Sponsored by Workforce Software
Most HR and business leaders know that their employee experience profoundly influences organizational success. It shapes morale, productivity — even the bottom line.
So, if you want to improve the future of work, it’s time to think outside of the standard office “box” when you think about employee experience. Why? Consider this fact: A whopping 80% of the world’s workers don’t even sit behind a desk. Instead, these deskless workers show up each day on the frontlines of healthcare, hospitality, manufacturing, transportation, and other industries.
It makes sense to offer these workers an employee experience that meets their unique needs. But what exactly do they want? That’s a good question. And it’s why we’re exploring this topic today with an expert in the psychology of work…
Meet Our Guest: Angelina Sun
I’m excited to welcome Angelina Sun, PhD, Workforce Management Solutions Director at Workforce Software. Angelina has worked in various industries, including education, consulting, computing, electronics, e-commerce, and enterprise software.
In her current role, Angelina focuses on how to manage and communicate effectively with deskless workers. She’s inspired by technologies that offer intelligent and innovative responses to social changes and contemporary workforce issues. And I think she’s the ideal person to talk about how employers can better address the interests of deskless workers. Please join us as we explore this topic…
Defining Employee Experience
Welcome, Angelina! What would you say employee experience means for shift-based deskless workers?
The concept of employee experience is interpreted in multiple ways. I think of it as all the individual moments and interactions along an employee’s journey, as well as their perception of those moments.
For deskless workers, it’s about meeting their expectations for better pay, schedule flexibility, and work-life balance. They want to feel better informed and more fully supported. And they want to know that they are heard.
Deskless Realities
Could you tell us more about the challenges these workers face?
Our research found that 50% of deskless workers deal with weekly shift changes. And the same percentage receive their schedules at most one week in advance. This means their employee experience is constantly falling behind.
These people need more work schedule flexibility. They need multiple training options. And they need to have a voice in their work.
These are real issues that organizations must address to improve the employee experience for deskless workers.
Technology’s Role
How is technology helping organizations address these needs?
Improving employee experience definitely requires more than human effort, alone. The right tools and technology are certainly a critical enabler.
For most deskless workers, that means going mobile. If resources are directly available where they’re working, they don’t need to go out of their way to find information, or have to email their colleagues and managers. In fact, most deskless workers don’t even have a work-specific email account.
Benefits of Supporting Deskless Workers
Your point about email is so important to keep in mind!
Absolutely. These people are doing their jobs on the shop floor or behind the wheel, so they don’t have access to a computer. Their requirements are very different.
But organizations that optimize the employee experience for deskless workers report 18% higher productivity, while reducing turnover cost by 25-59%.
They also see improvement in key business performance metrics…
For more insights from Angelina about how to improve the employee experience for deskless workers, listen to this full podcast episode. And be sure to subscribe to the #WorkTrends Podcast on Apple Podcasts or Stitcher.
Also, to continue this conversation on social media anytime, follow our #WorkTrends hashtag on Twitter, LinkedIn, and Instagram.
