Digital Workplace Experience Engineers

Are employee devices well configured to enable them to work effectively? Do applications crash? How often, and why? Do work-issued mobile devices connect seamlessly to the company’s virtual private network? Is the user interface on the company’s intranet difficult or confusing to use? Does the company’s in-house tech support team respond promptly to calls for assistance? What are the most-common tech-related complaints from in-house staff? Remote employees?

Digital workplace experience engineers seek answers to these and countless other questions about the performance, usability, and other qualities of technology used by employees. They evaluate their company’s hardware and software systems to determine how they are functioning, and if they need to be upgraded. They talk with employees in various departments and at different seniority levels to better understand how they use technology and gauge their opinions on the quality of their tech experience. They may form a workplace experience team of staff in key employee-focused roles (e.g., human resources, computer support) to elicit feedback regarding ongoing experience issues or emerging ones. Others may observe a sample group of employees for a half-day or so to see how they use and interact with technology and the technical challenges they encounter as they communicate with colleagues and clients, collect and analyze data, print documents, and perform other tasks. To obtain a snapshot of office technology performance, engineers also collect data on system performance and employee interactions with technology (such as computer support calls). They integrate this feedback into their technology upgrade/improvement plans in order to create a better digital experience.

Other duties for DWEEs include studying worker duties to identify those that can be automated in order to reduce costs and allow employees to focus on more important tasks; exploring new technologies (such as machine learning, artificial intelligence, and generative artificial intelligence) that will help employees save time, predict issues with technology performance, more effectively analyze data, and meet other goals; and creating self-service portals, virtual assistants, and voice control options to improve the employee experience. Engineers also provide support for major information technology (IT) malfunctions or cybersecurity incidents; meet with vendors to learn about new technology products; and write reports and make presentations to senior executives regarding the work of their department and evolving technology needs.