I recently blogged about some fascinating research we’re in the midst of running. We’ve been talking to employee experience and engagement practitioners from all over the world to better understand what skills, competencies and experiences make a difference to them. Why? So that we can support you to develop your career in this space.
We’re going to use the research to develop a profession map for EX and engagement practitioners. The findings will underpin our all-new accredited course, which for the first time is going to join the dots between EX and engagement.
We’re going to publish the findings in full fairly soon, but in the meantime I thought I’d share a teaser. The only caveat is…. we’re still in the field-work stage, meaning we’re gathering new insights all the time. This means I’m sharing some work in progress here… and the final write up might be a little bit different!
As you‘d probably expect, we’re hearing that practitioners need both technical skills and knowledge, as well as specific behaviours to thrive in employee experience and engagement. But what is interesting is that most of the people we’re speaking to, say that the behaviours are actually more important that the technical expertise itself.
There is a realisation that the EX and engagement space is really broad. So much so that it would be impossible to be a technical expert in every area required to excel. So for example, having high emotional intelligence (EQ) is super helpful. You’re aware of your strengths AND your development areas, and more importantly you’re comfortable to ask for help, and you know when to ask for help.
Unsurprisingly empathy has featured in every single conversation we have had. And it is great to see that the principles of curiosity, empathy and experimentation, (originally laid out in our ‘EX by Design’ book), are coming up time and again.
We are speaking to EX and engagement pioneers, those people who do great work in this space. So it’s probably not a huge surprise to pick up on practitioners passion for the work they do. They view their work as more of a calling than a job, and argue that this passion is required to deliver and navigate the obstacles. But is this a requirement for success? That is a question we’re asking ourselves.
And there are some more unexpected themes coming up too. Project management is called out as a, if not critical, then definitely useful, skill to have. This is in response to the many plates you’re required to keep spinning as an employee experience and engagement partitioner.
The era of EX it seems is calling for a different set of skills and behaviours. If you’d like to be among the first to hear the findings from this ground-breaking research then follow the link below to sign up. And you’ll also have the chance to get involved in the next stage too.
We have some exciting developments in the pipeline, and we want passionate practitioners to join us on this journey and contribute to what comes next…
Interested? You should be – sign up today and be part of the change.
