Very few industries are immune to the impact of the global skills shortage which is currently climbing corporate agendas and keeping CEOs awake at night.
Whichever dynamic you hold responsible, whether it’s the pandemic; Brexit; low birth rates in certain countries; retirement of the baby boomer generation; or the Gen X and Gen Y skills lag, the figures aren’t especially encouraging. In fact, by 2030 more than 85 million jobs could go unfilled globally because there aren’t enough skilled people to take them.
Against this backdrop, organisations can’t afford to play fast and loose with their people. Disengaged employees represent a substantial threat and as a result, improving engagement and satisfaction must be a priority.
As Gen X and Gen Y increasingly dominate the workforce, the right digital strategy, encompassing a good digital employee experience, is paramount.
Forrester defines the digital employee experience as “The sum of all the perceptions that employees have about working with the technology they use to complete their daily work and manage their relationship with their employer across the lifecycle of their employment.”
According to a recent study, 71% of employees want the same digital experience at work as they have in their personal lives, yet 67% of employees report that this is not the case.
In fact, 52% of employees believe that software related to their employee experience is dated and difficult to use, while 24% of employees have considered leaving their job because the apps and software they use are not a good match for their needs.
While these figures are perhaps unsurprising for the majority of us, it highlights the extent of the problem, and shines a spotlight on the need for a robust digital employee experience strategy. Without one, organisations risk losing their talent to competitors with better digital solutions.
Given the prevalence of technology in all aspects of the working day, knowing where to start can be a challenge for HR and business leaders.
Finance and HR, in particular, have become guardians of the analytical tools and in-depth intelligence which informs decisions and shapes business strategy. As part of this, they have the means of leveraging insights to identify the most impactful areas in which to invest, and foster greater employee engagement. In addition, this insight can be used to support talent development through employing people with the skills necessary to complement roles, bring value to teams and boost performance.
HR and talent management solutions can also enhance employee engagement, equipping people with an efficient means to collaborate, communicate, feedback and promote advocacy. This can in turn then boost retention, bolster reputation and garner goodwill around a company’s brand from a people point of view.
Of course, cloud is a crucial enabler of engagement, facilitating timely access to the intuitive systems people need to do their jobs efficiently, with automatic updates and upgrades ensuring they’re always working with the most-up-to-date version of the software. And the fact that cloud is the engine room of remote working opens up the talent pool from both a geographic and diversity perspective.
The way in which we work has clearly shifted, whether that means home, hybrid or hot desk style working, or plant or warehouse teams needing mobile access to rotas or schedules for efficient operations. Digital is the predominant lever available to organisations as they look to facilitate new world working models in the best way possible. The right technology means that the entire workforce can benefit from all-important flexibility that more job candidates are putting further up their list of priorities when it comes to choosing a job.
What is clear is that the digital experience of an employee is, in 2024, directly related to their level of satisfaction and subsequent engagement. Simply put, the right digital platforms and applications can support employee engagement and attract higher volumes of tech-savvy Gen X and Gen Y talent.
In the new world, getting the right balance of people, processes and technology is pivotal to bridging skills shortages. Those who prioritise this will undoubtedly be better positioned to withstand the growing crisis in the next five years, and foster a thriving workforce from which to pursue growth strategies and win market share in an increasingly tumultuous economy.
Posted On: November 28, 2023
