5 Reasons Why You Need a Digital Employee Experience in 2022

You need a digital employee experience in 2022 because it directly improves talent retention, communication, cost efficiency, learning, and workplace culture in a hybrid work world.

As 2022 begins, the employee experience needs to evolve to match hybrid working and shifting employee expectations. To stay competitive and retain talent during the ongoing Great Resignation, companies need a digital employee experience (DEX) that blends digital and in-person collaboration.

To succeed, you first need to understand your current digital employee experience, review your HR tools, identify gaps, and close them.

Here are five reasons why you need to embrace a digital employee experience now for the future of work.

What is the employee experience?

Much like the customer experience, employees who aren't satisfied with their workplace may leave for elsewhere.

Tracking the employee lifecycle—including culture, performance management, and technology—makes it easier to see which employees are engaged and why. This is vital to attract and retain employees, reduce turnover, and improve productivity and the customer experience.

How is the workplace changing?

Workplace trends and priorities have shifted in recent years, changing what employees want from employers. It's predicted that 70% of European and US companies will move to a hybrid work model after the pandemic. Companies that adopt this model may improve employee experience, retention, and overall business performance.

You must strategize how to adapt the employee experience to this new work pattern, and technology plays a central role. Traditional engagement tactics—impressive offices, in-person events, dress-down Fridays—become less relevant in a hybrid world.

What is the digital employee experience?

The digital employee experience involves the technology employees use, its quality, and how it impacts engagement. Before the pandemic, many employees didn't work from home or lack the technology to do so. Now, remote working technology is essential—and if it's missing or unreliable, it can hurt engagement.

Digital experience issues can stem from technology type, mobility, performance, security, and ease of use. Common problems include poor network connections or outdated software. Persistent issues like these negatively affect employees.

The Future Organization uses an Employee Experience Index to rank over 200 global companies, including Google, Apple, and LinkedIn. Notably, they identify technology, physical workspace, and culture as the variables employees care about most.

How can an effective digital employee experience benefit your company?

Forrester's research found that companies with mature digital employee experience programmes were 62% more likely to report higher retention rates and 33% more likely to report higher employee satisfaction. Over 50% were more likely to agree they had a better remote work experience thanks to their DEX programme.

Deloitte's research found that only 38% of business leaders were satisfied or very satisfied with their work-related technology.

5 reasons to focus on the digital employee experience

1. Improve attraction and retention of talent

The most obvious reason to invest in your digital employee experience is to attract great talent and retain your best people. Digital HR tools help attract talent, document recruitment activities, and support selection and onboarding.

Candidates are pickier now about where they work, and a lack of digital transformation may push them elsewhere. Job seekers often question the remote-work technology you provide or check whether you use current systems.

Gen Z is a key group to consider. Dell's research of over 12,000 Gen Z respondents found that 80% want to work with "cutting-edge" technology, and 91% said technology would influence their choice of future employer.

2. Improve internal, cross-team and team communication

With teams now more physically scattered than ever, keeping people connected across the company is essential. The digital employee experience addresses this through technology solutions that improve employee communication and collaboration.

Single apps let employees celebrate milestones and interact personally by sharing updates and messages in a fun, engaging way.

3. Cost and time savings

Higher retention naturally brings recruitment cost and time savings, but the benefits go deeper. A more engaged workforce improves productivity and customer satisfaction, creating a better overall customer experience.

Traditional in-house systems often mean multiple platforms for different tasks rather than one unified engagement platform. A new joiner may need to complete separate forms for compliance, HR, security, and IT during onboarding.

A unified HR digital system streamlines this process, saving employees time and frustration while boosting engagement and modernising the company's digital approach.

4. Ongoing learning and development

As hybrid working continues, in-person training becomes harder to schedule. Invest in digital HR tools offering remote learning and development, and ensure your performance management process uses up-to-date systems to develop and motivate people year-round.

Also consider whether you're using technology to gather feedback for performance management, and what tools you could invest in if not.

5. Inclusive workplace culture

Technology can help build an inclusive workplace culture. A digital strategy that works across the company and collaborates with other teams helps embed digital transformation into the company culture. Regardless of where employees are located, digital HR tools can gather feedback, manage surveys, and measure engagement continuously—then communicate results and drive action plans across the business.

The pandemic has highlighted the need for digital transformation and inclusion in the employee experience. Improving the digital employee experience can enhance employee and customer engagement, increase cost and time savings, improve internal communication, and reduce turnover. Hybrid working means employees need the right systems and technology to stay connected. And remember: a digital approach is ever-evolving, so company champions should keep gathering feedback and reviewing the changing digital landscape.

Sorwe offers all the solutions your company needs to design an effective digital employee experience. Please contact us to discuss what's right for your business.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the digital employee experience?

It's the technology employees use daily and how its quality, security, and ease of use affect their engagement and productivity, especially in remote or hybrid work.

Why do companies need a digital employee experience in 2022?

Hybrid work has become the norm, and employees now expect reliable digital tools. Without them, companies risk lower engagement, retention, and productivity.

How does digital employee experience improve talent retention?

Modern digital HR tools streamline recruitment, onboarding, and daily work, making companies more attractive to candidates and helping retain existing employees.

Can a digital employee experience reduce costs?

Yes. Unified digital systems save time on admin tasks like onboarding, reduce recruitment costs through better retention, and boost overall productivity.

What role does technology play in workplace culture?

Digital tools help gather feedback, manage surveys, and measure engagement consistently, helping build an inclusive culture regardless of employee location.