EX—The Dirty Secret No One Wants to Admit

Let’s cut to the chase: EX is one of those buzzwords that gets tossed around at every HR meeting like it’s some magic wand. But here’s the truth no one wants to admit—it’s a bit like teen sex: everyone talks about it, pretends they’re experts, but most companies have no clue what they’re actually doing. 😬

Yeah, I said it. So let’s talk about what’s really going on with EX—and why your company’s “commitment to employee experience” is probably more talk than action.

𝟭. 𝗬𝗼𝘂’𝗿𝗲 𝘁𝗮𝗹𝗸𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗮 𝗯𝗶𝗴 𝗴𝗮𝗺𝗲, 𝗯𝘂𝘁 𝘄𝗵𝗲𝗿𝗲’𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗳𝗼𝗹𝗹𝗼𝘄-𝘁𝗵𝗿𝗼𝘂𝗴𝗵?

You’ve heard it before. Every CEO, HR leader, and LinkedIn “thought leader” goes on about how 𝘪𝘮𝘱𝘰𝘳𝘵𝘢𝘯𝘵 employee experience is. And yet, when you dig beneath the surface, it’s all smoke and mirrors.

💡 Only 𝟭𝟯% of employees worldwide are fully engaged at work. 🤯 So while you're out here 𝘴𝘢𝘺𝘪𝘯𝘨 you care about EX, the numbers tell a different story.        

If your company’s idea of improving employee experience is throwing a ping-pong table in the break room, changing “HR” titles to “People” or “EX”, congrats—you’ve missed the point.

𝟮. 𝗘𝗫 𝗶𝘀𝗻’𝘁 𝗮𝗯𝗼𝘂𝘁 𝗽𝗲𝗿𝗸𝘀 𝗼𝗿 𝗽𝗼𝗹𝗶𝗰𝗶𝗲𝘀—𝗶𝘁’𝘀 𝗮𝗯𝗼𝘂𝘁 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘄𝗵𝗼𝗹𝗲 𝗷𝗼𝘂𝗿𝗻𝗲𝘆

Marketers understand this: 𝗰𝘂𝘀𝘁𝗼𝗺𝗲𝗿 𝗲𝘅𝗽𝗲𝗿𝗶𝗲𝗻𝗰𝗲 is about every single touchpoint, not just a flashy promotion. Well, guess what? 𝗘𝗺𝗽𝗹𝗼𝘆𝗲𝗲 𝗲𝘅𝗽𝗲𝗿𝗶𝗲𝗻𝗰𝗲 works the same way. It’s about the entire journey—from recruitment to exit interviews (and everything in between).

But what do most companies do? Focus on superficial “perks” like free snacks or a casual Friday, or policies that define the “corporate” experience, not the “employee” experience. 🙄 That’s not what keeps people around.

👉 People want to feel 𝚟̲𝚊̲𝚕̲𝚞̲𝚎̲𝚍̲ every day. They want purpose, respect, and a workplace where they can thrive. Perks are great, but they don’t replace meaningful career growth, work-life balance, and genuine appreciation.        

𝟯. 𝗜𝗳 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗸 “𝗘𝗫” 𝗶𝘀 𝗮𝗻 𝗛𝗥 𝗽𝗿𝗼𝗯𝗹𝗲𝗺, 𝘆𝗼𝘂’𝘃𝗲 𝗮𝗹𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗱𝘆 𝗳𝗮𝗶𝗹𝗲𝗱

EX isn’t just something HR should be worrying about. It’s 𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘺𝘰𝘯𝘦’s job. From the C-suite to middle management, EX needs to be woven into the entire fabric of your company’s culture. Otherwise, it’s just another half-baked initiative destined to fail.

🚨 Employees who feel their leadership is committed to EX are 𝟮.𝟱𝘅 𝗺𝗼𝗿𝗲 𝗹𝗶𝗸𝗲𝗹𝘆 to be engaged at work. Your leadership team sets the tone. If they don’t walk the talk, neither will anyone else.        

𝟰. 𝗬𝗼𝘂 𝗰𝗮𝗻’𝘁 “𝗶𝗺𝗽𝗿𝗼𝘃𝗲” 𝘄𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗱𝗼𝗻’𝘁 𝗺𝗲𝗮𝘀𝘂𝗿𝗲

Ever notice how the companies talking the loudest about EX are the ones who have zero data to back it up? If you’re not measuring employee satisfaction, engagement, and retention, then you’re just guessing. And let’s be real—most companies are guessing.

📊 Start treating EX like the 𝚌̲𝚛̲𝚞̲𝚌̲𝚒̲𝚊̲𝚕̲ business metric it is. Survey your people, track engagement trends, and—most importantly—act on the feedback. If you’re not measuring, you’re not improving.        

𝟱. 𝗘𝗺𝗽𝗹𝗼𝘆𝗲𝗲𝘀 𝗮𝗿𝗲𝗻’𝘁 𝗳𝗼𝗼𝗹𝗲𝗱 𝗯𝘆 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 “𝗳𝗲𝗲𝗹-𝗴𝗼𝗼𝗱” 𝗶𝗻𝗶𝘁𝗶𝗮𝘁𝗶𝘃𝗲𝘀

Look, employees aren’t stupid. They can tell the difference between a company that genuinely cares about their experience and one that’s just doing it for show. Those “feel-good” initiatives like mental health days or diversity programs? If they aren’t backed by real policy changes and long-term support, employees will see right through them.

💥 𝘈𝘶𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘪𝘤𝘪𝘵𝘺 is everything. If you’re just putting on a show, your employees will disengage faster than you can say “company culture.”        

𝟲. 𝗪𝗮𝗻𝘁 𝗯𝗲𝘁𝘁𝗲𝗿 𝗘𝗫? 𝗦𝘁𝗮𝗿𝘁 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝘁𝗿𝘂𝘀𝘁

At the heart of great employee experience is one thing: 𝘁𝗿𝘂𝘀𝘁. Your employees need to trust that you have their best interests at heart, that their work matters, and that they’re valued beyond their job title.

If your workplace is riddled with micromanagement, lack of transparency, and broken promises, no amount of free pizza or fun Fridays will save you. You want loyalty? You want engagement? Build trust first.

💡 High-trust companies are 𝟮.𝟳𝘅 more likely to retain their employees than low-trust ones. You do the math.        

𝟳. 𝗜𝘁’𝘀 𝘁𝗶𝗺𝗲 𝘁𝗼 𝘀𝘁𝗼𝗽 𝘁𝗮𝗹𝗸𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝘀𝘁𝗮𝗿𝘁 𝗱𝗼𝗶𝗻𝗴

Here’s the bottom line: 𝗲𝗺𝗽𝗹𝗼𝘆𝗲𝗲 𝗲𝘅𝗽𝗲𝗿𝗶𝗲𝗻𝗰𝗲 𝗶𝘀 𝗻𝗼𝘁 𝗷𝘂𝘀𝘁 𝘀𝗼𝗺𝗲𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝘁𝗮𝗹𝗸 𝗮𝗯𝗼𝘂𝘁. If you want to create a workplace that people are excited to be a part of, you have to commit to it in the long run. Not just during onboarding, not just at the holiday party, but every. single. day.

👊 Focus on:

• Listening to your employees—𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘭𝘭𝘺 listen.

• Investing in their growth, their wellbeing, and their futures.

• Making EX a 𝚙̲𝚛̲𝚒̲𝚘̲𝚛̲𝚒̲𝚝̲𝚢̲ from top to bottom, and back it up with real action.

𝗧𝗟;𝗗𝗥?

👉 Everyone talks about employee experience like they’re pros, but most aren’t really doing it.

👉 It’s about the whole employee journey, not perks or ping-pong tables.

👉 Leadership, transparency, and trust are the true foundations of a great EX.

👉 Stop guessing—start measuring.

👉 If you’re not committed to EX daily, you’re just paying lip service.

So, HR—stop just talking about employee experience like it’s some mythical unicorn, and start making it happen. Your people deserve more than empty promises. And honestly, so do you.

Catch you on the rebellion side,

Stephan 🤘