By Emily Eillis
From driving business results to being built-in brand ambassadors, employees are a key audience for any organization. Or at least, they should be, as we see time and time again that business success and employee wellbeing are closely correlated. Ensuring employees feel heard, seen and valued is not only the ‘right’ thing to do from a moral/ethical standpoint, it’s also better for business.
From an employer perspective, this starts with ensuring any organizational updates are communicated internally and in a timely manner. This sounds simple but cannot be understated, as it’s important for employees to have a chance to ask questions and share feedback rather than being blindsided or hearing the news from an external source. Strong internal communications helps fuel effective two-way engagement between leaders and employees. This stimulates employee trust, drives productivity, and can differentiate a company as an employer of choice.
Building company culture and financial success
While effective internal communications is critical to a people-first culture, it’s also a leading financial performance driver. In fact, when employees understand their overall role in the business, studies show that 91 per cent will work towards company goals. Additionally, organizations that execute a strategic internal communications plan typically have higher total returns to shareholders over five years, compared to those that don’t prioritize internal communications. Beyond emails and instant messaging platforms like Microsoft Teams or Slack, determining the communications channels and tactics that best fit your team’s needs is also critical to ensure your message reaches employees how, why and when you want it to. Below are some examples of internal communications tactics business leaders can embed into their strategies to help engage employees.
- Company newsletters: Newsletters are a popular tactic when achieving “top-down” or “leadership” communications. This form of internal messaging is a great way to extend information from leadership to employees on business goals and outcomes, team announcements, industry news and trends, upcoming events, company accomplishments and any potential changes.
- Employee Q&As: Especially during times of transformation in the workplace – whether changes in senior leadership, layoffs, partnerships or M&A announcements – it’s important to come prepared with questions employees may ask. Providing clear and concise answers to anticipated questions will ensure consistent key messaging to help minimize confusion and foster a sense of understanding. Hosting these Q&As through virtual or in-person meetings is recommended for a more personable approach, but these can also be provided in written documents.
- Pulse surveys: As a form of “bottom-up” or two-way communication, pulse employee surveys provide opportunities for feedback from staff. Executing surveys not only provides insightful feedback that can be implemented by leadership, but can also enhance the employee experience by demonstrating that their voice matters and leadership wants it to be heard.
- Town hall presentations: Hosting ongoing town hall meetings with staff is an effective and personable practice to provide information and business updates. Town halls open the floor for collaboration and can streamline communication between leadership and employees through open dialogue. Whether virtual or remote, face-to-face communication provides a more social and humanized experience for staff, offering a better sense of community and culture among employees.
Whether you have a big announcement coming your way, are looking to strengthen your company culture or just better orchestrate daily communications among teams, consider implementing an internal communications strategy. You will notice an inherent impact to your business objectives and performance goals in a very positive way.