Every year it becomes harder to be become a “Great Place to Work.” In an article by Robin Madell in U.S. News & World Report examining what makes organizations excel, she states how the digital workplace is an integral part of creating flexibility and a healthy work-life balance for the top companies.
Based on the fact that millennials only make up 11 percent of the employee population among the companies on the 2014 Fortune “100 Best Places to Work” list, Madell points out that companies that have not begun adapting their culture may be lagging in the development of a future talent pool. Here are the other key areas from the article and how the digital workplace will support them:
- Talent and investing in development: Once an employer reaches out to a perspective employee they must be prepared to be searched (Google, Bing, Yahoo, etc.). While humans are still the first impression, a company’s website/recruiting site and email communications must exemplify the culture and technological capabilities. Highly-talented individuals have the desire for access to the vast knowledge of the organization and don’t want to have to start from scratch. Having integrated human resources, hiring and knowledge systems is a necessity for providing these experiences.
- Using inspiration to motivate: Using a quote from the CEO of the Best Places to Work Institute, China Gorman, “…employers are keeping employees engaged by keeping them inspired.” Nowhere has this effort become easier than through enterprise social networking sites integrated into the fabric of a corporation. No longer is the corporate communications team responsible for creating this inspiration. Every employee has the potential to share experiences quickly and easily.
- Always-on work environments and forward thinking: These are pillars of the digital workplace, allow for flexibility in technology to adapt to the ever-changing needs of your employees and allow access to that technology anywhere, anytime from any device. Madell makes a great point to highlight that given this ability there may be the opposite expectation from the company that an employee is always available to work, so they should.
More than ever, this article demonstrates how the digital workplace is a requirement for a successful organization. How is your company stacking up?
Source: U.S. News & World Report, January 2013
