3 minute read
Gen Z POV: How Self-Service Apps Help Us Help You
Our generation—Gen Z—believes that technology is a necessity rather than a commodity. This belief defines us. We have lived all our lives immersed in technology. Technology plays a huge role in assisting us to complete daily tasks. It is imperative that employers understand that digitalization and technology are not only essential to train Gen Z employees, as discussed in our previous post, but are also essential to employee morale. In this post, we will discuss incorporating self-service applications into your operations. They are naturals to make day-to-day tasks easier to perform, to improve employee productivity and increase job satisfaction.
A huge factor in great service is how fast tasks can be completed. Think about the last time you had to interact with an employee to order food, pay a utility, or check order status. Seems a while ago, right? Thanks to digitalization in the service field, along with technological innovations, we know tasks can always be completed more efficiently. As a generation, we are reluctant to invest more time than necessary into completing a task. Long lines in person or waiting times on the phone have become unacceptable to us.
While it might seem like only customers are entitled to receive these types of services, our generation is eager for solutions that help us save time at work. A core trait of Gen Zers is the desire to perform tasks as efficiently as possible. When our manager asks us every morning to memorize KPIs, to walk to the backroom several times a day to check for product availability, or to switch shifts with a colleague, or when we are sorting through several emails to do something as simple as request PTO, we are thinking about how much the company cares (or doesn’t care) about our productivity and time.
Bring service to your employees
A smart solution is to follow service trends and implement self-service technology for your employees as well as your customers. Self-service mobile apps make tasks easier to complete by allowing employees to communicate effectively while reducing tedious tasks that do not add any value.
Ideally, one would think that companies would implement these tools. However, many are stuck in old-fashioned methods. In our own experience, there have been obvious instances where a self-service solution would have made our work-life much easier. For example, logging PTO and sick day information is time-consuming and tedious when we have to send several emails to HR and team members. It takes valuable time out of the day, decreases productivity and distracts from our primary tasks. Using a self-service app, PTO could be logged once and centrally for everyone to see.
Another benefit of employee self-service apps is giving quick access to personal information: holidays, pay rate information, paid leave requests, and the opportunity to update personal information is just a click away. Just imagine the potential conflicts your team could avoid with such an app.
A self-service app will also help in situations where employees want to surrender, bid on, or swap shifts. As mentioned in the first post of this series, Gen Z values a balanced lifestyle and expects flexibility to plan or modify our schedules. A self-service app facilitates communication and allows employees to manage time more efficiently.
Finally, considering today’s health situation and how much our day-to-day life has changed, tools like these can help enforce safety measures by allowing employees to avoid direct contact and work independently.
An employee self-service app should facilitate communication and allow employees to manage time more efficiently, but it’s crucial that they are friendly user experiences. Gen Zers won’t hesitate to stop using an app that is complicated to navigate and so will every generation. Think about it. Why would someone want to spend time trying to use a very slow or confusing interface when the goal is to be more efficient?
Giving the correct tools—tools to communicate, receive constant and quick feedback, and to plan schedules—to a generation already primed to use technology will empower us to excel in the workplace. Self-service apps will allow us to engage with our jobs via efficient channels of communication used through the devices that Gen Zers are most comfortable with. By allowing us to be flexible with our schedules, we will feel more appreciated, which will cultivate a more positive work environment.
We want to “skyrocket” our capabilities. A good employee self-service app will help us do that, benefitting not only the Gen Z employee, but also the whole organization, including customers.
