Authors: Kathleen Schulz William Ziebell
In today's rapidly evolving business landscape, what truly sets successful organizations apart is their people — the ones who bring innovative ideas, passion and resilience to the table. Employers can unlock their workforce's full potential by investing in wellbeing, development, engagement and the right benefits. It's through an empowered people strategy, underpinned by data, technology and trust, that organizations not only achieve their goals but also create sustainable excellence and growth.
Top-performing organizations understand the importance of their role as employers. They recognize employees as the driving force behind their success and focus on enhancing organizational wellbeing by investing wisely in their people strategy. This investment means adopting a holistic approach that supports the overall health and performance of the organization by prioritizing the physical, emotional, career and financial wellbeing of their employees.
"Employers all over the world spend a lot of time on their business strategies but have a big opportunity to improve their people strategies," says Wllliam F. Ziebell, global CEO, Benefits and HR Consulting. "The very best organizations understand how important employees are to their success and take the time to strategize and use data to determine what their talent needs from them and their employee value proposition."
For organizational wellbeing to thrive, the employee value proposition must resonate with the workforce and be lived within the organization. It requires actively listening to employees, understanding their preferences and needs, and helping them make the most of their benefits. When organizations actively do this, they send a powerful message: "We hear you, we care about you, and we're committed to making your experience better."
By putting employees first, organizations can help ensure that the positive experiences of their workforce extend to customers. Satisfied and engaged employees are more likely to provide exceptional service, find creative solutions and reach peak performance.
Shaping company culture through communication and leadership
Leaders set the tone for company culture and values. Modeling behaviors such as integrity, respect and inclusivity creates an environment where employees feel valued. Effective leaders build trust and credibility within the organization and foster an environment that encourages open communication and collaboration. It's nearly impossible for a person who isn't trusted to lead a high-performing team.
A focus on two-way communication signals to employees that they're a vital part of that team. It helps them better interpret leadership actions and understand their role in supporting the mission. When sufficiently informed and invested in the organization's success, employees are more likely to contribute ideas that solve challenging issues and adapt to change when necessary.
Helping leaders understand the importance of their communication — in words and actions — and their impact as organizational champions is a worthwhile investment. The communication strategy is only as strong as its weakest link. As messages cascade from the highest levels of leadership, trust and engagement can erode if any individual in the chain doesn't carry the enthusiasm or clarity of the message.
When authentic messaging fails to reach frontline employees, organizations should investigate the reasons. It's important to check that the message resonates: Build feedback loops that run in all directions to know when information isn't cutting through and equip frontline managers with the necessary skills to elicit employee engagement.
Using the power of data to optimize people management
Data and information move organizations from relying on anecdotal observations and intuition to having empirical evidence that supports objective decision-making for shaping the people strategy. Understanding workforce values and leveraging data to drive decisions allows employers to optimize their benefits package, engage employees and enhance their overall employee value proposition.
The power of data is seemingly limitless as tools and platforms for integrating information and producing actionable insights grow in sophistication. For example, although medical claims data is informational, integrated data analysis illuminates the highest priorities for employees and employers alike as organizational leaders assess their medical plan and healthcare programming and then calculate the potential impact of actions.
According to Kathleen Schulz, global innovation leader, Organizational Wellbeing, "The only way an organization is going to make sure that their budget dollars, their strategies and the energy of their team are focused on the right priorities is to have a data-driven approach."
Collaborating with an advisor who's read into the organization's goals and employee value proposition can help unlock the full value of data. A trusted partner can identify the strategic implications, critical gaps and action items, and then support employers in prioritizing and executing next steps.
The risk of not fully leveraging data can be costly. For example, if an employer can't determine why certain employees aren't participating in the retirement plan, the employer can't put measures in place to solve the problem. The downstream effect can be severe, potentially leaving older workers financially unprepared to retire, resulting in elevated medical claims, a clogged pipeline for new and growing talent, and loss of retention. Data-based insights can offer an employer a detailed look at the demographics of participants and non-participants to better understand their roadblocks and align an education initiative targeting individuals for retirement readiness.
Embracing technology to improve performance
The digital transformation of the people strategy is upon us. Integrating digital technology into all business areas fundamentally changes how organizations operate, deliver value to their customers, and engage and communicate with their employees. It involves rethinking and redesigning business processes, company culture and the employee experience to meet changing business and market requirements.
When employers lean into digital transformation and prioritize their employees' technological education and experiences, it generates an exponential impact that ripples through all facets of business operations. To encourage employee engagement, new technology should be intuitive, provide a seamless user experience and offer a channel for questions and feedback. Investment in technology yields benefits such as increased productivity, reduced costs, faster innovation and growth, and higher employee satisfaction and retention — but only if it's used.
