’The best employee experience does not always rate a 10/10 for happiness at work’

Does your organization want to increase employee happiness at work? If yes, do not focus on outcomes but rather the process of arriving at them – the improving of the employee experience. You may well think that the more you invest in employee experience the greater the happiness at work, “but that’s not always the case,” says Heleen Mes, of HXWork, and Merel van der Lei, from Effectory: “The employees’ expectations play a major role in the experience.”

Happy, engaged and enthusiastic employees are more committed to their work, their customers and colleagues. Moreover, their productivity and creativity are higher and absenteeism lower, and they’re also less likely to leave the organization. Numerous studies have established the link between happy employees and successful organizations. If you want to increase employee happiness at work, focus on how to achieve it, which is by improving the employee experience.

According to international HR trend watchers, employee experience is HR’s ‘next step’ and was proclaimed the number 1 trend at the 2020 Global Talent Trends (LinkedIn, 2020). Employee experience is “a (potential) employee’s experience in all interactions with the organization and how this corresponds to their expectations” (Mes and Peper, 2018). Do the efforts made at improving employee experience result in proportional growth of measured happiness at work?

4 levels of employee experience as experienced in organizations: EX level 1: Transactional Efficiency Employees feel that the organisation regards them as replaceable resources and a cost item. In their view, the various departments function like separate islands, possibly also competing with one another. Employees view HR as a policy maker and on management’s side, policing contractual matters. Technology is used to automate and tools distributed based on hierarchy. Managers focus on cost savings and maximizing profits. Trust in management is low. EX level 2: Supportive Environment Employees feel that the organization treats them well and that employees also treat one another kindly. Employees trust their managers. The organizational culture is supportive, creating a family-like feeling. The various departments support one another and avoid conflicts. HR’s role is that of helper to employees and managers. Technology is aimed at improving collaboration and communication. Managers focus on financial performance and customer-success.  EX level 3: Purpose-Driven Business Employees feel that the organization has a powerful purpose and vision and this inspires them and gives them direction. The organization’s values are lived each day and apparent in all interactions. Employees do their utmost to smoothly solve the customers’ problems. HR’s role is to support employee productivity and cultivate leadership qualities. Technology is a support system for supporting the employees’ work. Managers focus on financial success and on happy customers and employees.  EX level 4: Equitable growth Employees feel that they are regarded as valuable individuals who resolutely use their creativity and innovative powers to make the greatest possible contributions to the organisations sustainable future success. The key values are diversity and inclusion. Employees are allowed to make mistakes and learn from them, while enjoying maximum personal growth. HR helps employees to be innovative and supports them by giving space for experimentation. Technology also supports personalization, personal growth and community activities. Managers ensure that a successful balance exists between finances, customers, employees and innovation. * Josh Bersin Company 2021

“Expectations have a major impact on employee survey scores,” says Merel van der Lei, of Effectory. “Suppose for example employees have been working for years in an organization at level 1 of the employee experience (see box) and expect nothing more. If the organization has recently taken certain steps and reached level 2, these employees may indeed be pleasantly surprised and at that time give very high scores in surveys. However, if that same organization via scale-ups brings in numerous millennials from level 4, they’ll likely find the employee experience disappointing and scores could be lower.” Van der Lei continues: “Organizations which are on a transactional level in terms of employee experience can still score reasonably well on employee satisfaction, but the employee experience level must match the target group’s expectations and needs.”

“Organizations that invest in employee experience do indeed see upward trends in happiness at work, but not proportionally per employee experience level, and it is not always easily comparable among organizations,” says HXWork’s Heleen Mes. According to research by Josh Bersin Company (2021), enthusiasm, engagement and happiness at work improve the most at level 3. Employee experience is largely subjective; consequently, the highest level of employee experience does not automatically rate a ’10 out of 10′ for happiness at work. “We also grow accustomed to high levels in employee experience. If organizations don’t keep working on it, scores for happiness at work keep getting lower.”

In the past year average job happiness scores rose due to the myriad efforts organisations made around the lockdowns. The key now is to maintain those gains, Mes and Van der Lei state, and to remain cognizant of the pitfalls: things go wrong when the way in which organizations presents themselves to the outside world differs from the internal reality; when employee target groups disagree with the organizational culture; or when developments in or outside the organization no longer align with what employees need to do their jobs well.

The employee experience development levels must grow as the lower levels are maintained: hence, level 4 is level 1 + level 2 + level 3. Van der Lei: “In practice, such stacking can sometimes be less successful: a hip scale-up may indeed have all the characteristics of levels 3 and 4 and resounding purpose, wonderful core values and fancy techno tools, yet employees are still managed highly transactionally.”

Would you like to have a positive impact on employee survey scores? Van der Lei: “Ensure that the expectations match, be transparent about what your organization is and can offer. Research what employees need to function well, depending on the target group. Communicate what you have done with the research findings and use those findings to learn and improve.” Mes: “For employees, lack of appreciation is the biggest sore point in happiness at work surveys, so show your employees more appreciation, let them know you’re pleased with them. Then you’ll make huge jumps in experienced happiness at work.”

Merel van der Lei is Chief Product Officer at  Effectory, a market leader in employee research.

Heleen Mes is an Employee Experience Expert and founder of HXWork – Human Experience of Work (consultancy, project management and masterclasses). She is founder of the LinkedIn group, Employee Experience Nederland/België (2,500 members), and of the Employee Experience Network. An expert in innovative HR, happiness at work, employee experience and design, she is also co-author of Employee Experience – Happy people, better business, which was nominated for the 2019 Management Book award.