Employee experience - our strategic priority

UCEA’s EX strategy
Our Employee experience (EX) journey with members began in 2022 with the aim of:

Providing thought leadership on EX
Focussing on the ‘moments that matter’ that can impact individuals, specific groups and teams, as well as the workforce as a whole, and
Communicating the value of total reward through a clearly defined employee value proposition (EVP).

UCEA’s strategic plan, Facilitating transformational change, Enhancing the employee experience, includes supporting employer aspirations to enhance the employee experience as a strategic priority. We are taking EX forward under UCEA’s EX Five Pillar programme of work - providing EX thought leadership, sharing and improving employment practices, and supporting our members as employers of choice.

What are the Five Pillars?
UCEA has developed a Five Pillar Action Plan, which supports EX Five Pillar Strategic Programme of Work. The Five Pillar Action Plan is an evolving document that responds to members' needs in a fast-changing sector, detailing output, timeline, collaboration, and delivery vehicle:

Supporting work with members to promote good employment practice in the areas of learning and development, safety at work and physical, mental health and wellbeing.
Supporting employers in their transformation and organisational change agendas, building flexibility into workforce models to meet the business needs.
Promoting inclusion and sharing the steps HEIs can take to reduce the gender, ethnicity and disability pay gaps.
Helping HEIs to foster a whole workforce approach to employee voice.
Sector work to promote good employment practice, supporting employer reward strategies and promoting the development of total reward and EVP at all levels.

Resources and guidance
In 2024, It is all about the experience – surely? not only provided another excellent EX blog, but outlined the importance of developing sector EX, together. Professor Ken Sloan, Vice-Chancellor and Chief Executive Officer at Harper Adams University and UCEA Board member is our lead for EX strategic priority and development.

The EX section in the members’ area of the website is regularly updated to accommodate resources to support UCEA members in providing solutions to address contemporary EX challenges, bringing together expertise from the sector and beyond, and shining a light on good practice.
The website hosts resources, including the following key publications and materials:

'Employee experience in higher education - a guide'. UCEA's guide drills down into the EX background, concepts, themes and frameworks. This also provides models, case studies, signposting for extra information, and so much more.
'Total Reward and Employee Value Proposition in a ‘perma-crisis’ era', provides practical guidance, case studies, support, and tools to enable members to better define, evaluate, improve, and deliver the total reward package and the employee value proposition.
'Benefits of Working in HE' report (2023), which is publicly available, provides an overview of the benefits that are offered by our member institutions and includes how these benefits compare.
Our Benefits of Working in HE infographics which are also publicly available, show these benefits in visual format.
Annual analysis of gender pay gaps and intersectional pay gaps, including action planning being undertaken by HEIs to reduce the gap. Case studies in all the above areas, both from within the sector and other sectors.

Any questions?
If you have any questions or would like to add to our case studies please contact Roshan Israni, Deputy Chief Executive, Simon Sumner, Head of Employment Policy & Advice or Andy Fryer, Head of Communications and Membership.