Ako vyplýva z britskej analýzy, čoraz viac spoločností si uvedomuje veľký potenciál, ktorý je ukrytý v ich zamestnancoch. Značky, ktoré sú na popredných miestach v rebríčkoch zákaznícky najobľúbenejších značiek zvyčajne kladú oveľa väčší dôraz na spokojnosť zamestnancov, čo sa, samozrejme, pozitívne odráža aj na raste ich biznisu. 

In the UK there’s a growing recognition of the power of the employee experience, and businesses are looking at ways to honor and understand their workforces for the betterment of the consumer. It also has economic logic. Extensive research has shown that in general there is a strong economic link between the employee experience and the customer experience.

Happy employees produce 37% more sales and are 12% more productive. At the same time, the are less inclined to leave their job, and they also take fewer sick days and make fewer mistakes.

Just like in many other areas of business much of this is to do with trust; several businesses are asking, “If our employees don’t trust us, how will the customer?” Therefore, some renewed effort has been put into fostering dynamic working environments, where open dialogues are encouraged between employees and their managers.

An example is the approach of Lush, which ranks in third in the UK customer experience survey 2019. Whilst all of Lush’s employees are given rigorous training to aid product knowledge, they’re also given autonomy – an example of how the company culture can impact the colleague experience in the Human Value Chain. For instance, each Lush shop has the option of opting out of a window campaign if they have objections to it. And in reaching this decision, shop managers take into account the opinions of all their staff members, coming to a collective and democratic decision.

A similar sense of democracy can be seen with the digital-only bank Monzo, which ranks in second place. Although it’s a company made up of individual teams, they are non-hierarchical, and often comprised of the best analysts from elsewhere in banking. The company pays close attention to customer analytics, and all employees – including the CEO – receive insights on live dashboards, meaning that everyone is aware of how their decisions are impacting the consumer.

The highest-ranking organization in the UK 2019 research is the bank first direct – a company which has taken the top spot four times in the last 10 years. It describes its purpose as being to “deliver pioneering service” and it puts the customer at the heart of its operations. This means being ready to react to the ever-changing needs of the customer. “Customer expectations change, technologies change,” says Head of first direct Joe Gordon. “In 1989 we set up to pioneer amazing service and the how of today then was telephony. Then it changed and we changed to online banking, then it changed to app banking and then today to Open Banking. Our ability to cope with that change and understand that change in today’s environment, as well as being consistent with our focus, is key.”

In achieving this vision, first direct cites its employees as one of its most important assets. According to Helen Priestley, Head of Brand, the company acknowledges that whilst certain processes can always be replicated and automated, human beings cannot. To first direct, they are “much more valuable,” with Priestley adding, “that’s why people will always be at the heart of the business.”

You can read more practical examples of how brand optimize their management systems and culture to achieve exceptional employee and customer experience in the Power to the People study.