New Workplace, New Engagement Methods

Recently, we discussed the importance of our employees’ interaction with our customers, particularly with our client Avon. Employee engagement is crucial for the world’s largest beauty manufacturer, but it’s also extremely challenging. Therefore, finding the right solution is vital to creating an effective experience.

But what exactly is employee engagement, and why is it so critical?

What is Employee Engagement Exactly?

Employee engagement is not an easy task. Its definition isn’t either; it can be defined in over 50 ways. According to the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD), employees in an engaged state exhibit three psychological conditions:

• Effort
• Dedication
• Absorption

Effort refers to the amount of energy your employees invest in their work, showing resilience even when tasks are challenging. Dedicated employees push for more with enthusiasm and pride in their work. Absorption: When you are completely focused on your work, the likelihood of your outputs being effective is higher.

The Importance of Organizational Culture

On the other hand, creating a company culture of strong, dedicated, and absorbed employees can be extremely challenging. We recognize that organizational culture is a significant component in creating a modern, connected workplace.

However, engaging employees from the outset is crucial; strong employee engagement helps foster a positive, ambitious, and inclusive company culture. Having a robust company culture filled with engaged employees not only sets you apart in the eyes of employees, candidates, and customers but also has a significant impact on business outcomes.

Çalışan bağlılığının iş sonuçları üzerindeki etkisi

According to articles from HR Grapevine, Gallup, and Hubspot, engaged employees are happier and healthier, leading to higher retention and productivity rates. On the other hand, those who are not engaged are 60% more likely to make mistakes.

However, understanding and taking into account the demographic characteristics of this employee pool – both engaged and disengaged – is also important.

Generation Y, or Millennials, now make up the largest percentage of the workforce. Like every new generation, they bring different perceptions and expectations. This group has indicated that they feel engaged at work when they strongly believe in the company’s mission or purpose and when they feel that their work matters. Additionally, 69% of employees stated that they would work harder if they felt recognized and appreciated.

According to research, businesses with engaged employees outperform those without by 202%.

An increase of 10% in customer ratings and a 20% increase in revenue are among the benefits of engagement. Again, employee engagement is crucial for the success of any organization.

When discussing internal communication, there are several key points to consider:

Internal communication teams play a significant role in shaping company culture, but their efforts often go unnoticed; 74% of employees believe they miss out on important information at work, yet only 46% will actually open and read an internal communication email. This may be because 56% of us feel overwhelmed by the volume of emails.

What about those without desks?

Before considering how to improve internal communication, it’s important to understand the makeup of the workforce.

Email is not the most effective communication method for the 2.7 billion workers in fields such as education, healthcare, retail, hospitality, manufacturing, and logistics, who make up about 80% of the active workforce. Email communication is ineffective for deskless workers who are not equipped with company devices and instead rely on informal communication methods like WhatsApp.

In the post-COVID environment, which has complicated communication, hybrid work arrangements are becoming increasingly popular. It is in this complex environment that we recognize the value of screens.

Using Digital Signage for Internal Communication

Customers tell us in meetings that word of mouth and peer-to-peer communication still account for a significant amount of internal communication. This is followed by inconsistent and outdated bulletin boards, whiteboards, and paper notices, which are increasingly difficult to manage and maintain.

Screens already play a part in our lives. They are often either idle, barely used, or showing looped broadcasts.

This presents a tremendous opportunity for offices and work environments with unused screens.

A Look at the Psychology of Digital Signage

Simply put, screens enhance the delivery of important information in the background.

An SMS or email might be immediately acknowledged, but the right content displayed on a screen, in the right place and at the right time, speaks to the subconscious mind.

Researchers say that the subconscious mind can process 20,000 bits of information at a time, constituting about 95% of our cognition.

As a result, digital signage is a powerful communication tool.

Considering that our visual and auditory senses are more receptive to subconscious environmental stimuli, continuous visual-auditory awareness paves the way for stronger memory retention.

How can you maximize the potential of your screens?

It all depends on where you stand in our maturity model; we tend to classify our customers as adept, sophisticated, and strategic digital signage users based on their experience.

With your screens, you can enhance content delivery, such as staff announcements or local weather updates. As you approach the level of an experienced user, you can start targeting specific groups and be more selective about who sees what, rather than having everyone see the same thing.

We aim for all our customers to become strategic users who evaluate the impact of their materials against their goals and key performance indicators. However, this is not the case for most of our customers. This information is then used to alter and refine the content strategy.

DSFEED

Using digital signage strategically requires a lot of effort. Knowing what to show, when, and where can be challenging if you want your material to be dynamic.

A strategic user will need different versions for various audiences and times of the day. When working with a smaller team, you may need to rely more on technology and automate some tasks to reduce management stress.

That’s why we created the Dsfeed system.

It’s not just a “DIY” feature of a content management system; it’s a sophisticated approach that helps you understand the “why” behind how you use your screens and become a strategic user.

Together, I believe we can create something seamless and inclusive for all employees. As a result, the head office and local offices can logically organize information. We are talking about a content strategy that can be tailored to the needs of your organization.

It’s also possible to measure the impact of your screens, demonstrating the ROI of adopting digital signage in your modernized office to enhance the connected workplace of the future.

Ultimately, this is about enabling people to take constructive action in the real world, not just viewing a screen. Employee engagement is about this too: a sense of belonging and purpose.

Interested in learning more about DSFEED?

The Dsfeed Professional Services team is ready to discuss how they can help you optimize your screen potential. Request a demo and see how Dsfeed can elevate you from competent to strategic