Last year, I presented a series on LinkedIn Live about ” Human Experience Management” The SAP SuccessFactors conference introduced HMX. It is more than just the employee experience. HMX means treating people as individuals and not just employees. What does this mean? What are the essential components of a positive human experience?
As I went through some files in my office, I came across the notes from the event. I identified four key elements in delivering HMX.
Wellbeing – To ensure we are all on the same page: Wellness is defined as “being happy, healthy, and comfortable”. This doesn’t necessarily mean you are happy 100% of the time. It’s possible to be all of these things on some days. I consider well-being to be happy, healthy, and comfortable most of the day. When we aren’t, well-being is about being able to admit it. Employees should feel comfortable letting their managers know if they are unhappy about a decision or require a lighter workload. Management will then support the employee and not view it as slacking off or forgetting responsibilities.
Civility – Organizations must have cultures that promote civility and hold people accountable for their uncivil behavior. Even if your organization is top-selling, you don’t have to be rude or immature. I want to clarify that being civil does not mean you can’t have difficult conversations or share negative news. We have to do this occasionally, unfortunately. Civility is about conveying unpleasant messages with empathy, respect and professionalism.
Learning – We’ve all seen at least one article over the years about the importance of being a lifelong learner. It is true, and we should keep learning. Human experience management refers to creating a learning culture that encourages employees to learn and grow, whether in a classroom setting or self-directed development. Learning is a way to grow and can help us feel better. Management support is the key to a learning culture that thrives.
Recognition: Employers should be paid fairly and provide competitive benefits. This should be obvious. Organizations must also show sincere appreciation for their efforts and achievement of goals. Every level of the organization should show sincere appreciation. Recognizing someone deserves to be acknowledged should be done promptly and meaningfully. Recognizing others is a sign of well-being. It shows appreciation and civility when done correctly.
You might hear someone saying, “I get it.” It’s great that our organization has these things. The way they are aligned is what I believe moves this conversation beyond recognition programs, learning departments, and civility training to human experience management (HMX). HMX doesn’t mean four programs. Integrating these elements into every aspect of an organization’s work.
- Do hiring managers in recruitment establish a positive working relationship with candidates to ensure that they feel comfortable bringing up wellbeing when they are hired?
- Employees are given a chance to practice communicating difficult messages in training programs.
- Do employees get to discuss what they have learned and how they can use it in the future at debriefs?
- Managers should ask their employees in one-on-one meetings what they want to be acknowledged for their work.
These are just some of the questions organizations may want to ask to ensure that HMX components don’t become checklists or programs but actions that reflect the daily human work experience.