5 Employee Experience Examples for Talent Retention

What is Employee Experience and Why is it Important

The employ­ee expe­ri­ence refers to all of an employ­ee’s unique inter­ac­tions with their com­pa­ny at each stage of their employ­ee life­cy­cle. As the job mar­ket is becom­ing more com­pet­i­tive, com­pa­nies are under­stand­ing the impor­tance of cre­at­ing a pos­i­tive employ­ee expe­ri­ence to attract and retain top tal­ent. Since the pan­dem­ic and The Great Res­ig­na­tion, reten­tion is even more crit­i­cal than ever. In 2021, over 40% of employ­ees con­sid­ered leav­ing their jobs because com­pa­nies were not meet­ing their expec­ta­tions of flex­i­bil­i­ty and var­i­ous def­i­n­i­tions of well­be­ing. This is when we start­ed to see com­pa­nies imple­ment strate­gies to improve employ­ee reten­tion, such as pri­or­i­tiz­ing men­tal & phys­i­cal health, offer­ing growth & devel­op­ment oppor­tu­ni­ties, tran­si­tion­ing to remote/​hybrid work, invest­ing in dig­i­tal trans­for­ma­tion, and cre­at­ing a cul­ture for feed­back. In oth­er words, pri­or­i­tiz­ing the over­all employ­ee experience.

Wellness, Well-being, and Employee Experience

Employ­ee well-being has become a grow­ing trend in the work­place as com­pa­nies rec­og­nize the impor­tance of pri­or­i­tiz­ing their employ­ees’ men­tal and phys­i­cal health. The def­i­n­i­tion of employ­ee well-being can vary from employ­ee to employ­ee depend­ing on where they are in life. Gen­er­al­ly speak­ing, well-being refers to the over­all state of an employ­ee’s health, hap­pi­ness, and ful­fill­ment both in and out of the office. Fac­tors such as work-life bal­ance, men­tal health, emo­tion­al health, and phys­i­cal health play a role in how indi­vid­u­als rate their state of well-being. 

Wellness vs Well-being

While well­ness ini­tia­tives focus main­ly on pro­mot­ing phys­i­cal health, like gym mem­ber­ships or healthy eat­ing pro­grams, well-being cov­ers a broad­er range of what makes up the whole per­son. imple­ment­ing well-being pro­grams can look like any­thing from offer­ing flex­i­ble work hours to men­tal health resources to well-being challenges. 

Pri­or­i­tiz­ing employ­ee well-being has sev­er­al ben­e­fits for both employ­ees and com­pa­nies. Research has shown that employ­ees who feel sup­port­ed and val­ued in the work­place are more engaged, pro­duc­tive, and less like­ly to expe­ri­ence burnout. This trans­lates to bet­ter busi­ness out­comes, includ­ing increased reten­tion rates and improved orga­ni­za­tion­al performance.

Learn more about how to improve employ­ee wellbeing

Employee Well-being Examples

Real-world exam­ples of orga­ni­za­tions that pri­or­i­tize employ­ee well-being include:

1. Patag­o­nia offers its employ­ees onsite child­care, med­i­ta­tion ses­sions, and paid time off for activism

2. Airbnb pro­vides its employ­ees with a well­ness allowance to cov­er gym mem­ber­ships, well­ness apps, and oth­er well­ness-relat­ed expenses. 

3. Buffer has adopt­ed a ​“remote-first” approach, offer­ing their employ­ees the free­dom to work from any­where in the world, allow­ing them to pri­or­i­tize their men­tal and phys­i­cal health.

The trend of increased empha­sis on employ­ee well-being is cru­cial for com­pa­nies to retain and attract top tal­ent, fos­ter a pos­i­tive work cul­ture, and improve over­all busi­ness out­comes. By pro­vid­ing resources and sup­port to employ­ees to pri­or­i­tize their well-being, com­pa­nies can cre­ate a pos­i­tive and pro­duc­tive work environment.

Prioritize Both Physical and Mental Health

Cre­at­ing a pos­i­tive employ­ee expe­ri­ence requires orga­ni­za­tions to focus on sev­er­al key areas:

• Pri­or­i­tiz­ing phys­i­cal and men­tal health

• Offer­ing employ­ee devel­op­ment opportunities

• Tran­si­tion­ing to remote work

• Invest­ing in dig­i­tal transformation

• Cre­at­ing a feed­back culture

Physical Health

Phys­i­cal Well­ness Pro­grams: Pro­vid­ing employ­ees with access to phys­i­cal well­ness pro­grams such as gym mem­ber­ships, fit­ness chal­lenges, and healthy eat­ing pro­grams can help employ­ees pri­or­i­tize their phys­i­cal health and well-being.

Ergonom­ic Work­spaces: Invest­ing in ergonom­ic work­spaces can help reduce employ­ee stress and phys­i­cal strain, lead­ing to improved over­all health and productivity.

Mental Health

Work/​Life Bal­ance: Sup­port­ing a healthy work/​life bal­ance can help employ­ees man­age stress and feel sup­port­ed in their per­son­al lives. This can include offer­ing flex­i­ble work arrange­ments, paid time off, and encour­ag­ing employ­ees to take breaks through­out the day.

Vol­un­teer Oppor­tu­ni­ties: Pro­vid­ing oppor­tu­ni­ties for employ­ees to engage in vol­un­teer work or com­mu­ni­ty ser­vice can help pro­mote men­tal health by fos­ter­ing a sense of pur­pose and fulfillment.

Employ­ee Appre­ci­a­tion: Show­ing appre­ci­a­tion for employ­ees through recog­ni­tion pro­grams, bonus­es, or oth­er incen­tives can help employ­ees feel val­ued and moti­vat­ed in the workplace.

Year­ly Employ­ee Gath­er­ings: Host­ing year­ly employ­ee gath­er­ings that incor­po­rate fam­i­lies can help fos­ter a sense of com­mu­ni­ty and sup­port for employ­ees out­side of work, pro­mot­ing men­tal health and well-being.

[CTA: Learn more about how Fringe can be part of your total well­be­ing solution]

Offer Employee Development Opportunities

Invest­ing in employ­ee devel­op­ment is a win-win for both your com­pa­ny and you peo­ple. By pro­vid­ing oppor­tu­ni­ties for growth and devel­op­ment, com­pa­nies can increase employ­ee sat­is­fac­tion and reten­tion while also improv­ing over­all busi­ness outcomes.

Employee Development Examples

Conference/​Seminar Atten­dance: Encour­ag­ing employ­ees to attend rel­e­vant con­fer­ences and sem­i­nars can help them stay up-to-date with indus­try trends and best practices.

Increased Train­ing: Offer­ing reg­u­lar train­ing ses­sions on rel­e­vant top­ics can help employ­ees improve their skills and feel invest­ed in their pro­fes­sion­al development. 

Aca­d­e­m­ic Growth: Pro­vid­ing oppor­tu­ni­ties for employ­ees to pur­sue aca­d­e­m­ic growth through con­tin­u­ing edu­ca­tion pro­grams, cer­ti­fi­ca­tions, or degree pro­grams can help them advance in their careers and con­tribute more to the organization.

Tuition Reim­burse­ment: Offer­ing tuition reim­burse­ment pro­grams can help employ­ees pur­sue aca­d­e­m­ic growth and advance their careers while also pro­mot­ing employ­ee reten­tion and loyalty.

Companies that do Employee Development Right

Google: Google is well-known for its focus on employ­ee devel­op­ment, offer­ing a wide range of train­ing pro­grams and resources to its employ­ees. This includes its Google Career Cer­tifi­cates, which pro­vide train­ing in high-demand fields such as IT sup­port and project management.

Accen­ture: Accen­ture is com­mit­ted to invest­ing in employ­ee growth and devel­op­ment, offer­ing its employ­ees access to train­ing and devel­op­ment pro­grams through its Accen­ture Acad­e­my. The com­pa­ny also pro­vides oppor­tu­ni­ties for its employ­ees to pur­sue aca­d­e­m­ic growth through tuition reim­burse­ment programs.

Sales­force: Sales­force is anoth­er exam­ple of an orga­ni­za­tion that pri­or­i­tizes employ­ee devel­op­ment, offer­ing its employ­ees access to a range of train­ing and devel­op­ment resources through its Trail­head plat­form. The com­pa­ny also pro­vides oppor­tu­ni­ties for its employ­ees to attend con­fer­ences and events to stay up-to-date with indus­try trends.

Transition to Remote Work

Offer­ing remote work options to employ­ees has become increas­ing­ly pop­u­lar in recent years and has many ben­e­fits for both com­pa­nies and indi­vid­u­als, such as: 

Increased Flex­i­bil­i­ty: The ​‘work from home’ con­cept quick­ly rebrand­ed into ​‘work­ing remote­ly,’ allow­ing employ­ees to work from any­where. This adds more room for flex­i­bil­i­ty to their work sched­ules, free­ing up more time to man­age their per­son­al lives.

Reduced Over­head Costs: Com­pa­nies are able to save on over­head costs, like office rent, util­i­ties, and office sup­plies, by opt­ing for their employ­ees to work remotely. 

Improved Pro­duc­tiv­i­ty: Every­one has their own ide­al work­ing envi­ron­ment. Remote work allows employ­ees the free­dom to work wher­ev­er and how­ev­er they feel most com­fort­able. In doing so, their employ­ees have few­er dis­trac­tions and are able to be more productive. 

Expand­ed Tal­ent Pool: Offer­ing remote work options can expand the tal­ent pool, allow­ing orga­ni­za­tions to attract top tal­ent from any­where in the world.

Companies Working From Home Permanently

Shopi­fy, a lead­ing e‑commerce plat­form, tran­si­tioned to a remote-first com­pa­ny in 2021. The com­pa­ny now allows all employ­ees to work from home or from an office, depend­ing on their pref­er­ence. Shopi­fy has also launched ini­tia­tives to help employ­ees feel con­nect­ed and sup­port­ed, such as vir­tu­al team-build­ing events and men­tal health resources.

Drop­box has been offer­ing remote work options to its employ­ees since 2013, with a focus on pro­vid­ing flex­i­bil­i­ty and auton­o­my. The com­pa­ny has imple­ment­ed a hybrid work mod­el that allows employ­ees to work from home or from an office, depend­ing on their role and pref­er­ence. Drop­box has also invest­ed in vir­tu­al col­lab­o­ra­tion tools to sup­port remote work and collaboration.

Hub­Spot, a mar­ket­ing and sales soft­ware com­pa­ny, piv­ot­ed to remote work in ear­ly 2020 due to the COVID-19 pan­dem­ic. The com­pa­ny has since adopt­ed a hybrid work mod­el, allow­ing employ­ees to work from home or from an office. Hub­Spot has also launched ini­tia­tives to sup­port remote work, such as vir­tu­al team-build­ing events and a remote work pol­i­cy guide for employees.

Atlass­ian, a soft­ware com­pa­ny, has been offer­ing remote work options to its employ­ees for years. The com­pa­ny has imple­ment­ed a flex­i­ble work pol­i­cy that allows employ­ees to work from home or from an office, depend­ing on their pref­er­ence. Atlass­ian has also invest­ed in vir­tu­al col­lab­o­ra­tion tools to sup­port remote work, such as video con­fer­enc­ing and real-time mes­sag­ing platforms.

Invest in Digital Transformation

Dig­i­tal trans­for­ma­tion (DX) is the process of inte­grat­ing dig­i­tal tech­nol­o­gy into all aspects of busi­ness. DX allows busi­ness­es to stream­line their oper­a­tions, improve cus­tomer expe­ri­ence, stay on top of tech­no­log­i­cal trends, and have a com­pet­i­tive edge in a dig­i­tal world.

By invest­ing in the lat­est tech­nolo­gies, com­pa­nies can stream­line team com­mu­ni­ca­tion both for remote and in-per­son teams. For exam­ple, using project man­age­ment tools like Mon­day or Asana can help teams stay orga­nized and com­mu­ni­cate effec­tive­ly. Addi­tion­al­ly, adopt­ing cus­tomer rela­tion­ship man­age­ment (CRM) soft­ware can help busi­ness­es bet­ter under­stand their cus­tomers’ needs and deliv­er more per­son­al­ized experiences.

Using data ana­lyt­ics tools can pro­vide insights into cus­tomer pref­er­ences and behav­ior pat­terns, which can inform prod­uct devel­op­ment and mar­ket­ing strate­gies. Invest­ing in chat­bots and oth­er automa­tion tools can also help busi­ness­es pro­vide quick and effi­cient cus­tomer ser­vice, improv­ing over­all cus­tomer satisfaction.

Digital Transformation Examples

Wal­mart has been invest­ing heav­i­ly in tech­nol­o­gy in recent years, from using arti­fi­cial intel­li­gence (AI) to man­age inven­to­ry to devel­op­ing its own voice-acti­vat­ed shop­ping assis­tant. They have also adopt­ed a hybrid mod­el of retail that incor­po­rates both online and in-store experiences.

Domi­no’s Piz­za: has been using tech­nol­o­gy to stream­line the piz­za order­ing process for years, from its ear­ly online order­ing plat­form to more recent invest­ments in AI-pow­ered chat­bots and deliv­ery track­ing. By invest­ing in tech­nol­o­gy to make the cus­tomer expe­ri­ence more con­ve­nient and effi­cient, they have been able to main­tain their posi­tion as a leader in the fast-food industry.

Ford Motor Com­pa­ny: Ford has been invest­ing heav­i­ly in dig­i­tal trans­for­ma­tion, from devel­op­ing its own elec­tric and hybrid vehi­cles to incor­po­rat­ing new tech­nolo­gies like AI and 3D print­ing into its man­u­fac­tur­ing process. By adopt­ing new tech­nolo­gies, Ford has been able to improve oper­a­tional effi­cien­cy, reduce costs, and remain com­pet­i­tive in an increas­ing­ly crowd­ed auto­mo­tive market.

Roy­al Caribbean has been using tech­nol­o­gy to enhance the cus­tomer expe­ri­ence on its cruise ships, from pro­vid­ing pas­sen­gers with smart wrist­bands that allow them to access their cab­ins and make pur­chas­es to using facial recog­ni­tion tech­nol­o­gy to speed up the board­ing process. By invest­ing in tech­nol­o­gy to improve the cus­tomer expe­ri­ence, Roy­al Caribbean has been able to dif­fer­en­ti­ate itself in a crowd­ed mar­ket and fos­ter cus­tomer loyalty. 

Create a Feedback Culture

Effec­tive com­mu­ni­ca­tion and feed­back are essen­tial to cre­at­ing a pos­i­tive and engag­ing com­pa­ny cul­ture. When employ­ees feel that they are heard and that their opin­ions mat­ter, they are more like­ly to be invest­ed in their work and com­mit­ted to the suc­cess of the com­pa­ny. Com­mu­ni­ca­tion and feed­back also pro­mote trans­paren­cy and trust, which are cru­cial for build­ing a strong team.

To pri­or­i­tize com­mu­ni­ca­tion and feed­back as a pil­lar of com­pa­ny cul­ture, it is impor­tant to cre­ate an envi­ron­ment that encour­ages open and hon­est com­mu­ni­ca­tion. This can look like set­ting up reg­u­lar check-ins between man­agers and employ­ees, pro­vid­ing chan­nels for anony­mous feed­back, or using tools that allow for easy com­mu­ni­ca­tion and collaboration.

In addi­tion, it is impor­tant to active­ly solic­it feed­back from employ­ees and to take action based on that feed­back. When employ­ees feel that their feed­back is val­ued and that their con­cerns are being addressed, they are more like­ly to be engaged and com­mit­ted to their work. Com­pa­nies can also use feed­back to iden­ti­fy areas for improve­ment and to devel­op new strate­gies for growth.

Feedback Culture Examples

Google is known for its com­mit­ment to employ­ee engage­ment, and a large part of that is its focus on feed­back. Google encour­ages open com­mu­ni­ca­tion between employ­ees and man­agers, and it pro­vides employ­ees with reg­u­lar oppor­tu­ni­ties to pro­vide feed­back on their experiences.

Airbnb has a com­pa­ny cul­ture that empha­sizes open com­mu­ni­ca­tion and col­lab­o­ra­tion, and feed­back is a key part of that. The com­pa­ny uses a plat­form called ​“Airbnb Pulse” to solic­it feed­back from employ­ees, and it also encour­ages man­agers to hold reg­u­lar one-on-one meet­ings with their team mem­bers to pro­vide feed­back and support.

Hub­Spot is a com­pa­ny that has made a name for itself by pri­or­i­tiz­ing employ­ee engage­ment, and feed­back is a key part of that. The com­pa­ny has an open-door pol­i­cy that encour­ages employ­ees to speak up and share their ideas, and it also pro­vides reg­u­lar oppor­tu­ni­ties for feed­back and recog­ni­tion through its ​“Hub­Spot­ter of the Month” program.

Microsoft has a cul­ture of feed­back that is built on trust and trans­paren­cy. The com­pa­ny encour­ages employ­ees to pro­vide feed­back on their expe­ri­ences and to share their ideas for improv­ing the com­pa­ny, and it also pro­vides reg­u­lar oppor­tu­ni­ties for employ­ees to give feed­back to their managers.

Buffer is a com­pa­ny that has made trans­paren­cy and open com­mu­ni­ca­tion a core part of its cul­ture. The com­pa­ny uses a tool called ​“Know Your Com­pa­ny” to solic­it feed­back from employ­ees, and it also pro­vides reg­u­lar oppor­tu­ni­ties for feed­back and recog­ni­tion through its ​“Kudos” pro­gram. Addi­tion­al­ly, Buffer encour­ages its employ­ees to share their thoughts and ideas open­ly on inter­nal com­mu­ni­ca­tion channels.

Learn more about how to make your employ­ees feel valued.

Conclusion

Employ­ee expe­ri­ence is a crit­i­cal aspect of build­ing a suc­cess­ful com­pa­ny, and it encom­pass­es a wide range of fac­tors that con­tribute to the over­all well-being and sat­is­fac­tion of employ­ees. From phys­i­cal and men­tal health to career devel­op­ment oppor­tu­ni­ties, remote work, dig­i­tal trans­for­ma­tion, and a cul­ture of feed­back, there are many strate­gies that com­pa­nies can use to pri­or­i­tize the employ­ee experience.

Ulti­mate­ly, the employ­ee expe­ri­ence is an evo­lu­tion of the tra­di­tion­al focus on employ­ee well-being. By tak­ing a holis­tic approach to employ­ee sat­is­fac­tion and engage­ment, com­pa­nies can cre­ate a pos­i­tive and sup­port­ive work envi­ron­ment that ben­e­fits both indi­vid­ual employ­ees and the orga­ni­za­tion as a whole. Invest­ing in the employ­ee expe­ri­ence is an invest­ment in the future suc­cess of the com­pa­ny, and it is essen­tial for attract­ing and retain­ing top tal­ent in an increas­ing­ly com­pet­i­tive job market. 

Learn more about how Fringe can boost your company’s employ­ee expe­ri­ence by vis­it­ing fringe​.us/​t​a​l​k​-​t​o​-​o​u​r​-team.