Designing an Efficient and Productive Workspace: Delivering a Return on Your Investment

In the first two of these articles, I looked at first the ask and then how AI has become a core component in the Modern Workspace. In this article I will follow on with a look at how you can justify, but also measure, investment in both Modern Workspaces and Modern Workplaces. 

One of the challenges of designing an efficient and productive workspace is how to measure its impact on the performance and productivity of knowledge workers. Unlike other types of workers, who can be evaluated by the amount of time they spend on a task or the volume of output they produce, knowledge workers are more difficult to quantify.  

Knowledge workers are those who create, analyse, synthesise, and apply information to solve problems, generate ideas, or innovate new products or services. Their value lies not in how much they do, but in how well they do it, and what outcomes they achieve. Therefore, traditional metrics of productivity, such as hours worked, revenue generated, or cost savings, may not capture the full extent of their contribution, or the effect of their work environment on their performance. 

To justify and measure the investment in Modern Workspaces and Workplaces, which aim to enhance the efficiency and productivity of knowledge workers, we need to adopt a different perspective and a different set of indicators. We need to focus on the impact that the workspace and the workplace have on the quality, creativity, and collaboration of knowledge workers, as well as on their engagement, well-being, and satisfaction.  

These factors are not only important for the individual worker, but also for the organisation, as they can affect the innovation, growth, and competitiveness of the business. In this article, we will explore some of the ways to assess and improve the impact of Modern Workspaces and Workplaces on knowledge workers' performance and productivity. 

Digital Employee Experience Tools 

One of the key aspects of Modern Workspaces and Workplaces is the digital employee experience, which refers to how employees interact with the technology tools and platforms that enable their work. A positive digital employee experience can enhance employees' efficiency, productivity, creativity, and satisfaction, while a negative one can cause frustration, stress, disengagement, and staff churn. Therefore, it is essential to measure and improve the quality and performance of the digital employee experience, especially in a hybrid or flexible work environment, where employees may have different devices, networks, applications, and security settings. 

Digital employee experience tools are software solutions that monitor, analyse, and optimise the digital employee experience across various dimensions, such as device health, network connectivity, application performance, security compliance, and user feedback. 

These tools can provide real-time visibility into the status and issues of the digital employee experience, as well as actionable insights and recommendations for improvement. Some of the benefits of using digital employee experience tools are: 

• They can identify and resolve technical problems before they affect the employee's work, or even before the employee notices them, by using automated self-healing and preventive actions. 

• They can reduce the workload and costs of IT support, by enabling proactive and remote management of the employee’s digital experience, and by empowering employees to troubleshoot and fix common issues themselves, using self-service options and AI chatbots. 

• They can enhance the employee's engagement and satisfaction, by providing a seamless, uninterrupted, and reliable digital experience, and by soliciting and incorporating the employee's feedback and preferences. 

• They can improve the organisation's innovation and competitiveness, by enabling faster adoption and better utilisation of new technologies, and by fostering a culture of continuous improvement and learning. 
• They can protect employees from unsafe environments and unhealthy working practices. 

Digital employee experience tools are an essential component of Modern Workspaces and Workplaces, as they can help create a more efficient, productive, creative, and satisfying work environment for knowledge workers, regardless of where and how they work. By using these tools, organisations can gain a competitive edge and achieve better business outcomes. 

Measuring Productivity for Knowledge Workers 

One of the challenges of managing knowledge workers is how to measure their productivity and performance. Traditional metrics such as output, hours, or revenue may not capture the full value of their work, which often involves creativity, collaboration, problem-solving, and innovation. Moreover, these metrics may not reflect the impact of their work on the organisation's strategic goals and long-term vision. 

A possible alternative is to measure the happiness and satisfaction of knowledge workers, as these are good indicators of their engagement, motivation, and well-being. Happy employees tend to be more productive, loyal, and innovative, as they feel valued, respected, and empowered in their work. Happiness can also foster a positive organisational culture, where knowledge workers share their ideas, feedback, and knowledge with each other, and support each other's growth and development. 

To measure the happiness and satisfaction of knowledge workers, organisations can use various tools and methods, such as surveys, interviews, feedback sessions, or sentiment analysis. These can provide insights into the factors that affect their work experience, such as the work environment, the organisational culture, the leadership style, the communication channels, the recognition and rewards, the learning and development opportunities, and the work-life balance. Based on these insights, organisations can take actions to improve the digital employee experience and enhance the happiness and satisfaction of knowledge workers. 

Another way to measure the productivity and performance of knowledge workers is to evaluate how they use digital tools to support their work processes and outcomes. Digital tools can enable knowledge workers to automate some tasks, augment others, and access information and resources more easily and quickly. By using artificial intelligence (AI) tools, knowledge workers can leverage the power of data, analytics, and machine learning to perform their tasks more efficiently, effectively, and creatively. 

Some examples of AI tools that can improve the productivity and performance of knowledge workers are: 

• Natural language processing (NLP) tools, which can analyse and generate text and speech, and enable knowledge workers to communicate, collaborate, and create content in different languages and formats. 

• Computer vision tools, which can recognise and process images and videos, and enable knowledge workers to extract insights, generate reports, and design solutions based on visual information. 
• Machine learning tools, which can learn from data and provide predictions, recommendations, and feedback, and enable knowledge workers to make better decisions, solve complex problems, and innovate new products and services. 

To measure the impact of AI tools on the productivity and performance of knowledge workers, organisations can use various metrics, such as: 

• The time saved by automating or augmenting tasks, and the time spent on more creative or strategic tasks. 

• The quality and accuracy of the tasks performed, and the reduction of errors or mistakes. 

• The outcomes and outputs of the tasks performed, and the alignment with the organisational goals and vision. 
• The satisfaction and engagement of the knowledge workers, and the feedback and ratings they provide for the AI tools. 

By measuring the productivity and performance of knowledge workers in these ways, organisations can gain a better understanding of the value and impact of their work, and the benefits and challenges of using digital tools. This can help them to optimise the digital employee experience, and to provide knowledge workers with the support, guidance, and opportunities they need to thrive in their work. 

Summary 

We have discussed how knowledge workers are essential for the success of any organisation, and how they can leverage AI tools to enhance their productivity and performance. We have also explored how to measure the impact of AI on the work of knowledge workers, using various metrics such as the quality and quantity of output, the efficiency and agility of processes, and the satisfaction and engagement of the workers themselves. By doing so, organisations can gain valuable insights into the value and impact of their work, and the benefits and challenges of using digital tools. 

However, AI is not a silver bullet that can solve all the problems of knowledge work. AI tools need to be carefully designed, implemented, and integrated with the existing work practices and culture of the organisation, and the needs and preferences of the knowledge workers. Moreover, AI tools need to be aligned with the overall digital employee experience, which encompasses the physical, cultural, and technological aspects of the work environment. A positive digital employee experience can foster creativity, collaboration, and innovation among knowledge workers, and enable them to achieve their full potential. 

This is where CDW can help. As a leading provider of digital solutions and services, CDW can help you understand how AI, digital employee experience, and a joined-up Modern Workspace strategy can deliver a difference to your business. Whether you need to assess your current situation, design and implement a tailored solution, or manage and optimise your digital assets, CDW has the expertise, experience, and partnerships to help you succeed. Contact us today to find out how we can help you transform your knowledge work with AI and digital employee experience.