5 January 2007
Good communication linked to high levels of engagement
Research from the US shows that employees who enjoy frequent communication from senior management are more likely to be engaged with their organization.
Considerable disparities exist among companies in the frequency of senior management’s communication with employees, a survey by Watson Wyatt Worldwide, a global consulting firm, has found.
Monthly communication from senior
management
According to the Watson Wyatt's WorkUSA® 2006/2007 survey
of 12,205 full-time US workers, highly engaged employees are much more
likely to receive communication from senior managers at least
once a month. More than half (56%) of these employees
receive communication from senior management at least monthly.
Highly engaged employees are much more likely to report receiving communication from senior managers at least once a month.
In contrast, 42% of low-engaged employees say they receive annual communication or no communication at all. Forty-three percent of employees reported that their firm’s senior management takes an active, visible role in communicating to employees, down from 45 percent in 2004.
“Communication is often thought to
be the direct supervisor’s
role,” said Ilene
Gochman, national practice director for organization effectiveness at
Watson Wyatt. “But companies can create stronger teams and fuel
excitement
about the future if senior managers lay out the broad frameworks the
firm
will follow and supervisors reinforce that message. By engaging employees,
such communication has a direct impact on the bottom line.”
Employees’ ratings
of management dips since 2004
While employee ratings of senior management
rose considerably between 2002 to 2004, only 49% of employees in 2006
said they trust and feel confident about the job senior managers
are doing, down from 51% in 2004. Fifty-three percent said that senior
management makes the changes necessary for the company to stay competitive,
down from 57% in 2004 (see Figure 1, below). And 66% of employees said
they have confidence in the company’s long-term success, down
from 69%.
Figure 1. Communication ratings comparison for 2004 and 2006
People want to work for companies where they have confidence in the organization and trust what senior management is doing.
“This dip in ratings is concerning because employees‚ attitudes about their senior leaders are a key factor in building engagement,” said Gochman. “People want to work for companies where they have confidence in the organization and trust what senior management is doing. Fostering that trust is especially important in today's global market as it creates an environment in which employees understand that changes to the workplace may be necessary to remain competitive.”
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