Boost Company Performance With Effective Communication

Stories abound about the challenges businesses face in this current economic downturn. The talk in newsrooms and board rooms is about urgency, the need to make changes by pulling together to create long-term stability and success. And yet, on a daily basis, many companies have adopted behaviors that send the opposite message. When faced with news that is negative, companies tend to hit the ‘mute’ button, while management runs for cover in the bunkers, with the hope that things will blow over soon and get back to ‘normal’. Of course, communicating information about declining profitability, potential (or planned) layoffs and other austerity measures, is difficult. But at a time like this, communicating with your employees is even more critical. In fact, your business depends on it.

How do companies know if their customers are receiving the messages they intend? How do employees know if they are performing in ways that result in success for their companies? How do different functions (departments) within a company know if they are working toward the same goals and objectives and not duplicating effort? The answer of course is communication and it is essential to long-term profitability and sustainability.

In its long-term study of the relationship between internal communication and company performance, Watson Wyatt concluded that companies with highly effective employee communications outperform companies that don’t*.

So, what can you do to keep your employees informed, engaged, and focused on your business, so that you’re ready to leap forward on the economic upswing? Plenty.

Here are some best practice tips for keeping the information flowing at your business:

Information is power. And when you share information, it’s even more powerful (contrary to the old idea of hording information). Your employees are a terrific source for ideas on how to better serve customers, become more efficient, and stay ahead of your competition. The more your employees know about the business challenges and their role in overcoming these, the better positioned they are to help you work toward solutions.

Communicate often. There’s nothing worse that an employee finding out about a company’s changes (such as reorganizations, mergers, other) from an external party, such as a customer. When this happens, your company appears sloppy, leaves customers wondering what’s really happening, and results in your employees with a feeling that they are shut out and not worthy of your trust. Barring regulatory requirements, share as much as you can. People will fill in the blanks with their own stories if you do not put your story out there, and you don’t want employees acting on false information.

Be consistent in your communications. Whatever you do communicate, be sure that you are consistent in language and messages. When you contradict yourself, the information is less credible. Companies get why they have to communicate in a consistent way with customers (marketing), yet forget that the same principle applies to their operations. When employees receive clear, consistent information and messages, they better perform their responsibilities and better represent you to your customers and everyone else.

Communicate through multiple vehicles. Some forms of communication are active, others passive. Holding ‘town hall’ meetings and other discussion forums, conference calls and staff meetings are active communications. E-mails, memos, intranet postings are passive communication. The type and complexity of information affects which vehicles are most appropriate. Last, people have different learning and information processing styles. When you use multiple communication vehicles, you reach more people and increase retention of information. More importantly,when you use active communication, you foster engagement and interest.

Tell the truth. This sounds simple enough, yet can be difficult to practice. Again, not all information about a company must be shared with every employee. If you share what you can in a way that demonstrates integrity and respects your employees’ intelligence, you will be rewarded with your employees’ trust and energy to move the business forward.

Stephanie Leibowitz, MA, Anthropologist At Work

*Secrets of Top Performers: How Companies with Highly Effective Employee Communications Differentiate Themselves. The Methodology Behind the 2007-2008 Communication ROI Study™, by Richard Luss and Steven Nyce, January 11, 2008.