Betsey Banker, wellness market manager, Ergotron, discusses why getting your wellness strategy right can drive your staff retention strategy

Job-hopping, while not new, has gained mindshare in the past few years. LinkedIn’s 2015 Global Job Seeker Trends: Why and How People Change Jobs study found that the number of active job-seekers had grown by 36 percent over the previous four years, and Gallup found that half of U.S. employees are actively looking for a job. Opportunities to make a switch abound as 11,000 baby boomers retire each day. Driven by increased competition for talent, according to a Bersin by Deloitte report, it now costs companies an average of $4,000 over the course of 52 days to fill an open position.

Retention has never been more crucial, but are businesses doing enough to create a culture that drives employee loyalty? Unique company perks and wellness offerings are attempting to strengthen employee loyalty, but with varied success. As a result, a new umbrella approach to these initiatives is gaining traction: building a culture focused on care. But how do care and wellness combine?

Caring for employees inspires loyalty

While some employers explore the latest trendy incentives (think: nap pods, ping-pong tables or fully-stocked fridges), new research indicates that when it comes to retention, the new competitive advantage may be as simple as caring. According to one study, people who worked in a culture where they felt free to express affection, caring and compassion for one another were more satisfied with their jobs, committed to the organization and accountable for their performance.

Additional research has shown that employees view commitment as a two-way street, with another study revealing that an employee’s commitment to their employer is influenced by their perception of the organization’s commitment to them. When employees feel supported by their organization, they will develop a stronger attachment to it. One of the simplest ways employers can support and show care for employees is through office wellness programs. These types of programs vary between organizations but all have the same goal in mind – to keep employees healthy.

Caring goes beyond kindness

Many wellness programs—traditional and trendy alike—already fall under the umbrella of caring. Though they look different from office to office, employees can expect a safe working environment, a management team that listens to specific needs and access to the tools they need to be the most effective workers. Despite good intentions, there are occasions in which employee care needs more attention.

• Food culture: While it may come as a surprise, food is an incredibly important piece of any office wellness plan. The relationship with food can be a place where care and wellness collide. Top performing groups get pizza parties, every birthday is accompanied by cake and ice cream and important meetings are stocked with donuts and catered lunches. Are vending machines stocked with sugary snacks? Do employees have access to a fridge where they can store lunches they bring in themselves? It’s difficult to think of ways to celebrate and show caring without contradicting healthy eating initiatives, but it is possible.
• Office design: Does the company practice what the wellness program preaches? Providing gym memberships and encouraging exercise can be a form of caring, but there may be some missed opportunities within the office space itself, especially when it comes to the office’s attitude towards movement. For instance, telling employees that movement is important by providing gym memberships, but then not offering them alternatives to sitting at desks and conference tables all day in the office.
• Employee accommodations: Office jobs can cause physical pain. According to a survey conducted by the American Osteopathic Association, two in three office workers have experienced physical pain in the last six months, while nearly one in four believe it’s just a standard part of having an office job. Though companies may be focusing on creative wellness perks, they may also be missing employee physical pain points.

Reinventing the wellness plan: Think “inside the box”

Creating a culture of care and wellness starts with thinking “inside the box” – or the built office environment.

• Food culture: Work with employees to establish a new food culture. It may be too soon to eliminate sugary treats, but try offering more fresh fruits and vegetables, whether in the cafeteria or at corporate events. Reframe thinking about food as a trophy or reward. Look beyond sweet treats for other ways to recognize accomplishments by the team, such as a traveling trophy or other small rewards.
• Office design: Construct a space that encourages movement. Create opportunities for safe physical activity during the day, such as walking meetings, guided stretch breaks and sit-stand workstations at employee desks or in other common areas throughout the office. Add a few tall bar tables in the cafeteria to provide places to break up sedentary time. If employees bring their laptops to lunch, this offers them an alternative to sitting. It has even been reported that employees who get a healthy mix of sitting and standing during the workday are more likely to exercise in the evening because of reduced work fatigue.
• Employee accommodations: A great way to demonstrate care is to take a proactive approach to comfort and ergonomics, in the one place the employee spends the bulk of their time—their desk. Access to sit-stand workstations gives employees flexibility in managing their personal comfort, while staying productive. Environments that help employees give their best efforts help promote job satisfaction. A recent study found that 62 percent of sit-stand desk users showed greater job satisfaction and nine out of 10 said sit-stand workstations change office culture for the better.

To create a caring culture at the office, business leaders should think about the types of perks they are currently offering and reassess if their approach also supports the health and well-being of employees. Some changes will come easily, others will require investment and strategy, but all will impact every businesses’ most valuable asset, its people. To remain competitive, businesses must attain and retain top talent – a caring culture that promotes health and well-being might hold the secret to staying power.

• Stress, depression, anxiety and loss of sleep have increased since 2017
• Employers misunderstand depth of concern employees have over finances/ significant increase of employees affected by financial worries
• When asked ‘What is occupying your thoughts?’ two of the three top answers relate to money
• Most employees have either had a mental health issue or know someone that has

Employers are not grasping the depth of concern staff feel about their financial, physical and mental health, according to new research from Neyber into the mindset of UK employees. Two of the three biggest issues for employees were money-related. Thirty percent cite financial worries as the biggest concern, retirement provision came third at 24% and health is the second biggest worry, slightly more, at 25%.

Employers, however, think employees worry about entirely different issues. They believe that work/life balance is their employees’ most pressing concern (44%), followed by workload (33%).

Staff concerns are understandable. Since last year, there has been a significant increase of those affected by financial worries – up from 58% to 63%, as well as those with less than one month’s savings – up from 24% to 32%. Fourteen percent say they have zero savings.

The DNA of Financial Wellbeing, Book One, highlights the views of 10,000 UK employees and 580 employers and shows the impact of individual wellbeing and the toll it takes in the workplace. This is the third annual report commissioned by financial wellbeing company, Neyber.

What staff worry about impacts their employer

Thousands of employees reported how financial worries are impacting them. Thirty-five percent have felt stressed, 33% felt anxious, 26% lost sleep and 20% felt depressed.

Both employers and employees are largely aware that these issues impact work behaviour. Forty-five percent of employees and 69% of employers feel that employee financial pressure impacts their job performance. Sixty percent of employees said that money worries change their behaviour. This rises to 72% under the age of 34.

For the first time, the survey asked respondents about mental illness. Sixty-two percent of employees have either had a mental health issue (18%) or know someone that has (45%).

Heidi Allan, Head of Employee Wellbeing at Neyber, said:

“Our physical, mental and financial health are all interlinked. If employees feel less confident in their finances, this has a knock on effect on other areas of their lives.

“This year’s findings show areas of positivity and deep concern for employers. For instance, we asked employees whether they feel that their employers care about certain aspects of their wellbeing. Career and personal development (73%), later life/retirement provision (66%) and overall wellbeing (65%) all scored highly by employees.

“Yet, when it comes to financial health, only 50% said their company cares. This is less than those who think their employer cares about their mental health (62%), physical health (60%) or later life and retirement provision (66%).”

Jonathan Hollow, Financial Capabilty, Strategy and Innovation at Money Advice Service, said:

“Currently about 28.7 million working age adults in the UK are not satisfied with their finances1. No wonder – we live lives of ever-increasing financial complexity. We must deal with busy lives and the complexities of major financial decisions, as well as key life events such as bereavement, buying a home or nearing retirement.

“Every employer should care about the findings in this report. A growing body of evidence shows that anxiety about finances leads to poorer mental, physical and social wellbeing, and that this affects attendance and performance at work. When your workforce suffers, your business can suffer too.”

The survey also showed:

• Financial worries are top of mind for all age groups – until the age of 55 when they worry about later life.
• It takes until the age of 65 to be more likely to be worried about physical health – although ‘not worried’ is in the top three for the first time at this age for 24% of respondents.
• A salary of at least £40k is when financial worries are not the biggest worry.
• The top four things people feel happy about are their living arrangements (81%), social lives (81%) and overall wellbeing and mental health (joint 78%).

Neyber’s full report – the DNA of financial wellbeing – can be found here 

Across the globe, temperatures have soared and summer has delivered a glorious heatwave.

Of course, this is the perfect weather to sit by a pool sipping cocktails.  Unfortunately, for most of the 32.39 million people who work in the UK, that isn’t an option.

While the first few days of sunshine sees the spirits lift and brings cheer to the workforce, after a prolonged heatwave people get tired and grumpy – and warm employers and line managers will be suffering alongside their workforce.  However, even in the warmest places, good management will help managers motivate their teams and keep productivity high.

Here’s some tips for managers to maintain morale when the mercury rises:

Plan in advance

Don’t wait for the mercury to rise, prepare in advance!  Hands up all the managers who found their aircon wasn’t working on the first really hot day – planning for summer is essential, so if your hand is up, resolve to get it checked in February next year.  If you are sticky and uncomfortable reading this – and waiting for the ‘cooler men’ to arrive – book next February’s service in the diary now!

“Over 25 degrees and you have to send us home!”

Know the rules surrounding temperatures at work.  Despite what you’ll hear in the pub, there isn’t a legal maximum temperature for any workplace.  However. that’s no excuse for not maintaining a comfortable temperature, after all, you want to get the best from their staff.  Doing what you can to keep the workplace temperature comfortable will maintain morale and productivity, so make sure you have plenty of fans available, and instruct the first people to come in the office to open windows and get the air flowing (unless you are lucky enough to have aircon in your building).

Be aware of Dehydration Symptoms

If you really can’t keep a workplace cool, be aware of the risks of dehydration, especially in very hot places like kitchens, furnaces and even hospitals.  Make sure all your staff have regular access to cold drinks or even just water.  Rotate staff where possible and keep an eye out for any signs of dehydration.  Where the environment won’t permit staff to drink at their place of work, consider offering short hydration breaks every hour.

Relax your dress code, but only to a reasonable level

Your brand is important and your dress code sets the tone for your business.  However, your customers will understand some flexibility in this weather, after all, they are experiencing it too, so while it’s not time to give everyone carte blanche to work in beachwear, if staff are rolling up sleeves or leaving long sleeved suit jackets at home, a little tolerance on your normal dress policy will go a long way.

Use flexible and agile working where appropriate

In certain circumstances, flexible working can be useful where working in the office would be uncomfortable.  Many employers now use cloud based software and servers, like Nutanix, which enables employers to allow remote working with complete accountability and no risk to data.  However, flexible working embraces more than just working from home.  Think about, for example, offering more flexible start and finish times, enabling staff to avoid commuting on congested roads at peak times.

Reinforce your annual leave policies – and stick to them

Be prepared in advance for some of the employer challenges that arise from warmer weather – for example, how will you handle a sudden influx of annual leave requests, when everyone wants the day off after the big match?  It’s a good time to remind your staff about your annual leave policy, especially in the midst of World Cup hopes.

How to handle summer sickies

HR Managers will tell you that Summer brings its own set of heat-related casualties, from barbecue-itis to sunstroke, but the heat can also exacerbate existing health conditions.

Whilst managers can be sympathetic to summer illnesses like hay fever and heatstroke, it’s still important to ensure your absence management policy is demonstrably fair.  Most line managers using an informal absence management system admit they ‘skip’ recording the odd sick day if they empathise with the reason – it’s important to record everything and treat everyone fairly.   It is good practice to record disability related absence separately and not count it as part of your disciplinary system, but it should still be recorded.

Be creative and encourage staff to have fun at work

If your staff are hot and bothered, small fun gestures go a long way and can re-engage staff.  Whether it’s a trip to the ice cream van or going the whole hog and creating an indoor beach in your staff room, complete with a paddling pool and non-alcoholic cocktails, taking time to do something different from the norm will be really appreciated by your team.

Think about cooling your IT systems too

It isn’t only your staff that can overheat.  Electronic equipment, from your mobile phones to your IT systems don’t like being too warm – and your can’t buy your computer a cold drink.  Overheated equipment is often less reliable, so avoid expensive downtime by placing business-critical servers in cool locations, or speak to ITCS about server management so your critical business systems don’t let you down.

ITCS Managing Director Brian Stokes, who treated his team to ice cream in the warmer weather, says:

“We can’t do anything about the heatwave, but we’ve made provisions to keep our staff and our IT systems cool, including putting back up and portable air-conditioning where we can, buying extra fans for the offices where we can’t install aircon and even buying an extra fridge for the staff kitchen! 

However, it’s probably the ice cream that was most appreciated.  Employers don’t have to spend thousands, they just have to show staff they care, and that’s the same at any time of year – our ice cream was a good way to show that!”

New Sharplegal research from Acritas, the world’s leading source of client and market research to law firms, reveals that where an organization is located will have an impact on the tech adopted by their legal department.  They warn that legal departments in the UK should be most concerned.

Market research experts Acritas have been investigating how innovation and technologies in the legal industry are evolving, based on first-hand experiences of over 2,000 senior in-house counsel.

The company analysed feedback on their 2017 global Sharplegal survey, and noticed there was a lot of focus on new technologies. So in 2018, their Sharplegal research began investigating this area further and quickly identified notable differences across geographies, in the technologies being used and not used by legal departments.

A number of different technologies were tested from virtual deal rooms through to AI.

25% of UK legal departments not using ANY tech

The latest research reveals that UK Legal departments are definitely falling behind the curve, with 25% not using any of the technologies Acritas investigated, compared to 11% in the US. In fact, UK in-house counsel are less likely to be using every technology tested in the Sharplegal survey.

Only 37% of UK legal departments use E-signatures

While E-signatures are commonly used in other aspects of UK business, they are not commonly used in the legal field.  This is not the case overseas.

E-signatures are used by 61% of US legal departments and 49% of Mainland European legal departments.  Only 37% of UK legal departments use them. Similarly, e-discovery is used by nearly four times as many legal departments in the US than their European counterparts. Lisa Hart Shepherd, CEO at Acritas said:

“We expected the US to lead on the use of litigation related technologies, but the UK is using less of everything we tested.”

However, the US wasn’t leading on everything, some new technologies were used more by European legal departments. For example, searchable knowledge-bases are used by 48% of legal departments working in European organizations, compared to 25% of US and 16% of UK corporate legal departments.

Lisa added:

“A lack of use doesn’t necessarily relate to an aversion. When under so much pressure to manage risk and drive up the value delivered by their corporate legal departments, change can be pushed back down the agenda. But for GCs looking to improve efficiency, understanding which technologies are working well for other legal departments around the world can be invaluable.”

To access Acritas’ benchmarking for Legal Departments, GCs or equivalent senior in-house counsel must complete a 25-minute Sharplegal telephone interview. Interviews can be scheduled by contacting Acritas via appointments@acritas.com.

A new survey by contracting authority ContractorCalculator reveals that firms could face Increasing costs, shrinking talent pools, reduced flexibility and legal challenges to status assessments if the Off-Payroll tax reaches the private sector.

Researchers spoke to more than 2,000 public and private sector contractors, and the findings reveal that:

• 94% of contractors would avoid contracts placing them ‘inside IR35’ and 25% would never take a contract ‘inside IR35’
• 73% would only accept ‘inside IR35’ contracts with a significant rate rise
• 63% said they would demand a rate increase if travel was required
• 54% would work less each year rather than take on ‘inside IR35’ work
• 23% will quit contracting altogether
• 94% believe those deemed ‘employed for tax purposes’ should automatically receive employment rights. 89% would consider legal action to secure rights
• 79% do not consider HMRC’s CEST tool to be accurate.
• 48% will not vote for an MP who supports these tax reforms

Commenting on the findings, Dave Chaplin, CEO and founder of ContractorCalculator said:

“We’re fifteen months in since the Off-Payroll legislation hit our public services and organisations across the public sector have failed to compromise on their approach to the tax legislation and are suffering intensified skills shortages as a result. If private sector firms follow suit, they could suffer an identical fate.

“As our survey shows, an expansion of the new tax into the private sector alone threatens to deprive the UK labour market of much of its flexibility and it will cost them, both in monetary terms as well as in talent and skills terms with 94% of contractors avoiding ‘inside IR35’ work.  Our findings paint a bleak picture of things to come if Government chooses to roll out the new off-payroll tax to the private sector. It will be devastating for UK plc and the UK economy overall.”

94% deemed inside IR35 want employment rights

When asked what rights they believe they should be afforded if deemed ‘employed for tax purposes’, 92% highlighted sick pay, 74% want maternity pay and 81% want grievance/disciplinary protection.  A mere 6% claimed they wouldn’t want any form of rights.

Added Chaplin: “The Off-Payroll tax rules may not require firms to grant rights to contingent workers. However, contractors are willing to take measures to secure employment rights if deemed to be ‘employed for tax purposes’, resulting in potentially costly legal implications for hirers and again more damaging impact for UK plc as 48% claimed they would lodge an employment tribunal appeal to secure employment rights.”

Hirers beware as CEST IR35 tool condemned as inaccurate

Survey respondents provided a damning review of CEST, the tool built by HMRC which they claim provides a useful guide on employment status:

• 77% do not agree that CEST accurately reflects the law around employment status
• 79% do not believe that CEST can be trusted to give accurate results
• 74% claimed they would always seek an alternative assessment from an expert

Said Chaplin:

“Firms shouldn’t assume that using CEST means they are protected and for private sector firms, the message is clear: assessing contractors using CEST may seem like a risk-free, straightforward option, but it will be far more troublesome in the long run.”

Off-Payroll tax is a political bomb for MPs

MPs would also be advised not to let HMRC’s portrayal of the Off-Payroll tax rules cloud their judgment, as doing so could have significant repercussions for their positions. When asked whether they would vote for their local MP at the next election, if their MP were to support the new Off-Payroll tax, 49% of contractors said no.

Concluded Chaplin:

“As the implementation of the recent public-sector changes have shown, Government alone can’t be trusted to do what’s best for the UK and the UK economy. We are living and working in uncertain times and the labour market as a whole must make Government see sense before any more damage is done.  Business should speak up and speak out now.”

Graduate IT training and services provider Sparta Global has been named Female Grad Tech Employer of the Year in the Women in Tech 2018 awards.

Women in tech is an organisation dedicated to helping women experience a fulfilled and successful career in tech. As part of its annual Employer Awards, Sparta Global was recognised for helping to close the industry gender gap by encouraging more women to start and sustain a career in the technology sector. Sparta global has helped train and place women consultants in positions at organisations including Canada Life, the Ministry of Justice and Discovery, Inc..

David Rai, CEO of Sparta Global comments:

“After graduating from university, it can be a daunting experience to enter the world of employment – particularly when you are faced with entering the competitive technology industry. This step can be even more difficult for women, with just 17 percent of the people working in technology in the UK being female.”

“Sparta Global is committed to increasing diversity in tech through supporting the development of graduate women. Our talent team regularly visits universities across the UK to discuss the career opportunities and prospects available to women seeking a career in technology. This award recognises the great work of our passionate teams who are dedicated to promoting diversity and inclusion by increasing the number of women working in tech today”.

Praising Sparta Global for their achievement, Managing Director Brian Stokes, of leading IT Support provider ITCS said:

“It’s great to see Women in Tech and Sparta Global championing more diversity in our industry sector.  We are proud to employ female software developers and IT engineers, however the majority of job applications we receive are still mainly from male candidates – we need to do more to widen the talent pool.  As employers we play our part – but STEM careers for women don’t start in employment, they start in education, and girls need to be encouraged to look at tech as a viable option from a young age.  With huge skills shortages across the sector, the work Women in Tech are doing to promote the industry is invaluable.”

We are officially in the midst of the digital age, and while technology may be a defining feature across many facets of life, it is not evenly spread. In the world of business and employment, the prevalence of technology is significant and is only going to carry on in the same direction.

People working in Human Resources have an understanding of exactly what this will require of people in terms of skills and behaviours, but it can be difficult to implement these changes in the workplace. Here, presentation coach and author of “Unlock Your Business Voice” (Rethink Press) Simon de Cintra shares his advice on taking advantage of the digital age to unlock your business voice.

1 : You Cannot Resist Change

Resistance to change can be a real spanner in the works for a business or workplace, and the initial discomfort brought about by change has to be embraced if results are going to be achieved. If you know you’re not up to scratch on the online communication platforms that are best suited to your sector, put in the effort to do some research and familiarise yourself with it. Find someone in your workplace who is well versed with technology and ask them to give you a little tutorial. Don’t forget – everyone is a beginner with technology at first, so don’t feel embarrassed.

2: Utilise Social Media In Business

The impact of social media across society is well documented and evident, and its effects have definitely seeped into the workplace. It is becoming more common for people to work out loud and share work-related matters with the online community, so used in the right way can be a great tool to empower your voice. Social media is perhaps the most efficient way to directly talk to people like customers and stakeholders. In longer-distance business relationships, Skype and other forms of virtual meetings not only save time and money but can take some of the pressure off and make it a more relaxed and comfortable environment. Falling behind means being left behind in the world of technology, so make sure to keep up.  If you struggle to manage social media yourself, think about hiring a professional to do it for you.

3 : Keep On Track Through Organisation

The many platforms and their uses make proper organisation essential. This means sorting your contacts, the platforms they have access to, and keeping on top of responses efficiently. Making lists or spreadsheets can be a great way to help monitor ingoing and outgoing correspondence and ensuring nothing important slips through the net.

4: Take Your Time When Responding

While there are plenty of benefits to communicating online, it has a number of drawbacks, and your loss of control over the correspondence once you send it is a big one. Many people have felt the backlash from sending online messages without giving them a once-over, and all it takes is one poorly or ambiguously worded tweet to cause permanent damage to a brand or reputation – especially if it goes viral.

5: Be Clear And Concise

People prefer online texts to be succinct and easy to digest, and too much text without much point can quickly deter people. For this reason, it is important to minimise waffle in order to make your point without wasting time or effort. If you are aware of a tendency to ramble, take the opportunity to consciously address it, and take steps to refine the way you speak. I always advise people to switch their mind setting from ‘transmit’ to ‘receive’. This involves opening your mind to what is expected by those you are speaking to, and using this as a template to your speech or writing. This will help you to trim the fat and leave the meat of the point you are trying to communicate, saving time and effort and engaging people much quicker.

6 : Don’t Neglect Human Interactions

The prominence of technology can make it difficult to lose grip on the importance of interacting face to face, and a lot of people have become so accustomed to staring at a screen for prolonged periods that some don’t even recognise how minimal their personal communication is. This is a common problem, but to really unlock your voice – both in and out of the workplace – you must be efficient at communicating with others in a variety of ways. So take steps to increase the amount of face to face interaction you have with others. Whether it’s talking in person or simply calling them on the phone rather than emailing, do what you can to make it a more personal experience.  If you struggle, think about HR Communications training.

Although it can be daunting, there is no need to feel overwhelmed by the many options for communication on offer these days. Use the opportunity to unlock your business voice and bring it onto the table. You may already be used to the ever-changing landscape of business, with colleagues, operations and tools changing constantly, and this is just another aspect of work that needs to be approached with flexibility, confidence and willingness.

About the Author | Simon de Cintra

Simon de Cintra has over 25 years experience in business and provides coaching and mentoring for people who are looking to gain confidence with their public speaking skills or want to learn how to lead and influence others.

In 2006 Simon founded MyFirstTrainers® and has delivered workshops at leading business schools and internationally for major blue chip companies. Simon specialises in personal impact, influencing and persuading stakeholders and public speaking skills for introverts working in complex and highly technical environments.

His varied career inspired him to seek the formula behind authentic communication revealed in his new book Unlock Your Business Voice – How to speak as well as you think (£12.99, Rethink Press). On-sale now from Amazon at £12.99 https://www.amazon.co.uk/Unlock-Your-Business-Voice-speak/dp/1781332908/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1518708815&sr=8-1&keywords=unlock+your+business+voice+simon+de+cintra

Many professionals have expressed concern at job losses being created by the use of AI in contact centres – however, Teliopti’s Nick Smith believes that AI ‘superagents’ are an asset rather than a threat and should be welcomed rather than feared.  

You often hear about the struggle between man versus machine and robots taking over agents in the contact center but it’s not quite that black and white. According to Dr Nicola Millard at BT, the more likely scenario is “man plus machine”, a winning combination where “smart people partnered with smart machines have the power to superpower us.”(i)

Our own experience at Teleopti suggests that both human agents and Artificial Intelligence (AI) have a powerful role to play. On the one hand, AI and chatbots are simultaneously revolutionizing customer service and elevating the status of agents. For example, WeChat in China is one of the most successful pioneers of chatbots supplying 10 million businesses and enabling people to hail a taxi, order food, pay a bill and book a doctor’s appointment without human intervention.(ii) On the other hand, AI is only as good as the data that fuels it and the things AI finds hard are the qualities that make humans unique: conversation, empathy, creativity, intuition and negotiation.

The silver bullet solution for today’s customer journey

The combination of AI and well scheduled human agents, with the right skills, might be the silver bullet for effective customer service but are agents ready to support today’s customer journey? By the time a customer gets to speak to a live agent, the chances are they have already used your mobile app, searched for answers on your website and trawled numerous YouTube clips to no avail. They are frustrated and want to speak to someone who knows all the steps they’ve taken, why they are frustrated and how to solve their query from one single encounter of the human kind. In short, they are looking for a superagent!

To create a team of superagents, organizations need to re-think their learning environment, capture an organization-wide talent pool in a centralized Workforce Management (WFM) solution and then add Real-Time Adherence (RTA) to re-allocate idle time to training. Through advanced forecasting, scheduling and competence management, human agents will remain more productive and valuable than robots can ever be. Let’s take a closer look.

Six reasons to celebrate superagents

1.   Dealing with complex conversations – counter-intuitively, digitalization has elevated the role of the contact center agent and businesses are paying a premium for this new breed of superagent. Nowadays, the calls agents handle take longer, are more complex and require moral judgment and empathy. What is more, whereas the computer “says no” humans have the power to negotiate mutually acceptable outcomes for customers leading to enhanced customer satisfaction and profitability.

2.   Emotional Intelligence – being on the front line, agents have the benefit of direct contact to truly understand the emotional triggers behind what customers want. The best agents will also be able to read through a conversation, for example with a chatbot, before picking up seamlessly with the customer. Wise organizations then blend agent intuition with the scientific evidence of speech analytics technology to improve future customer conversations.

3.   Collaboration – successful agents work closely with other departments to get the answers and support they need to think outside the box and come up with their own ideas for delighting customers. Help agents engage proactively across the organization by giving them an effective set of collaborative tools such as internal chat and enterprise social media.

4.   Flexibility – the beauty of the human brain is adaptability. If one solution doesn’t work for a customer, agents can use all their powers of conversation, empathy, creativity, intuition and negotiation to find the right one. Then add WFM technology into the mix to produce flexible schedules and manage your precious talent and resources effectively.

5.   Tact and diplomacy – this is where the human touch comes into its own because AI driven robots learn responses based on the data fed into them but humans can interpret and act on that data to deliver highly personalized customer interactions. The emergency services and organisations with a large proportion of emotional or complex enquiries will always rely on humans to accommodate their customers’ specific needs and conduct sensitive, tactful and diplomatic conversations.

6.    Just being Human! – good customer service starts with people rather than machines. It is your human agents who know if customers are happy and which channels they prefer and it’s their human managers who will act on customer feedback, improve calls scripts and agent training and then enhance business processes that proactively manage ‘predictable’ situations and resolve problems quickly.

Of course, AI is radically transforming customer interactions but there is no substitute for the human touch when it comes to closing sales calls or delivering an exceptional, personal customer experience.
About the author: Nick Smith is Business Manager for UK and Ireland at Teleopti

The abolition of tribunal fees last year has seen claim levels soar, and new GDPR rules give HR even more to worry about.  David Bryce, managing director at Cleardata, explains why employers need to embrace strategic management of HR documents and how a digital system can help.

Employer Tribunals on the rise

In 2017, the number of employment tribunal cases rose by two thirds after the Supreme Court ruled that employees would not be charged for bringing cases against their employer. Just months later supermarket giant, WM Morrison, was put in the spotlight after it was reported that a former employee leaked confidential payroll information of around 100,000 employees. As a result, the High Court allowed a compensation claim from over 5,500 present and former employees and ruled that Morrisons was legally responsible for the leak.

This rise in employment tribunals is just one of the many reasons why HR departments need to turn their attention to how they manage the multitude of employees’ personal records and data. Employers need to be prepared to quickly access documents that could be years old or perform data analysis to identify any potential legal risks.

With GDPR to contend with now too, it’s more crucial than ever that accurate historical employee records are needed for legal reasons. Failure to find the required paperwork or evidence on time can result in significant payments and fines. To mitigate the risk, businesses need to ensure they have an effective document management strategy in place, with digitised documents, effective indexing/categorisation and secure archiving.

Although any potential legal action should not be the main motivator behind HR data housekeeping efforts, businesses need to be especially vigilant. These legislative developments highlight just how important a sound HR records management strategy is, and how wider HR operations can benefit as a result. For HR teams working towards a digital HR environment, there are a number of considerations when building or revisiting your strategy, including the management of employee data requests, use of robotics, internal recruitment opportunities and holistic data analysis.

GDPR and Employee data indexing

New regulation under GDPR allows current and former employees to request to see the data being held about them at any time. It’s vital that any such requests are responded to within one month and the data must be provided free of charge and in the requested format. This means that all data of both past and present employees must be easily discoverable and accessible. It’s also possible that a previous employee may request for their data to be deleted from record, in which case, documents need to be indexed by type as well as employee so individual records can be retained whilst others are erased.

Cleardata recently digitised over 100,000 employee records for NHS and social care services organisation, Virgin Care. The records were securely uploaded to a cloud document management system to allow authorised members of staff from multiple locations to gain access to files in a secure and GDPR-compliant way. Outsourcing the service has helped Virgin Care’s HR department become more productive and able to find required documentation quickly, without having to sort through physical paperwork stores.

Digital HR – Embrace robotics and technology

HR departments are driving their organisations to become more digital across the board, with many staff needing to be reskilled to transform the way they work. A survey by Deloitte found that 33% of HR teams are now using some form of artificial intelligence technology to deliver HR solutions.

Robotic process automation (RPA) as a new concept can initially sound a little daunting, but it’s not as futuristic as it sounds. Another piece of research by Deloitte found that 70% of organisations were already using RPA and 66% said they were expanding their use. RPA records tedious manual processes – for example, inputting data from paper to a system – and performs them automatically in just a few seconds. Effective RPA is reliant on documents and data being digitally discoverable, so digital indexing and data capture would need to be in place prior to its implementation. Once up and running, RPA can be useful for a multiplicity of HR tasks including the recruitment process; automating document, ID validation and employee onboarding amongst other time-consuming tasks. This can help to improve productivity by freeing up employee time whilst reducing the likelihood of human error. And contrary to popular belief, RPA is a cloud-hosted solution, so it doesn’t involve a team of robots occupying desks in your office!

Analytical insight for talent planning

Finding and retaining great talent is a challenge that every HR manager will know all too well. Many businesses prefer to train existing employees to fill vacancies rather than competing for external candidates. Larger businesses recruiting internally need to analyse lots of different information to uncover these opportunities; they need a clear view of the candidates and their skillsets, employment history and assessments. This process can be complex and time-consuming, involving many employee records stored in different places. Pooling this information can simplify the process, and with effective indexing and digitisation, you can view the required information and identify the perfect candidate more easily.

Finding the root of employee dissatisfaction

It’s important to get a true picture of what’s happening within an organisation to effectively measure and manage employee satisfaction and retention. For this purpose, employee surveys often aren’t enough. However, a holistic analysis of employee records, such as exit interviews, tenure in different business functions, role and locations and absenteeism records, can help to pin down the real issues. This broad range of information is likely to be held in multiple formats and gathering and processing these can be an overwhelming task, but digitising records data can speed this up considerably. Quick and simple access to this information is invaluable for HR and can help identify any engagement issues as they happen through real-time analytics.

With new legislation to abide by, significant penalties for non-compliance and a long list of best practice to follow, it’s perhaps not surprising that many businesses feel wary. However, these changes provide a good opportunity to readdress document management practices and assess where digitising the process can improve talent management, enable better insight and boost productivity in your business. Download Cleardata’s HR whitepaper for more information.