What if Your Employees Were Your Customers?

Have you ever stopped to consider that as employees, we’re actually consumers within our own workplaces?

We consume the leadership of our managers, the culture of our organisations, and yes, even the HR processes that shape our daily experiences.

Imagine if we treated our employees with the same care and consideration we give our customers. What if we viewed HR processes as products, carefully designed to meet the needs of their users – us, the employees? It’s a simple shift in thinking, but the implications are profound.

In the marketplace, we wouldn’t dream of launching a product without customer input. We’d listen carefully to needs, co-create solutions, and continuously refine based on feedback. So why do we often implement HR processes without the same level of employee insight? It’s time to bridge that gap. This brings me the Employee Experience (EX) equation. It looks like this:

Now, don’t let the maths scare you off! It’s very simple. WEI stands for Wellbeing, Engagement, and Inclusion – the core initiatives that directly impact our day-to-day experience.

The 3Ps are our Policies, Processes, and Procedures – the operational framework of our organisations (which, if not supportive, undermine our well-meaning initiatives). And the 4Hs? They’re the outcomes we’re all striving for: Happy, Healthy, Harmonious, and High-performing workplaces. These together form the Employee Experience overall.

If we apply the principles of product development to our HR processes, we open up a world of possibilities. We could treat new initiatives as ‘minimum viable products’, gathering feedback early and often. We could iterate and improve based on real-world usage, maintaining an ongoing dialogue with employees – just as we would with valued customers.

The potential impact of this approach is huge; increased engagement and productivity, better talent attraction and retention, improved organisational agility, and employees who are happy to go that extra mile. But more than that, we’re talking about creating workplaces where people genuinely want to be.

So, I put it to you: Are we ready to revolutionise our approach to employee experience? Can we start seeing our workplaces through the eyes of a consumer, always on the lookout for ways to improve, refine, and delight? The future of work is here, and it’s all about treating your employees as your most valued customers. I, for one, am excited to see where this new perspective might take us.

Introducing People & Culture Consulting

You can learn much more about the EX equation, how to make the crucial transition from HR to People and Culture and get started on your journey of transformation by getting in touch with us through People & Culture Consulting, our brand dedicated to revolutionising workplace culture.

Check out the People & Culture Hub for resources and tools to get started (including the EX equation) from my book, Transformational Culture.

                       

David Liddle

David is the founder, CEO and chief consultant at The TCM Group. He is also the founding president of the People and Culture Association (PCA). David is author of two best seeing texts. His first book, published in 2017, is entitled: ‘MANAGING CONFLICT: a practical guide to resolution in the… MORE >