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Work Experience Gleaned from an Agile Environment

When you vet résumés for potential job candidates, the skills section can be telling. Your company might look for industry-specific skills or mentions of commonly used software or equipment. But what about experience working in an agile environment? Is that a skill you’re looking for? Is it even worth mentioning on a résumé? 

In the era of agile work, experience in free-assign and flexible workplaces is important. Like any other trait in the skills section of a résumé, it speaks to that person’s ability to thrive when put in certain situations. Workplaces play a large role in how people do the job they’re hired for. Just because they have the qualifications doesn’t mean they’re equipped to do a good job in an environment they’re unfamiliar with. Conversely, someone who knows what it’s like working in an agile environment might not have any trouble getting up to speed. 

Not only is experience with agile working a skill, but it’s worth looking for on incoming résumés. The newest addition to your team is likely someone familiar with the work styles and culture already present in your agile environment. 

Why is prior experience important? 

Consider someone who’s only ever worked in a traditional office. They have their own desk and personal private space with a phone extension and computer. Now, imagine taking these things away from that person and telling them to do the same job they’ve always done, only in an agile environment. It’s apples vs. oranges, Mac vs. PC. Say goodbye to what they know. 

For most people, adapting to a new workspace is stressful enough. Change the entire dynamic of a workplace, and your new hire may feel even more out of their element. This isn’t to say they can’t learn to embrace agile working—they’re just at a disadvantage.

What does agile workplace experience say about someone? 

Experience working within an agile workspace translates into many other traits. Think about what an agile workplace represents, then track these traits back into skills: 

  • Workplace agility teaches a person to adapt quickly to new situations. 
  • Using different types of workplaces imbues workers with strategic understanding. 
  • Collaborating in agile environments develops strong communication skills. 
  • Self-managing in free-assign workplaces teaches accountability. 
  • Familiarity with agile workplace systems promotes critical thinking.
     

All these traits are secondary to working in an agile work environment but have real ramifications when developing productive habits. Agile work experience shows a person’s ability to function at a high level in an ever-changing environment. This type of person is an asset to the company and someone who can continue to adapt to the demands of a growing, changing business. 

If it’s not on the résumé, ask about it

Not every employee will think to put “experience working in an agile environment” in the skills section of their résumé. Employers shouldn’t overlook it during interviews and applicant surveys. Like any other skill a candidate brings to the table, agile work experience is an asset.

If your company’s hiring process involves a questionnaire, focus one or two questions on workplace experience or willingness to adapt to an agile workplace. For in-person interviews, ask pointed questions about it. “How do you feel about working in an environment that changes every day?” or “How do you adapt to environments that force constant change?” Make it clear that you operate an agile workplace and discuss what it means for your company. 

Workspace conversations are much more productive in the interview phase than after a hire. The last thing you want to do is hire the perfect candidate only to find they’re incompatible with the workplace culture of an agile environment. 

Make the transition into agile work simple

Every agile workplace has its own degree of dynamism. A workplace with 10 employees has a very different feel than one with 100. Likewise, adapting to different types of breakout spaces, a new floor plan and different workplace protocols is all part of easing into a new environment. 

Whether they have agile work experience or not, take time to ease a new hire into your workplace. Immersion time is often lower for workers familiar with agile workspaces, but a well-run workplace will foster inclusion for anyone, experienced or not. The smoother you make the transition, the easier it is for your new hire to integrate. 

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Keep reading: Understanding Agile Workplace Pros and Cons. 

 

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Why is Employee Experience Important?

Consider buying a new car. It’s an experience that’s notoriously frustrating — one most people dread. They hate pestering salespeople, haggling over price and interest rates, and signing dozens of documents. By the time they drive off the lot, most people are too exhausted to enjoy their purchase. The overall experience was simply draining. It’s the same concept for an employee’s experience in the workplace. 

Unlike the experience of buying a car, you want employees to feel good coming to work! Many employees today work hybrid, and it’s your job to ensure they enjoy coming to the office as much as they enjoy remote work. They shouldn’t dread walking up to the building or feeling tension when sitting at a desk. Employees should leave feeling fulfilled at the end of the day. Research shows a good employee experience can improve the productivity, comfort, and cohesiveness of an excellent workplace experience. 

What is employee experience?

Employee experience is a self-explanatory term. It’s how your employees feel about their employment. Only recently has employee experience become quantified as the sum of culture, technology, and workplace —though it’s most often correlated with the workplace since that’s where all these variables come together. 

In a genuine sense, employee experience is about making employees excited, proud, happy, and confident in their work. Companies capable of doing this create a positive employee experience; companies that fall short may deliver a negative or unexciting experience to workers, leading to employee burnout. It’s an outcome dictated mainly by the willingness and ability to meet and exceed employee needs, expectations, and standards.

10 reasons why employee experience matters

Every company wants happy employees, but employee experience goes far beyond making people happy. It’s about attaining the benefits of happy, engaged, and productive employees. Here are 10 reasons employee experience is important and why it pays to create a positive one: 

  1. Attract and retain talent. Skilled employees want to work in a place that embraces and supports them. From the interview to the onboarding process through all stages of the employee, a good experience provides top talent with a sense of purpose and work-life balance. 
  2. Create camaraderie. A company’s workforce needs to function as a team. Bad employee experience can push people apart; good, shared experiences bring them together.  
  3. Enable work support. A good experience empowers employees to try their best. This way, employees feel confident about their work and less afraid of failure if their workplace projects an air of support. 
  4. Improve engagement. Employees with a positive view of their workplace enjoy a certain level of excitement about their job. They’re attentive, engaged, and ready to do their best. 
  5. Foster collaboration. Given a positive experience collaborating with their peers, employees won’t be afraid to ask for help, provide guidance, or work together—especially in an environment that supports them. 
  6. Inspire creativity. The ability to think clearly and creatively benefits businesses and employees alike. That creativity fosters innovation, which leads to growth. 
  7. Prioritize well-being. If a workplace weighs heavy on an employee, they’ll suffer at work and home. Promoting a positive employee experience encourages higher engagement, which can improve mental health. 
  8. Feed the bottom line. An excellent employee experience boosts the bottom line through everything from better efficiency to a higher caliber of work done. Happy employees drive revenue growth. 
  9. Bolster company image. People talk. When the topic of work arises and employees say only good things, that word of mouth becomes part of the company’s ethos, and perception is often reality. 
  10. Grow professionally. Employees who feel good about where they work grow in their professional endeavors. They do more, learn more, and feel comfortable taking on responsibility. 

Remember, these benefits are contingent on a positive experience and can become erased by a negative one. Let’s return to the car analogy from above. If you have a wonderful experience at the dealership, you might be more willing to recommend them to a friend or pay a little extra for features you might not have otherwise. A bad experience may make you leave the lot without even buying a car! From the moment of arrival to the moment of departure, experience means everything — especially to attract and retain top talent.

Reap the benefits of a great employee experience

At the end of the workday, positive employee experiences directly correlate to business success. Employees who feel welcomed, accommodated, and empowered bring that positive energy to their work, the interactions they share, and the company culture. These factors contribute to a business’s bottom line and competitive advantage. 

Pay close attention to employee experience in the workplace. Do they show up and leave in a good mood? Can they work efficiently and productively? Do they immerse themselves in the workplace? Look for the hallmarks of a good experience and address facets of the workplace where friction, tension, and other negative sentiments are an opportunity to improve the employee experience.   

Keep in mind people will never be happy all the time. But an employee’s workplace experience should never be the reason why they’re unhappy. If it is, it’s time to reshape your workplace and employee experience. 

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Explore Archibus Back-to-Work Solutions 

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By Danielle Moore
Director, Channel Marketing
SpaceIQ

As organizations explore safe and measured returns to work, they need tools and resources to help ensure the ongoing health and safety of employees. Archibus provides tools for hoteling and reservations, preventive and corrective maintenance, occupancy, health compliance, and myriad others. Our goal is to deliver a complete suite of solutions that help organizations put their best foot forward as they take steps to get back to work.

Here’s a look at the many tools Archibus offers and how to capitalize on them. Keep checking back after each version release to discover new solutions to facilitate your return to work.

Hoteling 

Archibus’ robust hoteling features empower your workforce to find and book spaces with ease—from full-time employees, to flex workers, to visitors. Enforce bookings, schedule cleanings, monitor capacity, restrict and enable bookings, prevent duplicate reservations and more—all through a pool of pre-approved, socially distanced spaces. Learn more.

  • Improve space utilization and enable the disposition of excess inventory
  • Realize a more efficient facilities footprint resulting from improved space utilization
  • Accommodate a mobile workforce and increase employee satisfaction
  • Encourage responsible and efficient use of space

Reservations 

Room reservations create new governance opportunities for facility managers, without hampering employees as they return to the workplace. Use Archibus to structure workspace check-ins and mandate health checks before check-in. Allow pre-approved room reservations that incorporate time before and after a meeting for proper cleaning. Learn more.

  • Secure shared space and resources with self-service Web forms
  • Streamline invitations to participants via integration with most email clients
  • Reservations Plugin lets individuals make room reservations within the Outlook™ client
  • Extension for Microsoft Exchange handles all reservations and updates

Space Inventory 

With changing occupancy limits comes the need to redefine your space. Refocus allocation and distribute space in new, more efficient ways with Archibus’ space inventorying and planning tools. Assign employees to safe seats that meet social distancing guidelines and create workplaces that make better use of the space you have, based on demand. Learn more.

  • Deliver flexible, self-service reporting for effective space allocation and cost control
  • Improve evaluation of building performance and enable accurate benchmarking
  • Enhance design/planning capabilities to use space more efficiently
  • Increase productivity with Archibus All-in-One Home Page with quick access to tasks

Space Planning 

Forecast and plan for large space and occupancy changes at all levels, including portfolio, city, and site/campus, as well as building and room levels. Track when, how, and why employees use spaces, then leverage that data into more efficient floor plans—all designed within the parameters of a post-pandemic framework. Learn more.

  • View how space is allocated across divisions, departments, buildings, and campuses
  • Compare spaces to identify vacancies
  • Track available space over time
  • Generate space scenarios directly from existing inventory

Occupancy 

Track and manage which employees work remotely vs. those coming back-to-work in phases. Occupancy metrics help companies maintain distancing standards, manage desk availability, optimize for space utilization, and more. Archibus’ daily and real-time occupancy reporting puts facility managers on the front lines of planning for and enforcing safe space usage. Learn more.

  • Coordinate workspace availability between various workgroups
  • Authorize space allocation by group, department, shift, and more
  • Review daily occupancy data to glean insights about space trends
  • Integrate with reservation and hoteling software to automate occupancy management

Building Operations and Maintenance 

With a return to work comes a shift in operational best practices, especially around building maintenance. Archibus helps you adjust accordingly. Automatically schedule room and desk cleanings between reservations, to promote a safer work environment for employees. Or, schedule daily or periodic “deep clean” work orders for specific locations. Learn more.

  • Observe proactive and corrective maintenance workflows
  • Utilize a full CMMS to support your approach to facility maintenance
  • Create and define return-to-work tasks specific to workspaces
  • Automate maintenance and operations workflows to simplify oversight demands

Moves 

Maintain the mobility of your workplace and streamline the move/add/change processes, to support employee safety with minimal organizational disruption. Archibus’ centralized move management system lets you keep tabs on movement and action, so you can maintain workplace agility without compromising employee safety. Learn more.

  • Streamline the entire move process, including requests, approvals, and updates
  • Improve communication between in-house and external resources
  • Generates trial layouts, move analytics, and intelligent dashboards
  • Enable the timely distribution of updated personnel and cost center information

Workplace 

Create the workplace your employees need with Archibus. Help employees find resources, book meetings and workspaces, access services, and request moves through a convenient desktop or mobile experience. Archibus does it all, so you can shape the workplace around the needs of the people using it—all while staying safe, compliant, and productive. Learn more.

  • Use GIS and BIM data to create a complete digital twin of every workplace
  • Leverage broad integrations to create a workplace that’s smart and connected
  • Combine digital workplace assets with physical facilities, to better-support your team
  • Create an agile, flexible workplace that operates within a post-pandemic framework

Compliance 

Businesses of all sizes need to take steps to protect themselves from liability in a post-pandemic workplace. Lean on Archibus to reduce the chance of virus spread and potential shutdowns that result from inadequate compliance practices. From social distancing tracking to hazard abatement, you’ll have tools to prevent compliance issues before they arise. Learn more.

  • Personalized back-to-work e-mail notifications
  • Monitor and adjust the dynamic workplace
  • Achieve and maintain regulatory and code compliance
  • Track key processes involved in social distancing

Asset Management 

Take advantage of an integrated view of where to find key assets within your facilities, such as personal protective equipment (PPE), cleaning supplies, and other equipment. Archibus makes it easy for employees to find the equipment and resources they need, and for facility and asset managers to track, monitor, and maintain them. Learn more.

  • Centralize asset inventory
  • Track assets, enhance accountability
  • Budget assets with full view costs
  • Enable a full life cycle strategy

Condition Assessment 

Evaluate the condition of critical assets and buildings, initiating remediation work where needed. Archibus keeps your facilities and assets up and running safely, with insights on how to prevent problems before they arise. Provide employees with a seamless return to work experience—one that isn’t hindered by downed assets or facility restrictions. Learn more.

  • Track asset condition, plan for maintenance, and prepare budget scenarios
  • Utilize an objective and systematic framework for prioritizing work
  • Improve information accuracy and consistency
  • Reduce downtime and associated costs

Emergency Preparedness 

From shared work environments to corporate campuses, emergency preparedness is key. As employees return to work, their situation and surroundings may have changed. They need to stay informed about new protocols and standards, so they can act accordingly in an emergency. Archibus helps you implement safety procedures and plan for hazards protectively. Learn more.

  • Proactive emergency operations management
  • Access accurate information about risks
  • Implement contact tracing to quickly resume normal operations
  • Expedite insurance claims and negotiate more favorable coverage terms

Hazard Abatement 

Protect employee health and minimize organizational liability by quickly and accurately locating, tracking, and abating hazards. From contact tracing to narrow exposure pools to workspace disinfection standards and scheduling, Archibus makes proactive management of hazards a top priority, to reduce liabilities across facilities. Learn more.

  • Facilitate a safe working environment for building occupants
  • Minimize regulatory actions and/or occupational illnesses
  • Avert costly operating shutdowns, loss of facility use, penalties, or fines
  • Identify, locate, sample, document, and abate potential exposures

Health & Safety 

Reduce workplace safety incidents and better manage personal protective equipment (PPE), training, medical monitoring, and work restrictions through Archibus. Use a mix of building information data and connected workplace sensors to get a top-down view of facilities and a clearer understanding of where and how to avoid potential health and safety risks. Learn more.

  • Identify, evaluate, and correct health and safety risks in the workplace
  • Reduce medical claims, disability compensation, and loss of productivity
  • Track and follow-up on health and safety incidents to minimize risk and liability
  • Reduce the cost of administering a health and safety program

Waste 

From masks and gloves to materials used to sanitize workspaces, pandemic waste materials need careful treatment and oversight. Use Archibus to track and manage COVID-19 hazardous waste from point of generation to final disposition, to mitigate errors, omissions, and accidents. Learn more.

  • Simplify tracking and management of hazardous waste streams
  • Decrease the risk of fines or litigation surrounding hazardous waste storage and disposal
  • Increase the visibility and improve accountability for waste management
  • Reduce the cost and effort of satisfying waste audit and reporting requirements

Projects 

Provide a central location for employees to manage COVID-related project details, including schedule tracking and budgeting. Archibus’ dashboard keeps employees in the loop about what’s expected of them and how to navigate projects and duties within the framework of new policies, protocols, and procedures. It sets standards and expectations for everyone. Learn more.

  • Create a top-down perspective of program and project priorities, actions, and costs
  • Allow project members to synchronize information at different organizational units
  • Streamline project oversight via milestones, tasks, and status changes
  • Reduce administrative burden by leveraging existing data

Get ready for a seamless return to work 

Archibus helps companies of all sizes get back to work. Utilize the tools above to plan and execute a seamless return to work, and keep checking back as we continue to add tools based on the needs of our customers.

Want to explore Archibus’ back-to-work solutions for yourself? Schedule a demo today.

Keep reading: Back-to-Work Planning & Employee Sentiment