In the last few years, the state of the workplace has drastically changed and employers are prioritizing hybrid workplace environments. Since COVID-19 has upended how corporate leaders interact with their employees and how coworkers connect with each other, keeping employees engaged with their workplace has massively grown in importance.
Employees are more selective than ever before about the organizations they will work for. Thus, processes that drive a company’s “collaborative equity” are so crucial to an organization’s success. Collaborative equity is, according to Michael McDaniel of DXC Technology, when all workers have the ability to contribute and communicate equally, regardless of location, role, experience level, language, or device preference. Let’s break down more of what that means for a company’s workplace and culture below.
Prioritizing Employees
The pandemic forced employees to reexamine their professional and personal priorities. Every month, the ranks of the resigned grow even more — nearly 57 million Americans quit between January 2021 and February 2022. And, this trend doesn’t look like it will be slowing down anytime soon. In order to combat these trends, it’s important that employers foster positive atmospheres and experiences for employees in the employee journey.
Companies that support collaborative equity follow two major principles. First, they prioritize employees’ feelings and make sure that they are being heard. The employee experience is important to them, and employers need to make sure they are set up with the right tools for success — no matter where they are located. Because of this, employers are honing in on employee feedback strategies in the workplace. This also includes feedback from remote employees, to help them feel like they are supported even when they are not physically present.
The second principle is making sure that no matter where an employee may be on a hierarchical structure, they still have access to streamlined processes and the data they need to fully participate in the life of the business. For example, a lack of collaborative equity can stem from hierarchies in video calls or junior employees feeling disempowered to speak up in meetings with higher-ups. This can damage an employee’s wellbeing and effectiveness in the workforce.
These two priorities come together to help employers bring a people-first focus into the workplace.
How Tech Can Help
As the workplace shifts to a hybrid workplace model, employers must also make the transition back to the office as seamless as possible. Companies have to start looking through the eyes of their employees to provide the solutions, which is why companies are relying on technology partnerships to create positive experiences in their office spaces. For example, a workplace experience platform can help any company set employees up with the right tools for success by providing them with services such as mobile access, workplace amenities, resource booking, digital programming, and communication tools — all through a single app. Because of this, an employee is able to perform at their best in the workplace.
New technological innovations can improve representation equity, which can be defined as fair treatment, access, opportunity, and advancement for all people. With the use of a singular platform to communicate with colleagues, there is no hierarchy and everyone can be represented equally.
At the end of the day, providing a truly inclusive environment — both virtually and physically — requires HR teams and business leaders to look at how their technology will affect their workers’ ability to function on-site or remotely. Effective technology should create a positive employee experience regardless of where they are. Forward-thinking business leaders are investing in collaborative equity through technology, as well as enabling them to feel empowered about the future direction of the company.
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