The Coronavirus pandemic has reset work trends, which has caused employers to rethink their organisation’s operations and strategic goals. It’s up to HR leaders to identify which pre-COVID goals and plans need to be reassessed.

Cost-saving is a major factor being taken into consideration, amongst employee experience. “As we all know, happy employees lead to happy and loyal customers, which results in growth.” says Jason Brooks, Managing Director of Cube Workspace.

So, how do we manage employee experience during a time like this? The needs of employees are evolving as the COVID-19 pandemic progresses, calling for employers to set-up a more sophisticated approach, as we enter the next phase of this pandemic.

A McKinsey survey found that remote working employees are seeing more positive effects on their daily work, are more engaged, and have a stronger sense of well-being. The return to work phase is presenting a great opportunity for companies to rethink employee experience, while adapting to rapidly changing circumstances.

Businesses are being encouraged to build on the trust created during the pandemic, by continuing to listen to their workforce. COVID-19 has caused people to experience unprecedented levels of disruption in their homes, as well as their jobs. Today’s employees need to know they are being heard and that their voices are being considered by the organisation they work for.

Employees will expect more flexibility in the workplace; while this is not appealing to everyone, organisations must anticipate that workers may expect more flexible policies in the future. This could include working from home several days a week, or tailoring workdays around your employee’s schedules.

“We have seen a sharp increase in the need for virtual working spaces, as well as companies needing to use office space on an ad-hoc basis,” adds Brooks, “which is why Cube Workspace has launched a new Pay As You Work option, to cater for these business’s needs.

”To ensure that businesses keep abreast with employee expectations, it’s imperative to ensure that feedback is encouraged. Taking current concerns and uncertainties into account; which could include physical safety, travel, ability to complete work timeously, support by management/ team, the quality and frequency of communication etc. Asking specific questions about flexible working arrangements; as well as short, medium, and long-term plans for each team member; to ascertain in which direction the business should be moving in.

Brooks adds “The way your organisation responds to your employee’s needs will have a tangible impact on their satisfaction and work ethic. Organisations who have responded well, will find their staff more engaged which will have a positive impact on employee confidence and connection to the business.”

Customer experience and employee satisfaction are certainly linked. Organisations need to rethink employee experience within the workforce and recognise that happy employees make happy customers

Find out more about Cube Workspace’s office space solutions here: https://cubeworkspace.co.za/solutions/

“If you value your clients and your employees, training is an essential, not a nice to have,” says Didi Ndlovu – Human Resources Manager at Alteram Solutions.  This is why the organisation took one and a half years to develop an extensive training programme that is now available to all the staff within this truly homegrown ICT company. 

Internationally, companies that offer comprehensive training programmes enjoy up to a 24% higher profit margin compared to companies that don’t offer training. ₁ Employee productivity is driven by the skills advancements made possible through employee skills development programmes. ₂ To thrive, companies need to do whatever is necessary to help their employees do their jobs effectively.  A recent study shows that companies with a high level of employee engagement outperform those with lower levels of engagement. ₃

With this understanding in mind, Alteram Solutions launched an extensive skills development programme for its employees as part of the business plan to improve, assist and enhance the way in which its employees do their jobs.  “Every single person in the organisation has equal access to training - this was key in our implementation,” adds Didi.

Alteram Solutions has grown rapidly since its inception in 2013 and now employs over 180 employees across the country.  “As a services company, our employees are the only asset we have to sell. We are thus always looking for ways to improve our skills and service offerings.  Growing a successful business is all about having a good business mind, combined with a strong skill set in a particular area of expertise,” says Garth Madella – Chief Technology Officer at Alteram Solutions.

“We believe that Alteram Solutions’ growth has been strengthened by employee development as new ideas, solutions, techniques and strategies are continuously being developed in the business. If Alteram Solutions does not regularly train its employees on these new developments, the risk of falling behind from its competitors as well as losing touch with its clients’ needs is very high,” says Didi.

The Human Resources department at Alteram Solutions spent a year and a half designing and developing an effective skills development and training plan.  Significant research aimed at the integration of the development of employees as individuals and their performance as teams in order to grow the business was conducted.  This included the following:

• Setting goals that support the business strategy.
• Assessing the skills and tools needed for effective job performance (skills gap analysis).
• Establishing appropriate training resources to facilitate the skills development and training programme.
• Establishing applicable policies and procedures for the skills development and training programme.

“So far, the implementation of the skills development and training programme has brought a huge change in the mindset of the employees at Alteram Solutions and has helped them feel motivated, more engaged and confident in the importance and value of what they add to the business. Furthermore, this initiative adds value to the company as once employees are trained – they will be able to do their jobs more effectively.  Alteram Solutions views its employees as its most valuable asset and making sure that they are trained with the knowledge and skills they need is an investment,” concludes Didi.

For more information on Alteram Solutions visit:  http://www.alteram.co.za

Tel: (010) 900 4075

E-mail: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Website: http://www.alteram.co.za

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/alteramsolutions/

The culture of an organisation defines how it engages with its customers Johannesburg, South Africa 05 April 2018:  RubiBlue, intelligent business solutions provider, has redesigned its core values to redefine business growth and enhance its business culture.

The organisation underwent a lengthy process to refine these values that are now embedded within the company and fundamentally influence its mindset. “Our goal is to provide our customers with intelligent business solutions that drive business efficiencies and save them time, money and stress,” says Chris Ogden, Managing Director, RubiBlue.

“When you consider how our business is built around helping our customers achieve their goals and ambitions, we felt it was important that we had a clearly mandated philosophy that ensured we could support our clients and our employees to the best of our abilities.” This commitment saw the 13-year-old company invest in creating the RubiBlue values which would ensure consistent client engagement through measurable actions and targeted service delivery. The four pillars that uphold these values are: Commitment, Lead, Efficiency and Wellbeing.

These enhance the company’s core competencies of strong developmental skills and superior support services.

“When we first started out, we were purely a network support and sales provider, but since then we have evolved as a company and as a service provider,” says Ogden. “We have a range of satisfied clients who have benefitted from our consultancy, solutions development and Microsoft Network skills and we have always had a strong company culture to support these skills and this vision. Now, however, we have further refined this culture and the values that define it to take our business even further.”

The four core values of Commitment, Lead, Efficiency and Wellbeing form the acronym CLEW, which happens to be an integral part of any sailboat – holding the sail in place and ensuring that wind flow is accurately directed. Without it, the boat would have no forward momentum, an accurate representation of how no company can move forward without core values to support it.

“CLEW represents who we are, what we stand for, our integrity in business and our commitment to our customers,” concludes Ogden.

Condriac Digital Communications, a leading black-owned Digital and PR agency, has experienced tremendous growth in the first half of 2017 by acquiring new clients, doubling their workforce and have no intention of slowing down.

Tshepo Mphela joins the PR team as an Account Director, with 12 years of experience under his belt. This AAA graduate brings with him a wealth of experience in creative strategy and content creation to the agency. Having worked extensively at major PR agencies on clients such as Telkom, Shell, HP and MiWay, Tshepo’s extensive knowledge of the Public Relations industry makes him a dynamic and formidable publicist.

Public Relations Account Manager Candice Marescia, a College Campus IIE graduate, has a passion for events, media relations and brand management. Having worked on accounts such as Kellogg’s, General Electric, Eskom and Flight Centre, Candice brings a broad understanding of B2B and consumer brands to Condriac.

Karabelo Matlotlo also joins the PR team as an Account Executive. Karabelo studied Public Relations and Communications at the University of Johannesburg. Her career began at PR Expert, where she discovered her love for PR. She looks forward to advancing herself in the field of PR and welcomes the new opportunities ahead of her.

Thabo Ramosime joins the design team as a Graphic Designer. He earned his degree at the Vaal University of Technology and has worked on brands such as Castle Lite, Renault, Edgars, Jet Mobile and CNA. As a new team member who is passionate about design and illustration, Thabo aspires to take Condriac’s design and visual aesthetics to the next level.

Lauren Crooks joins the Condriac team as a Copywriter. Lauren is a psychology graduate and qualified life coach with a passion for words, people and all things digital. She has worked on a diverse array of retail brands and thrives on creating dynamic, engaging brand identities and developing strategic, creative solutions for clients.

Finally, Dwayne Nienaber joins Condriac as a Digital Account Executive. Dwayne earned a Diploma in Blogging and Content Marketing from Shaw Academy and is Google Adwords certified. He worked in the telecommunications industry for 4 years, but made the switch to Digital because of it’s fast-paced, exciting and ever-changing nature.Dwayne’s strengths lie in his strong work ethic and problem-solving and analytical nature.

“We have an ambition to become a leading agency in South Africa, and in order to do this, we hire people based on their great attitude, a particular skill set and sometimes a plain old gut feeling. We believe that our latest hires demonstrate all of this and will be instrumental in reaching our ultimate goal”, says CEO of Condriac, Keshia Patchiappen.

Share Incentives analysis: How can employee share plans affect the attitude and performance of staff? Jonathan Fletcher Rogers of Abbiss Cadres highlights that, if deployed correctly, share plans can act as a catalyst for greater employee engagement. Fletcher Rogers is a contributing author on the recently released Practical Guidance In-house Adviser solution from LexisNexis South Africa, for which content was authored in the United Kingdom and specifically tailored to the South African market by local authors.    

What is the link between share plans and engagement?

JFR:     The traditional view of employee share plans is that they contribute to increased productivity in two main ways:   they assist in the recruitment and retention of the best people (by making it financially beneficial for them to stay); and they motivate employees by aligning employee interests with those of management and shareholders – in the case of executive plans, this is commonly achieved through the use of performance measures. However, research suggests that although share plans may influence employees' attitudes – for example, by making them feel more positive about the business, and more loyal and committed – the impact on employee behaviour (in terms of increased productivity) is less clear. Furthermore, the evidence suggests that only organisations that are majority employee-owned (such as the “John Lewis” ownership model) show any significant behavioural change as a result of share ownership. The evidence for behavioural change among organisations with mainstream employee share plans (such as save as you earn plans and share incentive plans) is limited. If employee engagement requires positive attitudes and behaviours, but research suggests that the impact of share plans is broadly limited to attitudinal change, it raises the question of how share plans can affect employee engagement.  

How can a company maximise employee engagement through the use of employee share plans?

JFR:     Although the evidence indicates that share plans on their own may not lead to higher employee engagement, share plans can be used as a catalyst that creates the conditions for engagement. Research has highlighted four key “enablers” of engagement which are common across businesses with highly engaged employees:   a strong strategic narrative; engaging managers; employee voice; and organisational integrity. As share plans are closely connected with the performance of the business, companies have the opportunity to maximise the use of these enablers through share plan communications. For many companies, share plan communications will just involve describing how the plan works and some of the potential benefits that employees may enjoy. However, for companies to make the most effective use of their share plans, the launch of the plan should be the start of an ongoing conversation with employees. By making the link between reward and business performance, share plans provide the opportunity to discuss business goals and performance in a context that is personal to the employee.  

What are the potential benefits for a company of communicating its employee share plans effectively, and what are the downsides if it fails to do so?

JFR:     Share plans present companies with an excellent opportunity to engage with their employees. Companies will sometimes spend a lot of time and money implementing a share plan. However, without an effective communications strategy it can be a wasted expense. If companies can use their share plans to increase employee engagement, the benefits that may arise include higher levels of retention, innovation and customer service and reduced absenteeism. Engaged employees are more likely to recommend their organisation to others, thus building the “virtuous circle” of benefits previously mentioned. In most cases, a poor communications strategy is just an opportunity lost for the business. However, there can also be a damaging effect on employee engagement where employees participate in a share plan and the expected benefits do not materialise (due to a downturn in business performance, for example). An effective communications strategy can reduce this damage by involving employees in ongoing discussions about business performance. In addition, employees will better understand the challenges facing the business and be motivated to support the business in tackling them. In the absence of any ongoing dialogue about business performance, a downturn can actually lead to a vicious circle of lower morale and lower productivity.  

What approach do you recommend a company should take when communicating its employee share incentives?

JFR:     How a company communicates its share plan will differ from one organisation to the next. To be successful, the communication should build on existing channels and protocols to ensure the medium used is appropriate and accessible for the audience. For example, while electronic communications (eg intranet, e-mail, text, etc) may be the most effective method for some businesses, in other cases more traditional methods may still be the best way of communicating (eg posters, group presentations and hard copy brochures).  The communications approach should also be business-focused and endorsed by management, clearly showing how the plan fits with overall business strategy. This will create the conditions for the ongoing business conversations that are essential for employee engagement.  

Once the share plan has been launched, are there further steps that the company should take in order to maximise employee engagement in the future?

JFR:     The launch of the share plan should be just the beginning of an ongoing conversation with employees relating to both the share plan and the overall business. While the launch communication is important for ensuring that all legal requirements of the plan are fulfilled, the ongoing communication is likely to have a greater impact on the successful achievement of the plan's aims (ie improved motivation and engagement).  Although the share plan launch may well be handled by the HR team, who will have the necessary experience and resource for such communication, the responsibility for communications around the share plan going forward should lie with management.  Enabling staff to talk about business performance (using share price as a catalyst), managers can help teams and individuals to see how what they do at work directly links to the bottom line. This direct “line of sight” between individual, team and business performance is a key output of share plan communication. Team meetings, appraisals and goal setting all provide opportunities for these conversations and a regular communication schedule, for example built around quarterly results, will ensure that the plan is kept “live”.

Interviewed by Nicola Laver.

{pp}After months of careful content creation and pouring of over reference books, Jobinterview.co.za has finally launched.