product search begins, meetings and workshops should be conducted with all employee end-users and stakeholders to understand their pain points, identify the real business problems and clearly articulate the goals.
   
   
3. Understand that there’s more than productivity. While productivity, efficiency and a robust system is important, ask yourself if a particular solution is desirable and can bring enjoyment — two traits that have not been part of the conversation until now. 
     
   
4. Look for the micro moments. Google describes micro moments as intent-rich moments when someone uses a device to act on a specific need to “know, go, do or buy.” While these moments apply to the consumer world, they can also be applied to how software delights users with simple interactions that make it easier to connect. This could mean seeing the face of the sender when an email pops up, or a distinct sound when a certain application is launched. These are all small things that can bring great satisfaction to employees.
    
5. Consider how it integrates with people’s lives. The lines between work and personal life are blurring as a result of hybrid work models and other new ways of working. Employees today are looking for enterprise software that can make their lives easier, healthier and bridge the work/lifestyle gap. For example, can software tell you when you’ve been sitting for too long and suggest that you walk around the office? Can it integrate with your iPhone apps to remind you to pick up dry cleaning before 5:00?
   
   
6. Prototype, test and enable feedback. Employees need to continue to be part of the process long after a specific solution is deployed. By sharing solution prototypes with employees, you can fine-tune them to better meet their needs. It also should not end there. By gaining regular employee feedback, continuous improvements can be integrated to ensure that the solutions employees use remain relevant, usable and provide a good experience.

Related Article: Is It Time to Say Goodbye to Legacy Systems or Is There Life in Them Yet?

Richard Branson once said, “clients do not come first, employees come first. If you take care of your employees, they will take care of the clients.”  By giving employees the digital tools that empower them to do their best work, enterprises can gain much more than employee productivity; they gain an employee-centric culture that demonstrates value for their most prized asset.

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