Information Technology's Role in Staff Retention
How IT can help your business retain and attract staff
The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, which is not a fun blog to read, notes there were 10.3 million job openings at the end of October. We're all aware of the impacts of the pandemic, the great resignation and overall labor shortages. While hysteria is building in media due to mass layoffs in large corporations and big tech, these layoffs fail to fill the current vacancies. This talent vacuum has forced all businesses to improve their culture in an attempt to retain talent. One business unit that receives little press in regards to its ability to impact staff retention rates is information technology. Let's explore this concept!
Does the ecosystem created by your IT department enhance the work experience of your end user? Or is this a hindrance? This is a serious question that you should consider. The current job market presents a multitude of options for employees, especially top talent. If the tools and applications that you present to end users slow their productivity (read earning potential) or creates ongoing frustration, then it's possible the organization has failed to meet the need of the employee. They can easily find a job that pays a reasonable wage and considers their needs, today.
Here are a few practical examples of frustration felt by employees:
Machines that are slow to boot. Have you been late to a conference call because your machine restarts slower than pond water? If you utilize Microsoft, which most organizations do, there are great ways to discover the productivity of your machines in the wild. Ask me how.
Your entire organization is ran off spreadsheets. Yes, we've all heard that cool example of a massive company that ran everything via Excel. No, we don't want to live that way, you savages.
Application sprawl. I know you love all 300+ applications that you provide to your end users, but they're too busy toggling between these apps to do any real work. Effectively, your employee's sole duty is managing applications. As humans we often complain about the excessive number of applications and subscriptions we must manage in our personal lives; the same is true for our work lives. We must find a way to reduce the amount of data sources and automate simple processes. I can help if this sounds like you.
Avoidance of automation. Digital transformation is your friend. If you haven't heard of RPA (Robotic Process Automation) and IPA (Intelligent Process Automation), then we need to talk. You don't have to click the same 47 repetitive boxes just to complete a simple task, anymore. The project will pay for itself in terms of time savings, but imagine how much value you can bring to the human experience.
Your internet feels as slow as dialup from 1999. I know you like to save money and you don't want the kids streaming the YouTube during work hours, but you should ensure your team has adequate bandwidth to meet their needs. Here's a classic example that tickles me every time I hear it, "Our backups start up at 6pm, and complete around the time everyone comes back into the office the next morning."
You don't have a solid helpdesk. It is difficult to staff and maintain an exceptional helpdesk. That's why the rise of Helpdesk-as-a-Service has blossomed into one of the most sought after service offerings I run across. If you have a helpdesk, have you considered how automation and modern tools can improve the speed in which you resolve end user's needs? Have you considered outsourcing elements or all of your helpdesk, such as password reset? This could reduce the amount of high-volume, heavy-repetition tasks.
There is often a disconnect between the executives' perception of what workers need and reality. This can especially be true with younger employees. Why do you think shadow IT exists?
A constant theme of marketing in this field is geared towards improving customer experience. I'm personally a massive advocate in this space and I genuinely believe that improving customer experience will yield higher sales and happy customers for your organization. We often fail to extend the promise of these same benefits to our employees. In fact, the most successful IT Departments view the company's employees as their customers. How can you improve your employee experience? Retention of talent could depend on your response. I don't have any empirical evidence to support this claim, but I'm convinced a happy employee equates to higher productivity, which yields higher profits. We can all win, together.