Using Harkn to bridge the gap between frontline employees and leadership during a seismic technology implementation.
A fictional story inspired by real use cases.
The Problem
Amir is a seasoned Transformation Director. In his current role, he’s responsible for the organisation’s most significant change programmes, including the implementation of a critical new ERP solution.
Given the investment made in this new technology and the benefits it’s anticipated to bring, progress is being closely scrutinised by leadership.
Amir and his team are under significant pressure. The delivery deadlines feel increasingly tight, and they are balancing several other priorities at the same time.
The team have already worked countless weekends and late nights, and Amir knows this must be taking its toll on them. Most of them are fully remote, too, which makes it even harder for him to gauge how they’re coping.
Even though the company often talks about how much they value employee wellbeing and encourages people to speak up, Amir knows it’s not that simple. These well-intentioned sentiments seem disconnected from his current reality and do little to alleviate the pressure he feels to deliver the programme.
Going to his superiors to share his fears about his team being at increased risk of burnout feels perilous. As is stands, the project is 20% over its forecasted budget and the team have missed two key delivery milestones. Amir worries that he may be seen as a weak or ineffective leader, which could impede his progression within the company.
The results from the company’s recent annual engagement survey indicate 75% employee satisfaction, yet Amir can't help but feel those numbers belie the emotional turbulence in his team. He's noticed a decline in the team's active participation during virtual meetings; even the usually outspoken Sarah has been unusually reticent. His intuition, honed by years of experience, tells him this silence is a cry for help.
Having successfully spearheaded major transitions in the past, Amir is no stranger to managing complexity. However, the emotional and psychological facets of humans in the workplace remain inherently unpredictable. He needs to find a way to bridge this chasm.
The Game Changer
Amir recalls a former colleague telling him about Harkn, and how it’s improved sensemaking and psychological safety in her company. Intrigued, he decides to run a proof of concept for his function to see if this innovative technology could provide a solution to his pressing challenges.
Within days of launching the Harkn platform, Amir has actionable insights that would have taken weeks to obtain through traditional channels. The anonymous nature of Harkn allows for an unfiltered, uncensored dialogue, empowering his team members to speak freely, without fear of retribution or judgement.
Thanks to the Good Day Ratio—a live metric of organisational health—he quickly identifies that his people are feeling worse than they have let on. In a couple of cases, Harkn has flagged individuals as showing signs of struggle. The platform then activates a safety net by automatically routing these concerns to qualified wellbeing professionals within the company, all while maintaining anonymity.
What strikes Amir most is the real-time dialogue unfolding on the company wall and in his team's chat room. Not only does it offer him clearer insight into the specific areas of the project causing strain, but it also sparks new ideas.
One of his team members (who remains anonymous) suggests that pausing another project, which is of lesser priority, would significantly improve their chances of meeting the ERP implementation deadline. The team quickly rallies around this idea, reinforcing its merit.
Armed with these real-time insights, Amir now knows what he needs to do. He presents his case to the leadership team the next day – not merely as concerns, but as evidence-based insights. "Based on real-time data from Harkn, pausing the other tech implementation could be the game changer we need to deliver this programme," he asserts.
The Outcome
Amir’s argument is compelling, backed by the hard numbers and human sentiment captured through Harkn.
The CEO not only agrees to pause the other project, but also extends the ERP implementation deadline by several weeks and allocates additional resources to it, asking the rest of the leadership team to adjust their plans accordingly.
Within a week of implementing Harkn, Amir manages to bridge the gap between his frontline staff and the executives in the boardroom. More than that, he catalyses a transformative shift in the organisation's culture—one with data-driven empathy at the forefront – and is recognised as a trailblazing leader.
If you're interested in how Harkn can help your organisation navigate transformational change, why not book a virtual coffee with us to find out more?
