In HR, Moments That Matter is a useful concept that lets professionals get a more comprehensive overview of the employee experience their company offers. Moreover, the Moments That Matter approach ensures that employers never miss to recognize important milestones and transitions in their employees’ professional lives. What Are Employee Moments That Matter? Employee Moments that Matter is a concept in HR used to describe key points of contact that have a positive or negative impact on an employee’s time in his organization. They happen any time throughout the employee journey. According to leading HR voices like Josh Bersin, celebrating employees’ Moments that Matter has the biggest impact on an employee’s experience with the company. Every company is different, so you should take a dig and figure out what are the moments that affect your employees’ experience the most! Naturally, personal lives affect performance; emotionally charged events like divorce or illnesses inevitably shape a person’s life, but having a more empathetic employer does inevitably impact employee experience positively. What Are Examples Of Moments That Matter in the Employee Journey? Moments that Matter can be any professional and personal moments that create a positive employee experience. A classic example would be the moment an employee finished their onboarding. For a crystal clear understanding, have a look at this image: There are three categories of MTMs that occur throughout the employee life cycle: Specific moments, i.e., moments in the employee’s personal life and key professional moments that have a memorable and positive impact. Ongoing moments, i.e., recurring moments, stack and gradually shape the employee experience. This can be a performance review, receiving feedback, a service anniversary, etc. Designed moments, i.e., specific memorable moments designed by HR teams, managers, or the advisory leader, used to impact the employee experience positively. A staple example would be team building in a faraway resort. Here are some of the most common Moments That Matter in organizations. 1. Preboarding Joining a new company is a big change in your employees’ lives. They get to work with an entirely new team, they get new tasks, and they probably have to process a lot of new information in short periods of time. Pre-boarding (or recruitment) is the zero step of an employee’s journey. It effectively creates a first impression of what the employee can expect from a company and opens the door to the organization. Factors like email responsiveness, sincerity in communication, tone of voice, and process transparency all influence the prospect’s decision to join the organization. For example, when a job candidate has their first interview with the company, they will remember whether the person was friendly or dispassionate. This impression will carry on throughout their employee journey if they get hired. Mature HR departments understand that pre-boarding is the first chance to create a positive employee experience and show their employee value proposition in practice. 2. Onboarding After a prospect officially becomes a member of the organization, they begin their onboarding, during which they are expected to immerse themselves in their new role and internalize the company culture. These key moments will trigger a strong emotional response. In the first few months in their new position, employees will experience some memorable moments of their journey. When those moments happen, companies should be ready, congratulate hires for their first big steps, and inspire confidence Why is onboarding one of the most important Moments That Matter? Research shows that although great employee onboarding can improve employee retention by 82%, 88% of organizations do not actually onboard well. According to research by Gartner, 40% of Gen Z employees claim they would not repeat their decision to accept the job offer. In addition, 49% report not being able to see themselves having a long career in their organization. Emotions matter. Clearly, many organizations struggle to create a positive employee experience early on and shape employee perceptions. 3. Engagement The engagement phase is a culmination of various interactions one has with other members of the organization during their employee journey, such as co-workers, HR professionals, managers, or the company leadership. Employees will build and solidify social relationships with their colleagues and experience many MTM during the engagement phase. For example, an employee will have their first performance appraisal, experience crucial moments in their role, and possibly have their first negative employee experience. Supportive and positive relationships play a central role in maintaining momentum and cultivating employee satisfaction. 4. Career development and growth Younger generations of workers, especially Millennials, actively seek opportunities in their organizations to further their careers. Career development and growth are essential to the employee journey as they propel individuals forward along their path in the organization. More importantly, these moments that matter present valuable opportunities to both the employee and their organization for employee experience growth. Learning new skills, tackling professional challenges head-on, and advancing in a job position reinvigorate individuals and keep their employee experience meaningful. 87% of millennials rate “professional or career growth and development opportunities” as important to them in a job, according to a survey report from Gallup. HR teams and leadership must recognize employee learning moments as strategically important to their culture and celebrate them whenever they occur. When line managers take note of employees’ career-defining moments, reward and recognize them publicly, they encourage others to participate in the growth culture. That’s how you create a memorable employee experience. 5. Off-boarding A bittersweet step of employee journeys, off-boarding signifies an employee’s exit from the organization and their pursuit of different career paths. Still, it is usually an emotionally charged MTM with a significant impact on both parties. During off-boarding, companies should attempt to celebrate the employee’s many contributions to the company, express gratitude, and even validate employee opinions. Organizations that aspire to reach the highest standards of EX have alumni networks that enable them to stay in touch with former employees who voluntarily left the company and possibly even re-hire them in the future when the circumstances have changed. Why Are Moments That Matter Important? Moments that matter pinpoint the most impactful situations in the employee journey. If a company tracks and tries to replicate positive moments that matter, it can create more engagement and motivation in the workspace and impact its bottom line. From the organization’s point of view, there are many benefits of acknowledging and celebrating Moments that Matter. Here are the biggest advantages they bring. What Are the Benefits of Celebrating Moments That Matter? The main benefits are reduced employee turnover, increased workforce productivity, higher customer satisfaction, happier employees, enhanced company culture, and improved employer branding. Let’s briefly go through all of them. 1. Reduced employee turnover As every HR Professional probably knows, employee turnover is costly. When they leave, employees take their experience and knowledge with them. So, what can you do to decrease employee turnover? For one, you can start recognizing your employees. Namely, 32% of employees leave their jobs because they are unsatisfied with the recognition for their contributions. 2. Higher customer satisfaction You might be thinking that the connection between Moments That Matter and customer satisfaction is not very strong. On the contrary! Your customers’ happiness depends on your employees’. Find out why employee recognition is the key to customer satisfaction. 3. Increased workforce productivity Multiple studies have shown that employees’ productivity increases when they are recognized for their work and receive regular feedback. For example, 69% of employees would work harder if they felt their effort was better appreciated. MTMs do not always have to be big events like employee anniversaries. One of those moments can be informal feedback or a regular token of appreciation. 4. Happier employees Being mindful of Moments that Matter can also increase employee happiness. With a well-rounded employee experience, employees are more likely to feel like they are making a meaningful contribution to their organizations, and they are more likely to develop better relationships with their co-workers. 5. Improved Employee Experience Are you aware that one of the biggest issues organizations are facing these days is recruitment? Namely, 83% of HR Pros say they are facing recruiting difficulties, and 75% of those say that there is a shortage of skills in candidates for job openings. Insisting on the Moments that Matter concept is useful because it helps you improve your employees’ experience. When employee experience is satisfactory, your own employees become your organization’s ambassadors. They encourage their friends or acquaintances to come to work for you, thus saving you valuable recruitment resources and increasing chances of cultural fitness. 6. Enhanced company culture Moments that Matter can comprise a big part of your company culture. Showing gratitude, offering support, and celebrating achievements can be done on a company-wide public level – thus inspiring the same behavior in others. Moments that Matter can help you build communities instead of workplaces and allow your workplace culture to truly thrive. 7. Increased Employee Engagement When organizations succeed in creating a positive environment through HR interventions and social initiatives, such as celebrating key MTM, they break employee engagement records and create social engagement in the workspace. This approach is in stark contrast to the traditional way of increasing productivity through micro-management and dreaded performance review practices. Research on performance management subscribes that the two factors that majorly impact employee engagement are (i) the working environment and (ii) team and co-worker relationships. In a healthy working environment, employees display a can-do attitude and a willingness to go beyond the line of duty. How to Recognize Moments that Matter? Research shows that organizations help celebrate employee life events mostly by giving gifts or gift cards. However, when companies go the extra mile and put effort into celebrating individual employees’ moments that matter, their employees tend to stay longer with the company. Giving your MTM celebrations a personal touch is the winning strategy. Read this article to get inspired for your own MTM celebrations: Employee Appreciation Emails to Thank Your Coworkers How Does Your Organization Celebrate Moments That Matter? Every company is different. Regardless, every HR should identify Moments that Matter for its own employees and decide how they will be marked. So, how can you start? Besides intuitively focusing on a strong onboarding process and work anniversaries, dig deeper. Leveraging moments that matter is all about understanding the most important professional moments and milestones in your employees’ personal lives. Run employee surveys and find out where you are missing out. What moments matter to your employees? Moreover, how did they feel in specific moments – like during onboarding, when completing their 10th project, when they received negative feedback – and how can your organization support them during these? To truly never miss to recognize Moments that Matter, try JobPts. Our employee recognition solution allows you to easily engage and appreciate your employees, all while creating lasting memories. Book a demo Elevate your employee experience with moments that matter. Discover how to create memorable experiences that engage, inspire, and drive business results. Book a Demo
