What Is Workplace Experience?

Workplace experience matters. But what is it, and how can you influence it? This article tells all, with some quick tips to get the ball rolling.
by
Jen Kelly

Employee experience matters. It boosts productivity, and word gets around that your organization is a great one to work for. According to Gallup’s research project on company culture, employees who are highly engaged are 41% less likely to be absent during office hours and 17% more likely to be productive. But what is workplace experience, and how can you influence it in a positive direction? This article tells all about how to improve workplace experience, with some quick tips to get the ball rolling. Read on!

Defining Workplace Experience

Workplace experience is, in the simplest terms, the experience that your staff has while employed by your company. This includes space, people, and technology, and this article will focus on these. It sounds easy, but there are many components. A faulty coffee machine can put a dent in the workplace experience, and so can thankless work.

We all know what we don’t like when it comes to office experience. We also know how it can affect our day, productivity, and work ethics. That is why as leaders, it's important for us to identify the most effective work experience ideas to help our employees make the best of their time, and yours.

How to Optimize Employee Experience

Let’s look at some of the best ways to improve the workplace experience in the office.

1. Create a culture of communication and trust

Nothing breeds trust like an environment full of happy, energetic faces, and nothing creates that other than a positive office experience. It’s a circular benefit that goes a long way for you and your employees. Open communication builds relationships, and this encourages collaboration and productivity.

2. Provide meaningful work

According to BigThink, 9 out of 10 employees would take a pay cut for more meaningful work. With that in mind, look at your employee’s workloads, and ask whether it's as meaningful as they could be. This might be down to balance, e.g., give somebody who loves numbers a job that works with numbers. Providing balance and intention can make every day more meaningful.

3. Positive work environment

Work environments can be optimized through flexibility (e.g., leaving room for hybrid/remote working arrangements), diversity of skills, and inclusion. For instance, including your team as a whole in administrative decisions and/or upcoming projects goes a long way. Also, as a management team, your goal should be to be as supportive as possible. It’s great when the bosses have your back!

4. A good work-life balance

A big focus of employers in 2023 is providing their teams with a good work-life balance. Whether that means altering hours or integrating remote working, the goal is to reach out to your employees and ask them if they are getting what they need. It's vital for their well-being.

One small way you can achieve this is through recurring employee lunches, as this gives them one less thing to worry about - now they don’t have to fill their free time with making and packing tomorrow’s lunches (yay!).

“At Flybits, we are always striving for innovative ways to provide an exceptional employee experience, especially with our hybrid work strategy. With Ritual, we have the ability to offer lunch credits for all employees who come in on Tuesdays and it has been working really well.” – Krishna Kambhampati, Manager, People & Culture at Flybits

5. Growth and career-advancing opportunities

It's important to show employees (especially new ones) the potential of working with your company and how a commitment to your industry can lead to the next rung on the ladder. People love to know where they stand, which can provide them with additional motivation to do well to pursue their goals within your company.

Conclusion

Improving workplace experience starts with developing your workplace experience ideas. To stop the ideas from being ethereal, implement some practical practices. For instance, integrating company-provided team lunches can be arranged tomorrow. It’s real, tangible, and will create excitement in the office.

Jen Kelly
Part of the founding team, Jen is the Head of Global Sales at Ritual. Wearing many hats, she is a highly experienced leader with a demonstrated history of sales management, sales operations and market expansion in the information technology and services industries. She enjoys writing about leadership, coaching and management, entrepreneurship, sales operations, and more.
Jen Kelly
Part of the founding team, Jen is the Head of Global Sales at Ritual. Wearing many hats, she is a highly experienced leader with a demonstrated history of sales management, sales operations and market expansion in the information technology and services industries. She enjoys writing about leadership, coaching and management, entrepreneurship, sales operations, and more.