Can my CHO be replaced by an app?

Chief Happiness Officer (CHO). This post, which appeared in Silicon Valley start-ups 15 years ago, was much in the news when it arrived on our side of the Atlantic. Often caricatured as a “nice organizer”, the CHO actually has a multi-faceted role. A beacon in the plethora of information and services made available, a link between teams, managers and leaders and a real-time pulse of the social climate, the job of Chief Happiness Officer is like a super toolbox of good - to be in business.

To the point of being able to be replaced by an all-in-one application?

The specialist of the employee experience

Intranet for the latest news, gym application for timetables, site dedicated to reporting incidents, IT support chatbot, etc. For more and more employees, it is difficult to find the right information at the right time. Associated with the onboarding process and guarantor of the employee experience, the CHO often plays the role of “air traffic controller”. He is in constant contact with the teams and directs them to the right service on a daily basis. An essential function but which can be facilitated, or even completely ensured, by an application.

Thus, more and more digital workplaces play the role of gateway to all the tools and news of the company. Information, communication and services are grouped together for more readability and visibility. Available on employees' smartphones, these “all-in-one” applications improve productivity and distribution of company messages.

Promote conviviality

The most well-known mission of the Chief Happiness Officer is to create conviviality between the company's employees. From onboarding to the starting drink, through the annual seminar or the end-of-year meal, the CHO is there to multiply the opportunities for exchanges and meetings. In this work of “community manager”, he needs an effective tool to manage events within the company but also to communicate directly with one or more employees. “All-in-one” applications like Witco are thus perfect companions for the CHO. He can :

• reply to employees' direct requests through the messaging service,
• share events and news on the company's news feed,
• take the pulse of the teams in real time.

79% of executives believe that the Chief Happiness Officer has an impact on employee productivity. Lavazza x Ifop barometer 2019

Understand employee needs

It is often the responsibility of the CHO to put in place the optimal conditions so that everyone enjoys coming to work. And to know if his actions are effective, he must watch and remain attentive to needs. Beyond individual exchanges, the Chief Happiness Officer can monitor well-being in his company through anonymous questionnaires regularly shared with employees. Like the polls found on social media, these questions make it possible to measure engagement and its evolution over time. The CHO's mission is to analyze these results and implement effective corrective actions. The applications intended for employees thus allow it to centralize the sending of these questionnaires and to remain attentive to the needs of employees.

The Chief Happiness Officer cannot be replaced by an application. However, he needs, on a daily basis, an effective tool to support him in the variety of his missions. He needs a unique tool to spread information, communicate and listen to the needs of employees. Thus equipped, the CHO will be able to promote cohesion and create a positive working atmosphere for everyone and for the company.