While technology is playing a huge role in helping businesses improve their service and boost productivity, it’s also directly and indirectly improving employees well-being.
Tech such as modern accounting systems make financial admin easier, efficient and less time consuming. The latest point of sale (POS) tech enables swift face to face transactions integrated with inventory management and customer data capture.
The above helps employee well-being in that time consuming and repetitive tasks are now largely automated, and this helps people get more out of their work compared to spending long hours on time consuming tasks. Tech can also directly be used to promote employee well-being.
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Why is Employee Well-being Important?
A happy employee is a more productive one, so efforts to improve employee well-being are likely to rewarded with improved output and quality of work.
Also, at a time when several industries face a skills shortage, extra effort in retaining existing staff and attracting new people through enhancing well-being is becoming not just desirable but essential.
How Can tech Help?
Morale and well-being can be boosted amongst employees with tech up to the task of helping them work efficiently.
For example, up to date computer equipment that’s pleasant to use and powerful enough won’t hinder employees trying to do their jobs as outdated, slow and awkward to use kit might.
The same applies to facilities such as CMS (Content Management Systems). An interface that’s easy to access remotely, performs reliably, and is simple to interact with means employees can complete their workloads without being compromised by tech that is too awkward to use.
Direct Tech Help for Employees
As a way of improving employee well-being and showing the company takes their welfare seriously, tech that helps them as individuals in non-work related ways is being offered to employees by some organizations.
For example, encouraging good health and ‘looking after’ oneself has been achieved in two ways by more than one corporation:
- Certain staff are given free subscriptions to an app-based meditation service such as Headspace to encouraging them to take time out and try it
- Supplying some or all employees with a Fitbit to encourage them to take account of general fitness and maybe take an interest in it
To this end, some organizations run a light hearted completion to see who can achieve a monthly ‘number of steps taken’ task or similar.
The above measures in themselves can improve morale and well-being amongst employees; it shows them they work for a company that values its people and is prepared to take practical and monetary steps to demonstrate this.
Workplace Design
The advances in design and planning tech has seen some organizations develop workplaces that promote good well-being.
Elements such as working out ergonomics, positioning of lighting and office furniture for the best in comfort and making the most of natural light are incorporated. Sensor tech enables information to be gathered regarding how employees are using the workplace so building a picture of what alterations can be made to improve conditions.
Even lighting tech to complement circadian rhythms is deployed in some workplaces.
Spending on employee Well-Being: an Investment not a Cost
Businesses and other organizations can actually save money by investing in staff well-being:
- Happy staff generally take less time off than unhappy workers suffering from poor well-being and low morale; absences make for a high expense in lost productivity and possible disruption even though the US does not guarantee paid sick leave
- Happier staff whose well-being is being taken account of are more likely to stay with the organization, so less costs in recruiting replacements – especially difficult in skills shortage environments
- It’s easier to attract new staff; if a potential recruit knows a company values their well-being they’re likely to be keener to join the organization
Investing in good employee well-being could pay off several times over.
