Empowering employees through digital transformation is key to improving CX

Diane Meyers

As digital transformation drives rapid business change, the 2020 NTT CX Benchmarking report finds that 49.7% of organisations see the need to evolve and be agile, with one in five saying they are proactive and growth-orientated. In addition, 48% acknowledge a need to optimise the workplace environment to meet the demands of an evolving workforce. This is imperative, as an engaged and empowered workforce is the key to driving and delivering improved customer experiences that offer customers the access to information, entertainment, and physical products on demand that they desire through highly consumable, immediate and personalised usage mechanisms. Essentially, you cannot expect to deliver a positive customer experience without delivering on an engaging employee experience.

When developing employee engagement strategies, it is important to consider the following factors:

The impact of digital transformation on skills needs

As technology continues to have an impact on all areas of the organisation, the lifespan of skills continues to lessen. This does not mean that automation is set to take over all human jobs, but rather that employees are having to constantly reskill and upskill in order to remain relevant and able to work alongside the latest technologies.

While automation and digital transformation have taken over many simple processes with defined beginning and end points, the organisation will continue to require the human workforce to deal with more complex interactions – which means adopting new skills, technologies and working practices to optimise operational capability. Organisations who are looking to remain ahead of the curb need to ensure they are implementing upskilling strategies and programmes for their staff.

The importance of delivering the “why” and not only the “how”

Employees not only need to understand how they are expected to work alongside and interact with the latest technology, they also need to understand the role of automation, recognising it as a valuable support rather than a threat.

Organisations need to ensure they are providing training and insights on the “why” of digital transformation, and not focusing solely on the “how”. Employees who feel energized and empowered in this regard will be more likely to engage with the organisation and its goals, ultimately delivering improved customer experience.

The generational factor

The last few years have been unprecedented for businesses globally, as, for the first time in history, there are five generations present in the workplace. Each generation has its own set of needs when it comes to communication, technology and business processes – and organisations need to take this into account when implementing a digital transformation strategy in order to ensure all employees are working together successfully towards the same organisational goals.

In our own organisation, which has an average employee age of 29.8, we found that while 62% of those aged 18 – 35 have asked for technology to help them work more effectively, only 33% of those aged 51 – 70 have done the same. Further, 64% of those aged 18 – 35 say they would like the organisation to use more technology, such as AI, in its practices and processes, while only 37% of those aged 51 – 70 felt the same. This means that organisations need to be flexible and purposeful in implementing digital transformation strategies, to ensure the needs of each generation are being met in terms of training and implementation.

The recent Covid-19 pandemic is a good example of where this can be experienced by a business, as more local businesses move into offering a work from home solution for their employees. While millennials and Gen Z’s will likely revel in this and be able to quickly get on board with using new platforms for communication and productivity, Baby Boomers and Traditionalists might be more resistant to the change. The organisation needs to have a flexible strategy in place that can assist in shifting attitudes toward technology.

Technology should be seen and utilised as a key enabler to align customer experience with business outcomes. A considered customer experience and employee experience culture and environment will set the scene for an optimised workforce where employee and customer satisfaction are the ultimate output – ensuring the organisation remains relevant in the digitally driven environment of tomorrow.