<strong>The old HR is dead.</strong> <br>Long live the era of employee experience!

Stop seeing humans as simple resources. This is one thing that HR consultants all over the world are saying in the aftermath of the Covid pandemic. But let’s see what this pandemic context has really brought with regard to the employee experience era, shall we?

As we are writing this down, we’ve already been through three waves of Covid and are surfing the fourth. For some companies, all this time meant change in every single aspect of the business. Some just moved online, while others experienced flexible work hours for the first time.

For us, at Ropardo, these times brought into focus the need of realigning, of taking the well-being of our people even more into account, adjusting procedures to accommodate the challenges of an ever changing world.

But as the core of some businesses changed, it permitted every other aspect of those same companies. Even beliefs or policies are being revised in post pandemic light.

What about the employees?

Where do they stand amid the alternate work environment COVID has brought on? One thing we’ve been hearing a lot in the pre-Covid era was that employees should be viewed and valued as investors of the company.

It’s a belief we built our company upon. We always kept our door open for honest conversation that could move us forward and invited everyone to let their voices be the ones to reSET the world. For us, that meant our employees being part of the solution in any context given, not the problem.
// Gabriela, HR Manager Ropardo

But what about now that the stress of the pandemic and the need to constantly adapt, has taken a toll even on the strongest?

Specialists in human behaviour say that the need to invest and feel invested is still greatly felt by everyone, but the signs are that people will focus more on investing in themselves and their well-being, especially in those companies that didn’t manage to assure a right work-life balance during those first months of quarantine. In this new alignment, companies who will be supportive of their teams, will benefit most.

The pandemic times invited us to reshape our thinking, stretching human potential through self-discovery and true concern for well-being.

Does that sound scary? Maybe… especially for those Human Resources departments that offer more specialized training, and less support for mental health or wellness of their teams. It doesn’t mean that they are stuck forever in this moment. It just means that the focus should also be in rebuilding HR departments, analyzing how we view talent and what we provide for them in our companies.

Let’s take a classic company setting. The same HR specialists would be more inclined to respond to internal politics than the needs of an employee. This is exactly what needs to change and this is what we have encouraged in an organization, such as ours, that has proudly promoted a people first policy since the very beginnings.

The pandemic made it clear for many that we need to simplify and adjust our processes. Internal politics that bring frustrations, discussions that happen behind closed doors with no management, are now more frowned on than ever, as it should, if you ask us.

As the world reassembles itself, we should courageously embark in the era of employee experience, where flexibility is a key word that defines employer-employee relationships.

Freedom of working from a chosen space or time is becoming a non-negotiable asset, that employers were given in some cases, out of necessity during quarantine. Those same employees that had to adapt and find a way to balance work from home, have discovered new financial and time advantages that they don’t want to lose now. So where do we stand?

The new era

It is obvious as daylight that an employee-centric view of people management is a must. The employee experience not only transforms work schedules, but invites us to rethink the recruitment process.

• From profiling and scanning CV’s we are now creating personas, mindful of key steps in the recruitment process.
• While mapping our personas we strive to understand what our people aim to achieve, think, feel, what delights them and what creates disappointment.
• Days like birthdays and work anniversaries, training and project milestones, are celebrated and taken into account as part of the whole employee experience with the company.

The pandemic didn’t cancel these out, it just made us rethink the way we integrate them, with regards to new rules and legislation. Designing a great employee experience is about crafting a value proposition using things like reward, diversity, leadership, communication, development and purpose.

At Ropardo, we have seen how important this is, even more so with juniors that are integrated in our Academy programs. It really takes a diverse team of talented individuals to Keep IT Simple. So the effort in leading with a great employee experience, as Richard Branson has said for some time now, pays off.

What we stand by

Placing a greater emphasis on decision making, coordinating, developing, advising, communicating and interacting in the work space, giving juniors and seniors alike the opportunity to make the most of their skills and abilities, while being mindful of the work narrative we are writing, is challenging, to say the least, but the rewards are obvious: a work environment that allows you to feel comfortable and enjoy what you are doing. That is what we strive for at the end of the day at Ropardo and that is what we stand by.

See it for yourself. Visit (y)our Careers.