How One Global Luxury Brand Leader Increased eNPS from -13 to +84 in Just One Year
The Challenge: Disengaged Employees and Flawed Feedback Channels
A business unit of a global luxury brand faced a significant challenge when their employee engagement survey revealed an eNPS of -13, indicating a high level of disengagement among team members. This poor score persisted despite the leader's extraordinary efforts to be open and listen to team feedback. The inherent nature of employee surveys is that people tend to answer in extremes, using the survey as the primary channel to voice dissatisfaction, whether big or small. This provides a flawed view of the level of engagement and satisfaction within the organization. According to a study by Gallup, only 15% of employees worldwide are actively engaged in their jobs, highlighting the widespread issue of disengagement in the workplace (Gallup, 2017).
The Solution: Happily.ai and Open Dialogue
To address the engagement challenge, the leader turned to Happily.ai, a daily check-in tool designed to create open dialog and provide a safe way for employees to share feedback while building trusting relationships in the workplace. By implementing Happily.ai, the leader aimed to foster a culture of continuous feedback and open communication, which has been shown to have a significant impact on employee engagement. A study by Salesforce found that employees who feel their voice is heard are 4.6 times more likely to feel empowered to perform their best work (Salesforce, 2019).
Implementing Happily.ai: A Seamless Transition
The implementation of Happily.ai was a seamless process, with 100% adoption from the first week and full onboarding completed within just two weeks. From day one, managers received insights on their teams, allowing them to manage with precision rather than guesswork. Through positive and meaningful conversations facilitated by the platform, employees became more accountable for the feedback they shared. When asked, "What one small thing can make our workplace better?" they provided more open and balanced feedback.
Managers and leaders were immediately able to have more productive one-on-one meetings and town hall discussions to address trending issues and identify new opportunities. The social norms that once hindered open communication were now overridden by the company's values, reinforced through recognition and rewards within the Happily.ai platform.
The HR team also benefited from the strategic insights provided by Happily.ai, enabling them to support leaders and managers more effectively. By holding managers and leaders accountable for engagement and supporting their teams, employee retention dramatically improved.
The Results: Skyrocketing eNPS and Improved Psychological Safety
Within just two months of using Happily.ai, the team's eNPS increased from -13 to +23, and a year later, it skyrocketed to +84. This remarkable improvement can be attributed to the leader's ability to listen, have conversations, and act on the small issues that were hindering engagement, thanks to the insights provided by Happily.ai. By addressing these concerns promptly, the leader demonstrated their commitment to their team's well-being and fostered a culture of trust and open communication.
Moreover, Happily.ai helped overcome the skill barrier that often prevents employees from providing constructive feedback to company leaders. The tool makes the process easier, gamifying the experience to make it more enjoyable and helping people improve their soft skills along the way. This creates an environment of psychological safety, where employees feel comfortable sharing their thoughts and ideas without fear of repercussions. Research by Google has shown that psychological safety is the most important factor in determining team success (Google, 2015).
The Takeaway: Open Feedback Leads to Engaged Employees
As a result of the leader's efforts and the implementation of Happily.ai, the team secured company-leading engagement scores in the next internal survey. This case study demonstrates that when feedback becomes an open conversation rather than an anonymous data collection process, employees feel heard, and leaders have the opportunity to foster understanding instead of taking blind action.
If you're looking to improve your employee engagement scores, tools like Happily.ai can help you turn things around before the next survey cycle. More importantly, by creating strong relationships and open communication channels, you'll be building a workplace that people love, with everyday interactions that drive engagement, productivity, and success. Visit happily.ai to learn more about how you can transform your organization's engagement levels and create a thriving workplace culture.
