Diageo

Tatiana Sereno

Companies and organizational cultures evolve, and the demand for employee experience and personalization increases each time. A trend that started with the tech and digital companies that brought the concepts from the consumer journey and design thinking experience to the employee journey approach and brewed up with the pandemic when the need for the human compound finally gets a suitable space in companies and cultures that it was not yet the case. In addition, socially, The Diversity and Inclusion movement, the demand for more flexibility and a well-being approach, put on the table the whole life of our employees as a burning platform, and companies and cultures were demanded to see the individuals that come with all our employees.

As a curious and continuous learner, I could not avoid studying more about learning and trying to understand the essence of it. Currently, it is the topic for several top HR reports, such as Deloitte (2017) about employee experience, David Ulrich's theory called Evolution of employee experience to personalization (2023), and Gartner's, 2023 about personalized learning, also named the precision learning approach. In the practical world, we are seeing an increase in IA systems and platforms re-creating experiences from recruitment to all employee journeys to personalize navigation.  

But what it is about, in my view:

Use IA to speed up employees' queries and personalize needs & HR to raise the bar whenever possible.

Apply IA for all standard activities in the employee journey. Curiously, pace with simple steps to seem personal, such as using the preferred name, etc., significantly impacts employee satisfaction due to pace & clarity.

Strategically, use it to build your data platform and start to have a people analytics dashboard intentionally built for your purpose. It is the most crucial use of IA to your organization and HR team, even more so to make predictable analysis & proactive actions could be designed in line with the strategic intent you are trying to achieve. From the most common ones, such as Attrition, to talent acquisition profiles of success analysis, your HR decision will surely be put in another category. Making the right questions and seeing trends for external & internal data is its success secret. 

Connection & Build for their successful approach.    

Building connections, trustful relationships, and feeling like you belong are vital to individuals. Line managers are critical for this and need to connect with each of the individuals who work for them. The mandate is to Know them in their individuality, listen carefully, and create the right challenges and development opportunities linked to the employees' interests.

As HR, we also need to connect and actively listen to our employees. IA liberates time that should be invested in building this critical connection. 

Remember to celebrate and recognize essential steps, achievements, and milestones. Share their success and happiness! Companies that build these leadership capabilities in their culture have a fundamental right to win in this new era.

Transparency & precise communication

Honest and transparent communication is critical to connecting and evolving relationships with people and companies. People want to make better decisions based on precise and personal information. And yes, they will choose what is best for them every day. This has an impact on management and culture: Communication needs to be direct, timely, and honest, even when we could have something better. 

Continuous learning

We have already known since Darwin that it is the most adaptable one that survives, and this is the case. We use people analytics to constantly review and learn what is working and what needs improvement to achieve our goal. Still, with an active listing continuously, to seek new opportunities to make everyone feel connected and belong.

In summary, humans demand to be seen and listened to as individuals. Progressive companies and cultures already understand that personalization is a differentiation point to get their chance to be chosen as employers and the key to having the talent they need when the choice comes both ways. Personalization is much more than AI; it is about human connection and, ultimately, a more innovative approach in a competitive talent landscape.