The warning signs of an employee experience problem

When you’ve got a strong work culture in place, employees can feel it right away. When you’re working on a ship and living with your colleagues for long spells at a time, culture matters all that much more.

For Susannah Sheppard, director of internal brand, communications and experience at Virgin Voyages, culture is rooted in the small moments that show employees’ connection to one another and the work itself.

We spoke with Sheppard to learn more about how she approaches employee experience with a multigenerational crew, putting employee listening tactics to work quickly and much more. She’ll be presenting at Ragan’s Employee Experience Conference this August in Nashville.

Ragan: What are the early signs that something might be off with employee experience?

Sheppard: One of the earliest signs I look for is a loss of connection.

It can be subtle. Are people participating? Are they bringing ideas forward? Are they showing up to opportunities beyond the day-to-day role? Are leaders responding to concerns?

The signal I pay closest attention to is silence. Negative feedback and raised concerns are important because they help us shape what comes next. But when you do not have that feedback, it can tell you people are starting to disengage.

Of course, we have surveys and data, and we use those to stay ahead of trends. But for us, the vibe matters too. When you walk through the main crew corridors, are people saying hello? Are they smiling? Is there a buzz at the kitchen table, which is our crew mess? Culture has a pulse, and if you are paying attention, you can definitely feel it.

Ragan: What does real-time listening look like in practice?

Sheppard: For us, real-time listening means staying close enough to the experience that we are not waiting for an annual survey to tell us what is going on.

Most of our crew are contract crew, so a one-time survey just would not make sense. We try to match our listening to the crew member lifecycle. We survey crew when they get on board, at the midpoint of their contract and at the end of the contract. That gives us a better reflection of their true experience across the year.

We have also intentionally built multiple ways for crew voices to be heard. Our Crew Champions program helps surface feedback and identify trends across departments. Each ship has a dedicated crew engagement manager whose focus is connection and the crew experience. And our leaders are expected to be accessible and to bring feedback back to us.

Our CEO, Nirmal Saverimuttu, also hosts a live Q&A on our internal platform every two weeks called “Ask Nirmal Anything.” He has not seen the questions in advance. That kind of direct dialogue, including around difficult questions, has been really important for us.

Ragan: How do you help managers spot culture issues early without overreacting?

Sheppard: One of the biggest things we do is encourage managers to be curious before they get concerned.

It is easy to hear feedback and want to respond immediately. Sometimes that is the right thing to do. But other times, it is about taking a pause and getting curious about the why.

We ask leaders to think about what they are hearing. Is this a one-off concern? Is it part of a pattern? Have I heard this from others? What is underneath the feedback?

Not every frustration is a larger-scale issue. Sometimes it is something one person needs help with. Other times, it is something that needs to be escalated so the right people can help solve it.

We also talk a lot about “paper cuts.” Culture rarely shifts because of one big moment. It is often an accumulation of smaller moments. If managers can notice those early and ask better questions, we can get ahead of issues before they become bigger problems.

Ragan: How do you keep Virgin Voyages’ internal culture clear and consistent across different generations of employees?

Sheppard: For us, culture really comes through the lens of purpose, belonging and shared ownership.

We have a fairly unique challenge because many of our crew do not just work together. They live together on board. Then they have periods off contract when they return to their families, communities and lives all over the world before joining us again. So we are constantly thinking about how to create a culture that stays strong and consistent, whether someone is on board today or coming back into their next contract.

That starts with alignment around why we are here. Virgin Voyages came into this industry to challenge convention and create something different. That mission has resonated with people across generations and backgrounds because they feel they are part of building something new.

We also have a deeply held belief that everything starts with our crew. We want every person who joins us to know they can leave their mark on what we are building. Across generations, expectations may be different, but people still want to feel connected, empowered, valued and like they are contributing to something that matters.

To register for Ragan’s Employee Experience Conference, click here.

Sean Devlin is an editor at Ragan Communications.