'We never set out to create a tech company - but what we needed just didn't exsist'
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When Anthony and his team first conceived the idea of Beaconforce, none of them set out to found a Silicon Valley technology company. They just realized the HR tech they needed didn’t exist.
Beaconforce began as a change management consulting firm, looking at intrinsic motivation and ‘flow state’ – or being in the zone. Put simply, when people enjoy what they’re doing, they perform better. After working with their clients on improving their organizations, Anthony told us that they wanted a say to sustain the positive changes they’d made after the team left.
“We never set out to create a technology company,” explained Anthony Morra, MD of Beaconforce. “But when we went to the market to find some tech to help us achieve our clients’ needs, we found it simply didn’t exist. So, we partnered with a software-building company who then created Beaconforce – a tool that can measure everything from intrinsic motivation, levels of trust between employer and employee, and where people are relative to ‘flow state’.
And it’s no wonder the tool was snapped up by PwC. It’s essentially like having an HR director-come-psychologist in your pocket. Information is gathered via behavioral science-based questions, two queries per day. The branding algorithm attached to these questions and answers measures the responses and gives management reliable data.
“We’ve got over 70% engagement on daily questions,” explained Anthony. “And whilst this is providing top quality data, you have to realize that data is not useful or helpful in itself. It’s really down to what you do with it. Our algorithm crunches the data to provide the insights, which are then sent to managers for consideration. Leaders can actually see the individual employees who are stressed, those who are bored and those who have entered ‘flow state’. And all in real-time.”
The whole point of this, Anthony tells us, is to change management to leadership. They want employers to create an environment where intrinsic motivation can be realized – and the demand for this new approach is out there. 71% of employees claim to have strained relationships with their managers, whilst 65% of people would actually pick a better boss over a salary increase – problems Anthony and his team are determined to fix.
“After the data is fed to the managers, we make suggestions via a dash-board. The recommended action alert advises managers to engage with any workers whose goals or motivations have dropped – even if it’s something as simple as having a talk with them over coffee.”
It seems as if the future of change management is here – and it can fit in your shirt pocket.
