Employee Experience: Self-Management vs. Traditional Hierarchy

‍

‍Employee experience is something that many are taking into consideration when applying for a job – whether it’s its culture, benefits, environment or what the organization stands for – many are taking a stand to end old hierarchy and become part of a working culture that promotes safety, communication and diversity amongst the workplace.  

In this article we’ll look into research that shows us what are some key differences for an employee when working in an old hierarchy organization versus in a self-managed organization. 

What drives an employee to success?

Studies have shown, according to a report by MetLife that top five drivers of happiness at work are:

1. Employee’s trust in the organization’s leadership
2. Employers are committed to their employee’s success  
3. A culture where employees feel safe to share their ideas, opinions and worries 
4. A working environment where co-workers feel like friends and family 
5. Benefits created to fit employee’s needs

‍Employees are also looking to get employed in organizations that offer proper training and courses to achieve work better and more efficiently. According to a study done by MetLife, 60% of employers are mostly offering training to help employees do their current job better and 44% are offering trainings on technology innovations. 

The study states:

“In fact, training is a key driver of job acceptance for this very reason. Providing these resources can help attract and retain employees, which is especially important in a competitive market.”

So it comes to no surprise that 91% of employees accept or stay at a job due to training offering and career development. 

Employee experience in an old hierarchy structure

So now that we have shown some studies in regards to training, career development and what drives employees to the happy side of things, let’s take a peek into an employee experience in a traditional hierarchy structure. 

Why do most employees leave unhappy, tired and with lack of motivation in big organizations? 

According to NI Business, some of the disadvantages that traditional hierarchy may have and employees experience are:

1. A slow decision-making process
2. Inconsistencies in management at different levels of the pyramid that can slow down work
3. Delays in communication that could block teams’ work and projects 
4. Tension created between employee-manager relationship due to lack of autonomy 
5. Difficulty with team collaboration, and instead team rivalry is created

👋 video pick: What is centralization vs decentralization in management and authority? This video looks at both organizational structures to compare and contrast them. 

‍

Employee experience in a self-management organization 

In a flat organization and self-managed one, employees’ experiences are a bit more different than to that of traditional organizations. 

Not to say that self-managed organizations are perfect, they are far from it. 

But what are some advantages as opposed to those of traditional organizations that many employees are opting for nowadays? 

According to Chron, here are some advantages in self-managed organizations:

1. Reduce of micromanaging 
2. Improves communication
3. Leads ways for employees to put their ideas though 
4. Improves employee motivation and satisfaction

And what is the employee experience?

According to an article published by McKinsey:

“ Workers are hungry for trust, social cohesion, and purpose. They want to feel that their contributions are recognized and that their team is truly collaborative. They desire clear responsibilities and opportunities to learn and grow. They expect their personal sense of purpose to align with that of their organization. And they want an appropriate physical and digital environment that gives them the flexibility to achieve that elusive work–life balance.”

With that being said, the employee experience is not only being paid more, but taken into consideration, having your values being aligned to those with the organization, having a sense of purpose professionally and personally. 

As a company, create a model and journey that will benefit and help the employee thrive in their working environment.

‍

According to a study done by Deloitte Insights, almost 42% of executives said and view the employee experience as very important; 38% as important and 22% said their organizations were good at creating a “differentiated” employee experience. 

Why is employee experience challenging?

1. Companies haven’t made it a priority in the HR department 
2. Most companies haven’t assigned the experience to an executive to execute the employee experience
3. HR doesn’t have necessary resources to put the experience in effect
4. Companies and HR don’t have the necessary tools, or technology to operate and put the experience in motion

If your organization wants to create an employee experience that will have your employees stay – happy – then create a working environment that will contribute to their professional growth and measure your efforts for proper feedback. 

‍

⭐️ If your organization wishes to bring agility to your teams and self-management contact us for more information on our platform ⭐️