With 85% of employees believing that their organizations should be doing more to enhance their digital experience at work, the emphasis on improving the employee experience whilst creating seamless, efficient digital employee continues to become a top priority for CIOs and business leaders.
As new technologies rapidly emerge, they not only add complexity to the digital workplace but also heighten for digital transformation projects that drive streamlined operations, personalized digital experiences, and data-driven decision-making.
In fact, one-third of companies plan to increase their investment in digital transformation over the next year, with 18% specifically focused on hiring new talent to drive these initiatives. This aligns seamlessly with the rising focus on building dedicated Digital Employee Experience (DEX) teams to ensure that as the workplace evolves, employee experience stays front and centre.
When creating a team dedicated to DEX efforts, clear and consistent communication is crucial to ensure alignment, foster collaboration, and drive the success of digital initiatives.
Here’s how you can ensure those pieces don’t fall apart:
Cross-functional collaboration
For your DEX initiative to truly make an impact, teams outside of IT should be brought in to create cross-functional teams. However, the success of this collaboration hinges on strong and consistent communication. Without it, teams risk facing conflicts, misalignment, inefficiencies, and in the worst case, project failure.
With research showing that 75% of cross-functional teams are dysfunctional, there are several actionable steps that organizations can take to avoid falling short to this.
Just as team members will bring different knowledge and skill sets, they will most likely have their own working-styles and communication preferences. Take some time as the project kicks-off to find commonalities between members and establish communication norms, for example – what communication channel will the team use?
With communication norms addressed, regular meeting cadences should be put in place to share information, align work and overcome any blockers as a team. Whether this be weekly or bi-weekly, find one that works for your team.
The diversity that comes with cross-functional teams, when harnessed correctly, can be powerful in DEX teams. Beyond the usual advantages of cross-functional collaboration, a 2022 study published in the Journal of Applied Psychology found that employees working in cross-functional teams reported a 35% increase in adaptability and a 30% improvement in problem-solving skills. In addition, a Gallup poll revealed that teams with strong collaboration see engagement levels climb as high as 70%, resulting in lower turnover rates and reduced hiring costs.
Aligning goals and expectations
Establishing clear goals and expectations from the offset is crucial in diverse teams. When these aren’t set, team members can risk facing confusion and a lack of clarity around their role and contribution to the project.
The role of leadership in this process shouldn’t be overlooked, organizations should understand the importance of there being clear driving forces for the project in place, for example - a Chief DEX Officer, to oversee the targets for the procedures and team members.
Leaders should define a clear vision for the organization’s goals, ensuring that overarching objectives are established and aligned with individual goals. A study by the Harvard Business Review found that organizations that implemented clear goal-setting practices experienced a 19% increase in overall performance.
To meet these goals and exceed expectations, collaborative project management tools like Confluence and JIRA can aid help. By implementing these tools, teams can ensure that information is centralized and not siloed to minimize any blockers and inefficiencies.
Maintaining effective feedback
A lack of feedback can derail any project, especially in DEX where the employee experience is constantly evolving. Without regular feedback, team members miss the opportunity to identify areas for improvement, both stalling their personal growth and slowing down the momentum of the project.
For your team members to not fall victim to this, a continuous feedback loop that normalizes regular communication and improvement should be established. A feedback culture won’t just evolve on its own, you need to be intentional about it. Implementing structured feedback sessions, such as one-on-ones, team retrospectives, and anonymous surveys are all good ways to foster this environment.
Surveys show that employees who receive daily feedback from their managers are 3 times more engaged compared to those who receive feedback on an annual basis.
This increase in engagement isn’t just a team advantage, it also drives organizational success. Companies that foster a culture of continuous feedback see turnover rates that are 14.9% lower compared to those that don't prioritize regular feedback, leading to a more committed, productive and engaged workforce.
Flexibility in adapting to change
Rapid advancements like AI are constantly changing the digital workplace, without being able to effectively adapt to this change, DEX initiatives can suffer. Being flexible and proactive to change is one thing, but knowing how to effectively communicate this across the organization is another.
For DEX teams, having members who can clearly communicate their vision for transformation is essential. When the vision is effectively shared, teams are far more likely to embrace the change, 50% of respondents in a recent survey stated that a clear vision inspired them to go the extra mile in a successful transformation.
With effective communication in place, organizations that implement strong change management practices are 6 times more likely to achieve their objectives compared to those with poor or no change management.
Communication is a key driving force
Communication is a key driving force behind building a successful DEX team and supporting digital transformation. Clear communication fosters cross-functional collaboration, aligns goals, and encourages continuous improvement where innovation thrives even in the face of change.
Successful communication in DEX teams plays a fundamental role to the overall success and how teams use communication to their advantage will be overall affect the digital experience among the organization.
Want to learn in more detail about the team roles in a dedicated DEX team? Check out The Experience Toolkit: Assembling a DEX Super-Team.