Perhaps the title is a touch click bait but it got you this far! What could I possibly want to discuss in relation to organisations, document management and, perhaps more importantly, business process under this title?

When you or an organisation hires, is the employee chosen for:

• Their ability to hide emotions under severe stress?
• Their ability to go 48 hours without meaningful sleep?
• The super power of skipping essential meals to focus?
• The skill of remaining subjected and grateful whilst working countless non-contracted hours to keep everything going for your company?

No. We hire employees for their specific set of skills, to meet a need within an organisation and hopefully bring a new, positive dynamic to the workforce. We compensate those employees to bring their uniqueness into our organisations and (hopefully) through encouraging them to thrive in their work, the business also thrives.

So why do so many employers force their staff to endure inefficient processes that drain the life from their roles and essentially turn highly skilled, motivated employees into stressed, resentful automatons, having to exceed their contracted hours to just keep the lights on? Ultimately unmotivated employees will either quit or start working to rule which can be costly to an organisation.

The Bad

There are so many examples of terrible employers (social media is full of commentary) - those that just want to extract the absolute maximum from their ‘asset’, to do nothing but further their own gain - no regard for their employees health, life or aspirations. Grind it out, day after day (and well into the night more often than not).

In these examples often the technology and processes surrounding an employee work on the “if it ain’t broke, why fix it?” approach. All senior management / owners see is the completed output, what they ignore are the extra hours of effort employees put in to get the tasks done, often fighting inefficiencies and legacy processes at every stage. Expect a high turnover of employees, low morale, resentfulness and a distinct lack of innovation.

The Ugly

Ugly is possibly unfair (but you can’t knock a catchy title). These are the organisations where management and owners attempt to address the concerns of their employees but never quite achieve success. They make allowances for overruns because the systems are lacking or processes can be tricky. They don’t like asking employees to do a few extra hours but they see it as an occasional necessary evil.

Yes they have invested in some technology and their employees training, however, often the approach is making use of low cost, generic tools and trying to make them fit the organisation's process. Or management takes advice in only one area / department and invests heavily for that solution but it doesn’t benefit elsewhere which continues to drag down overall efficiency. These types of employers are well meaning but just don’t get a grasp on what is needed. Messy rather than ugly perhaps.

The Good

These are the employers who not only want but enable their employees to thrive, to excel in the tasks they are required to fulfil in their role and then have the motivation to go further. These are the employers who understand that the right people need the right environment and the right platforms to work with.

These employers have invested in their business process and the underlying technology. They haven’t simply gone out and purchased the best of the best for each department, instead they have found the optimal solution that supports their organisation as a whole - enhancing collaboration, security, compliance, efficiency and (perhaps most importantly) employee role satisfaction. These employers understand that if their employee’s roles are backed up with efficient process tools, they can flourish by bringing their unique skills and dynamism to the organisation.

A Fistful of Difference

I can probably never change the mind of a truly bad employer, even with statistics to back up digital transformation and process enhancements increasing efficiency up to 80% - because it is not the process or systems that are the issue for them, it is their minions simply not working hard or long enough. Perhaps if I could demonstrate the fistful of dollars they throw away either with high turnover (hiring, training, garden leave, medical leave…) or paying premium wages to keep driving the employees, they might see sense (but only to further their own greed?!).

To the good employers out there I simply say thank you. You are allowing your employees to be the best they can and congratulations, because of that, your business will undoubtedly continue to thrive. Don’t rest on your laurels though. Listen (as I am sure you do) to your employees and always be ready (as you have) to challenge the way it has always been done. You may already have the tools so seek guidance from solution consultants (like PacSol) to extract the most from your investment.

To those 'ugly' in-betweeners, sure your process might be a little clunky now, however, your intentions are good and with a more structured guidance and an optimised platform that benefits your organisation as a whole, you can make a difference not just for your business but your employees too. As independent solution consultants, PacSol have a wide resource of options to fit your organisation, large or small, that will not only optimise today’s processes but will go on to support growth, expansion and employees for many years to come.

Why not book a free consultation with me today and have a no obligation chat about the potential for your organisation and how your business can be better for your employees.

Toby Gilbertson, Director. October 2024

 

 

#PacSolUK #DocumentManagement #ProcessAutomation #BuisnessProcess #DigitalTransformation