Research data continues to confirm the growing need for companies to examine their current technology stacks and determine whether they will continue to support the current and future employee experience (EX) needs of their organizations. Happyness.me, Qualtrics, Quantum Workplace, Reward Gateway, Tivian, and VMware all released research data related to EX over the past month. Details below.

Happiness at Work: How Happy is India’s Workforce?

• As much as 59% of the workforce in India is not happy at work.
• Retail & e-commerce has the highest number of unhappy employees, with only 25% of retail employees expressing workplace happiness, while Healthcare has the highest number of happy employees, with 51% expressing happiness with their work.
• Gender also plays a role, with the report finding that more men (45%) are happy at the workplace as compared to women (37%). 

Research Focused on What Matters Most to Employees

• More than half of US employees (54%) would be willing to take a pay cut to work at a company with better values, and even more (56%) wouldn’t even consider a job at a company that has values they disagree with.
• Employees want their company executives to speak out about societal and environmental issues – only 15% think their company should do so less.
• When asked to select their top three choices from a list of topics, 44% of workers said employers should prioritize weighing in on employee well-being, 35% wanted to hear more about wages, and 33% would like their employers to speak out about worker rights and safety.

Unpacking Organizational Culture in a New World of Work

• 35% of employees stated the culture at their organization has changed dramatically over the past two years.
• Only 28% of employees indicated they felt culture most strongly in the physical workspace.
• Highly engaged employees were 4.5 times less likely to say their company culture has declined or worsened in the past 2 years compared with those who are not highly engaged.

Expectations of Employees and Goals of HR Leaders

• Half of employees (50%) would like to see increased investment in employee reward and recognition. Additionally, 49% of employees would like their employer to increase investment in mental, physical, and financial wellbeing resources.
• A sizable number of employees would leave a job if there was a lack of reward and recognition for their efforts (40%) and a lack of financial, physical, or mental wellbeing support (40%).
• HR leaders are aware of changing employee expectations, with survey results highlighting HR’s efforts to improve the overall employee experience. In fact, their top three priorities are employee engagement (43%), employee retention (39%), and workplace well-being (38%).

UK-focused Research on the Employee Experience Gap

• 85% of HR staff think they are using employee feedback to improve the experience they offer. Yet only half (50%) of staff agree. Just 14% think their employers use feedback very effectively to drive change. 
• Only 12% of employees receive laser-targeted, personalized feedback – 88% get generic, one-size-fits-all communications that could be meant for anyone. 
• 67% of employees said they would be more likely to stay if employers listened and made changes based on their feedback.

Optimizing Digital Employee Experience (DEX) for Anywhere Work

• 75% of respondents have made DEX a higher or top priority since the start of the pandemic.
• 75% hope that a DEX solution can improve overall employee experience and drive increased retention rates.
• While only 25% of respondents indicated having a comprehensive DEX solution currently in place, a majority (nearly 60%) expect to implement one within 24 months.