{"id":49361,"date":"2021-05-10T15:14:10","date_gmt":"2021-05-10T14:14:10","guid":{"rendered":""},"modified":"2021-05-10T15:14:10","modified_gmt":"2021-05-10T14:14:10","slug":"unite-your-people-with-the-right-employee-experience-platform","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/newed.any0.dpdns.org\/en-gb\/industry\/blog\/cross-industry\/2021\/05\/10\/unite-your-people-with-the-right-employee-experience-platform\/","title":{"rendered":"Unite your people with the right employee experience platform"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"AnOutside of small pockets of excellence, the HR and employee experience tech market has very rarely managed to pique my interest and imagination. I enjoy the marketing, energy and communities around certain products. However, many of these products or platforms focus almost exclusively on very narrow and specific aspects of employee experiences. That is not a bad thing. There are many exceptional platforms that make a positive contribution to the performance of the employee experience. The challenge is that they are often sold as the complete employee experience solution or platform when they aren\u2019t. This is a problem because technology is then poorly positioned as the cure-all for employee experience.<\/p>\n

The current state of employee experience tech<\/h2>\n
As someone who is immersed in the employee experience field, I often reflect on how the market can impact the future of work.\u00a0 Often, the focus with employee experience tech is not always where it should be. The employee experience, in many instances, is overrun with technology solutions and vendors all working on different parts of the puzzle.<\/div>\n

For employees, this can be especially bewildering. They have to navigate far too many apps and platforms during a normal working day. To leaders, it can be a challenge to manage and deliver the value that such technologies promise. It\u2019s all got a bit too much. One company I came across had several hundred technology solutions. This caused confusion with the employees and the company. This delivers fragmentation at the expense of focus \u2013 one of the notable problems Microsoft attempts to solve.<\/p>\n

I\u2019ve often said that there are only a handful of companies around the world that could ever build an integrated employee experience platform. Microsoft is one of them. In just one day, Microsoft 365 users take part in more than 30 billion collaboration minutes. This is very helpful when creating a platform that flows with the daily rhythms of work. So, I was intrigued to learn more about Microsoft Viva<\/a> and its capabilities.<\/p>\n

Connecting employee experiences<\/h2>\n

\"AdultThe promised land for employee experience technology is a platform that helps people to effortlessly connect to the things that help them to be successful in life and work. That\u2019s the bottom-line. Indeed, it\u2019s the only line that matters when thinking about productivity, performance, and wellbeing. If the technology in a business is not directly helping people to deliver their best work and live their best life, then we do really need to question buying decisions.<\/p>\n

Focussed and decisive companies are the one’s that win in the market\u00a0 \u2013 it\u2019s the same with the employee experience. I talk about this in my book, Employee Experience<\/em><\/a>. At the heart of the holistic employee experience (HEX), is the Truth \u2013 a company\u2019s purpose, mission, and values. Technology platforms are there to enable and reinforce this Truth for each unique brand every day and in every way. If a company\u2019s technology is clunky, cumbersome, or a chore to use, this will not contribute to a positive experience in work. In fact, quite the opposite will happen, and it will seriously hinder progress.<\/p>\n

That\u2019s why the scale and scope of the connectivity across the Microsoft ecosystem is as exciting as it is powerful. The full power of Microsoft 365<\/a> is behind Viva, which brings together a variety of mission critical elements\u00a0including communications, knowledge, learning, resources and insights. The initial start point for the platform includes Viva Connections, Viva Insights, Viva Learning, and Viva Topics.<\/p>\n

A joined up employee experience platform<\/h2>\n

Historically, there\u2019s no doubt that employee experience technology within companies has not been joined up in any meaningful way. Microsoft Viva offers an answer to this. It will be interesting to see how it develops to add even more value across the holistic employee experience in the future. The platform itself is feature rich and covers many important aspects of organisational life.<\/p>\n