Josh Bersin Research Finds Organizational Culture Is Top Driver for Creating Excellent Employee Experience

While technology is important, trust in leadership, transparency, and inclusion matter more, advises global HR analyst Josh Bersin

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The Josh Bersin Company

Jul 14, 2021, 11:30 ET

OAKLAND, Calif., July 14, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- The Josh Bersin Company today announced a comprehensive, research-based report on employee experience (EX) trends, best practices, supporting technologies, and EX maturity across industry sectors. The report identifies the six most important principles of EX; the 15 practices that have greatest impact on business, employees, and innovation; a holistic EX framework; guidance for operationalizing EX initiatives; and an analysis of the EX technology architecture.

How technology use correlates to EX maturity.

The six-part report, The Definitive Guide: Employee Experience, is a response to the emergence of EX as one of the key factors to successfully adapting to new business and workforce challenges brought about by the COVID-19 pandemic. EX has evolved from niche engineering projects to strategic, enterprise-wide initiatives. Fortune 500 CEOs such as Microsoft's Satya Nadella, Unilever's Alan Jope, and GM's Mary Barra all cite as EX as critical for achieving business success.

Commissioned by Microsoft, the report is based on survey respondents representing 981 companies, hours of conversations and in-depth interviews with senior HR and business leaders, and extensive analysis of technology trends over the last year. The report aligns with today's broad view of EX: the application of design thinking and technologies to provide HR offerings and services, organizational environments, and overall work experiences that improve productivity, employee engagement and retention, and business outcomes.

Although many view EX as primarily a technology challenge, the six key EX principles identified through the research are related to creating a culture of trust and transparency, equitable rewards, ongoing people-related investments, and the development of HR capabilities.

Research found that 55% of the companies represented are at the lower two levels of the report's four-level maturity model. The industry segments at the highest maturity levels – focused on creating a purpose-driven business and equitable growth – are those dependent on innovation for business success, such as life sciences, technology, and financial services.

The report's discussion on operationalizing EX teams for success emphasizes the need for cross-functional teams, a multi-year commitment, the creation of personas, and the inclusion of employee feedback throughout all work. Its special section on EX technology, which revolves around the evolution of HR technology to work technology, identifies people analytics, knowledge management, and advanced learning tools as the types of technology solutions that support highest levels of EX maturity.

Those interested in learning how various companies are approaching EX in the post-pandemic business climate will find case studies highlighting the initiatives of Unilever, Deutsche Telekom, IBM, and Kraft Heinz.

A complimentary copy of the report available, is available here for a limited time. For further information about other research conducted by The Josh Bersin Company and special services available to corporate members, email [email protected].

Josh Bersin, CEO and global industry analyst, said: "Without the right leadership, capabilities and behaviors, any progress in EX will be short-lived and unsustainable. It's a choice to make: are you prioritizing business-centered leadership in which the business is first and people are second or emphasizing human-centered leadership that prioritizes your people? Above all, remember that the journey to a world-class employee experience is an ongoing process enabled by close listening to your people."

Kathi Enderes, vice president of research, said: "EX is multi-faceted, complex and multi-layered. No single project or technology solution will create EX excellence. Our research delves into the many different factors and dimensions involved in EX, as well as various strategies and programs. While technologies and services alone don't drive great EX, they absolutely are correlated to EX maturity."

About The Josh Bersin Company
The Josh Bersin Company provides a wide range of research and advisory services to help HR leaders and professionals tackle the ever-evolving challenges and needs of today's workforces. Recent research initiatives span diversity and inclusion, hybrid work, wellbeing, HR capabilities, and business resilience. The Josh Bersin Academy is the world's first global development academy for HR and talent professionals and a transformation agent for HR organizations. The Academy, which currently has approximately 20,000 members, offers content-rich online courses, a carefully curated library of tools and resources, and a global community that helps HR and talent professionals stay current on the trends and practices needed to drive organizational success in the modern world of work. For more information, visit www.joshbersin.com and www.bersinacademy.com.

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