Teem
January 19th, 2022

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How IT Leaders Can Support A Safe Return To Work

Data breaches. Compliance. Service disruption. There are many concerns that keep IT leaders up at night.

And while they’ll always care about certain digital workplace metrics such as these, COVID-19 has changed the game. It’s important to learn the new rules, even if they seem a bit outside of the traditional IT wheelhouse.

Here are the most important digital workplace metrics to consider this year to ensure your team consistently adds value to your organization.

Traditional digital workplace metrics

There are a few basic IT metrics for determining the impact your department has on company performance and the bottom line.

Network uptime

We were all reminded of how internet-dependent we’ve become when Google and Slack experienced temporary disruptions in 2020. According to research by the Aberdeen Group, an hour of downtime costs medium-sized companies $215,000.

You can avoid that expense by taking a few proactive steps. Network monitoring company Spiceworks offers these recommendations for reducing network downtime:

  • Test server backups regularly
  • Protect your physical IT infrastructure from issues such as water damage or frayed cables
  • Use software to monitor the health of your servers
  • Update devices regularly

Your technology stack

A complex technology stack can be more costly than you realize. A 2019 report from SaaS management platform Blissfully found employees at mid-sized companies use eight different apps daily.

Don’t underestimate the cost of unused software subscriptions. They also found the average company spends $8,520 a year on unused software licenses.  This is a good time to evaluate which technologies employees are actually using, which subscriptions may be duplicates or “orphaned”, and which you no longer need.

And work with your HR team to ensure your department is notified when an employee leaves so you can cancel or transfer software licenses.

User adoption rates

What is your software user adoption rate?

If your metrics suggest people are abandoning your software, find out why. Is the software no longer needed? Has it been replaced with something more effective, like giving up a free room scheduling app for meeting room booking?

Based on your findings, you might need to consolidate your software. If a few programs perform similar functions, do you need all of them? What integrations are possible with your core programs? Is there something new that would do the job better?

FREE RESOURCE: How IT Leaders Can Support A Safe Return To Work

Using multiple programs to perform similar functions costs the company time and money having to switch between too many apps causes frustration and hurts productivity.

Keep the end-user in mind when making software decisions. A salesperson who would much rather be meeting with people than wrestling with a slow or unintuitive app will have a lower frustration threshold because reduced productivity makes it harder to meet quotas.

Budget versus actual

When analyzing your IT budget compared to actual spending, keep costs in check. Minor oversights, like unused software licenses or unexpected upgrade fees, can lead to overspending. Using SaaS solutions that include hosting, maintenance, and upgrades in their subscription fees will help keep costs predictable.

Find solutions that are user-friendly and easy to implement and look for mobile options to support a distributed workforce.

Workplace technology ROI

Make sure you’re getting a good return on investment on all your workplace solutions, from HR technology to room booking software.

What’s a good return? For Teem, 25% of customers saw ROI within three months. Software that performs multiple functions, like the options Teem provides, also helps reduce the number of solutions you need to buy, implement, and manage.

Consider whether you can reduce additional expenditures by negotiating vendor contracts. Reduce unnecessary expenses wherever possible so you have the resources for more revenue-generating investments.

Security and compliance

While evaluating digital workplace metrics, be aware of best security practices and compliance regulations. Make sure the solutions you choose have the right compliance standards and security systems in place. Look at security analytics like strict privacy policies, data ownership, access controls, and global compliance support.

The compliance big three:

System and Organization Controls (SOC) compliance is also becoming increasingly important as businesses seek to protect customer data. SOC2 compliance in particular looks at the internal controls your company uses to protect the confidentiality and privacy of personal data stored in cloud environments.

Detecting vulnerabilities through regular network and system scans should be routine practice. Many companies also use single sign-on and two-factor authentication.

Newer digital workplace metrics

If you haven’t been holding team members accountable to high standards, now is the time to hit the reset button. But to move from being a cost center to a value center, you need to rethink how you work with other departments.

After all, the IT department’s performance impacts the workplace performance analytics of the entire organization.

New hire onboarding and service levels

The process for onboarding new hires is a major factor in their success. A bad experience in the first few months of employment often results in turnover.

An article from Harvard Business Review showed nearly 25% of hires don’t even last a year and almost 33% seek other employment within the first six months.

Don’t assume the responsibility of onboarding new hires falls solely on HR and direct supervisors; the IT department plays a crucial role in ensuring a smooth onboarding experience. Especially in a remote work environment.

Review your department’s role in the onboarding process. Do new hires have everything needed to hit the ground running? Check IT metrics like speed to response time and support ticket response rates.

Training and retention

Take a proactive approach. Assign one of your team members to check in with new employees regularly during their first few months. Is their equipment working properly? Are they taking advantage of the digital resources available to them?

Partner with the employee’s supervisor and the HR team. In the event the employee needs training for using space booking software or other tools, the IT team can help them succeed. By providing excellent customer service to all employees, they’ll be more likely to stay for the long term.

Customer satisfaction

IT also plays an increasingly important role in customer satisfaction. Some of the same metrics that apply to your employees — like service request response, first call resolution, and average hold time for visitor management — are just as critical to customers.

Work with your sales and customer success teams to determine digital workplace metrics they find most important and identify ways to improve in those areas.

Metrics related to workplace safety

Whether your company goes with a hybrid work model or a 100% on-site arrangement, some of your routine procedures need to be updated and mobile-accessible for safety reasons.

Software that allows employees to reserve conference rooms and workstations, enter and exit rooms, and check guests in from their mobile phones be helpful for reducing touchpoints.

The management team will also be better able to track real estate needs and facilities maintenance will be able to ensure rooms and desks are sanitized promptly.

Make sure everyone has the workplace analytics they need, capture data on:

  • Average office occupancy
  • Average meeting room size
  • Average meeting time
  • Meeting cancellations
  • Meetings scheduled in advance
  • Number of unused reservations
  • Number of visitors
  • Room recapture rate

Find more on digital workplace metrics that matter most today. Download: How IT Leaders Can Support A Safe Return To Work.

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Teem

Teem by iOFFICE provides enterprises with space scheduling and management, workplace analytics, building, and campus wayfinding, and visitor management to help cultivate workplaces that fuel productivity, efficiency, and creativity.

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