5 ways HR leaders benefit from workplace technology
Below are 5 ways that workplace technology can support HR leaders. As a modern HR leader, you are expected to be more forward-thinking and contribute to ideas as improving employee well-being, retaining and acquiring talent, and increasing employee productivity. Workplace technology can help you reach your goals.
1. The importance of improving well-being
Workplace technology helps your employees feel more free and in control. This increased sense of autonomy boosts positivity throughout the entire workday - from the moment they arrive at the parking, until they leave for home and everything in between. Collaborations with team members, which are the most important reason to come to the office, are especially improved. Better team meetings result in an increased sense of belonging which in turn improves motivation, health, and happiness.
Research (Bryson, Forth, and Stokes, 2015) backs the direct link between job satisfaction and work performance. As an HR leader, it pays off to make employee job satisfaction a top priority.
2. Retaining and acquiring talent
In today’s economy, the value of your business is no longer determined by the number of factories or machines you own. As an HR leader, you know that the skilled and well-educated people in your business are your biggest driver for growth.
As a result, you can only win in your industry by attracting the best talent for your organization. This is particularly difficult now that many of your competitors are recognizing the increasing importance of soft skills for business success. With companies spending billions of dollars on training and recruiting (Deloitte, 2017), attracting and retaining talent is now so fierce that it is often referred to as the war for talent.
With the continuing advances in technology, it comes as no surprise that today’s biggest talents now expect more workplace technology. When your employees can work from home on an adjustable desk in a room where they can control temperature and the amount of light with their voice, the office has to bring something extra for people to even want to go there.
The costs of an employee leaving your company are multi-faceted, including:
- Replacement costs (agency fees, job advertisements, etc.)
- Costs related to temporary coverage (with high interim fees)
- Compensation for the new hire
- Onboarding costs (training and orientation)
- Costs of reduced productivity
- Poor team morale.
When your employees feel that their well-being at work is a priority, they are less likely to leave your company.
3. Employee productivity
Research (Leesman, 2018) shows that 60% of employees globally agree their workplace enables them to work productively. In other words, four out of ten employees feel they are not optimally supported to contribute to your business goals right now.
Typical and predictable employee frustrations drive this dissatisfaction. For example, only 29% of employees globally are satisfied with quiet rooms for working alone or in pairs. Finding a place for ad-hoc and hybrid meetings is another frustration that negatively affects productivity. With workplace technology, like our hybrid meetings solutions, you empower your entire workforce to find a working environment that suits their goals best. These activity-based workspaces result in better motivation and productivity.
4. Absenteeism rate
Decreasing absenteeism rates is a topic at the top of many HR leaders’ agendas. Employees calling in sick results in high second-tier costs such as reduced productivity, costs of temporary replacement, and costs related to missing deadlines.
Smart offices that improve employee well-being help reduce absenteeism rates.
"Today the competition for talent isn’t coming from the advertising industry, it’s coming from technology companies like Facebook and Twitter. One of the best ways we can compete is to offer the most creative, collaborative, and innovative workspace."
R/GA’s Founder, CEO, and Chairman Bob Greenberg in an interview with Forbes
5. Rethink what your office can do for your employees
Employees increasingly expect more from their offices. Frontrunners in HR know that employee well-being drives results. Workplace technologies have a multiplier effect by targeting all of your KPIs simultaneously: talent acquisition and retention, employee productivity, and absenteeism rates. Are you ready to rethink what your office can do for you? Contact our workplace experience advisors.
