• Start Free Trial
• Become a Member

Topics

• Setting Your Strategy and Plan
• Channels and New Media
• Measuring Your Impact
• Professional Development
• Change Communication
• Manager and Leader Communication

Strategic Partners

23 March 2009

Effective communication is critical in boosting employee confidence

Survey demonstrates communication impact on employee enthusiasm.

by Di Smith, news reporter, Melcrum Publishing

Only 40% of full-time employees feel their company has a clear plan to withstand the recession says a new study by Threshold Communications, specialists in communication and behaviour change. This finding underlines the importance of engaging the workforce during the current economic downturn.

 

Honest communication is critical
By contrast, honest communication has a definite effect on employee morale. Of those feeling strongly that their company has a clear plan to withstand the recession, 82% have high enthusiasm for their job and 86% feel committed to their company's long term success.

Of those not committed to company success, only 12% say their company has shared its plans to withstand the recession with them.

James Brooke, director, Threshold, says, "The holy-grail for most organizations is to enable employees to feel a great deal of enthusiasm for their jobs. The results of our research suggest that not only does good communication engender enthusiasm, it also helps employees to align themselves positively to their company's future, even if the economic outlook is uncertain."

 

A change of approach at Experian
Colin Archer, head of people communications and community, at finance information provider Experian says the company has always maintained a textbook approach to communication. But this changed following the announcement of possible job losses in its half yearly results.

This time, Experian began talking to staff about the changes much earlier than usual – in November, which was several months before the exact roles affected had been calculated. The timescale is shown below:

• December – communication outlined the likely number of affected roles across the organization.
• January – Experian announced it would soon be talking in more detail and would be creating a forum of staff representatives.
• February – communication of specific details.

 

Communicate early
Unusually, the company communicated the approximate number likely to be affected before calculating exactly which roles. A more traditional approach would have been to plan accurately, then announce the specific departments and roles to be affected.

Instead, Experian explained the financial situation, the shortfall against targets and the likely impact – i.e. reducing several roles. "The basic math was already done. This was the point at which we decided to tell people," he adds.

 

Leadership communication
Experian UK's managing director, Charlotte Hogg used a voicecast to reach the company's 4,000 employees, which explained what was happening and why.

Hogg told staff she understood how unsettling the situation was: "But let me tell you the truth. We think it's going to be up to 300 people. We think it's going to hit us around February, but we're going to talk to you more in January," she said.

Hogg's honest, personal appeal was backed by Experian's directors talking to staff face-to-face.

"These weren't structured question and answer sessions, they just walked around, stopping to talk to people," Archer says.

 

Maintaining consistency
"The directors were consistent, which is far easier to do if you're giving people as much information as you have. They can't speculate. If you're totally honest and open, you don't have to worry about what you're telling people and can be completely comfortable that you're on message."

Senior executives asked people if they had heard the voicecast, what they thought about it and if they had concerns. "They were reacting in the moment rather than giving a structured talk. We did that very early. Then as plans progressed, and we firmed up on the detail, we got representatives together for a consultative forum."

Consultation process
Although companies have a legal requirement to undergo consultation, Experian also wanted to involve employees in deciding how to communicate. "We wanted to get their input at a very early stage about how to release the next piece of information. What should we do in groups and individually? We shaped our approach based on what representatives wanted," Archer says.

Roles to be affected fell into one of two categories – departments where the work would cease and departments where work would reduce.

The forum suggested two different approaches and Experian tailored its communication accordingly. Where people were definitely at risk of redundancy because work would cease, the forum suggested speaking to staff one-to-one. Where work was reducing, and roles would be selected for redundancy, the forum suggested departmental face-to-face communication, followed by one-to-ones for those ultimately affected.

 

Benefit of employee engagement
Archer says these approaches came as no surprise as they are how Experian would have acted. "But we had the benefit of a wider group who were more connected to our people saying, 'We think this will work'."

The forum also helped with considering logistics and "what ifs" such as people on maternity leave or out of the office.

Archer is emphatic about the value of this forum approach. The company involved a group of 26 people based in Nottingham and other groups fed in from the smaller offices. The forum not only challenged management's thinking, but also suggested redundancy alternatives.

Taking this approach allowed Experian to say, "This is not a faceless corporate decision. It's more involving than usual. We've got our people's best interests at heart because this is about securing the long-term future of the business for everybody."

 

Advice for communicators
Archer appreciates the unique situation he is in, having worked in internal communication for many years. "In every case where change has affected people through redundancy it's always been, 'Let's wait until we have all the detail before we tell people'."

He says the company took this traditional approach last year in off-shoring a number of development roles to India. "Because Experian has been a settled organization for so long, it came as a huge shock to people. Consequently there was a lot of noise, upset and agitation," he says.

 

Taking an adult-adult approach to communication
"When we came to the recent situation, I was able to say, 'We talk about being open and honest, trusting people and sharing with them as much as we know as soon as we know it. Let's take that approach this time'."

With the memory of the previous change still fresh in senior leaders' minds, Archer was able to convince them of the need for a more open approach.

"In people's everyday lives they're treated as grown-ups – and then they come to work." Archer explained to senior leaders that they needed to treat staff as adults and discuss their plans as early as possible to avoid the rumor mill going into overdrive.

"Having spent so many years saying this is the way we should do it and never quite getting there, I'm delighted to have been able to put this into practice," Archer concludes.

 

Manger-employee relationships
Threshold's survey also demonstrates the importance of communication between managers and employees.

• 53% who strongly agree their company has a clear plan are also confident their line manager would answer questions fully and honestly.
• Of those saying their company has no clear plan, only 17% are confident in their manager's answers and 48% have no confidence at all.
• Only 29% of the respondents feel their line manager takes time to talk through company plans with them. Where respondents strongly agree their line-manager communicates in this way, 74% feel high job enthusiasm and 86% have long-term commitment.
• Of those strongly disagreeing with this statement, a mere 16% are enthusiastic and only 26% are committed for the long-term.

 

Listen and respond
"The most important finding we can extrapolate from this research is how crucial it is for companies to listen and respond," says Brooke. He recognizes most organizations are under pressure, but believes they can transform employee performance by improving their managers' communication techniques. If employees feel listened to, the survey shows greater commitment to the company, and a much higher level of enthusiasm for the job.
He says the research indicates three important actions, above all else, for line-manager focus:

• genuine listening
• encouraging ideas
• responding to questions fully and honestly.

 "These factors correlate remarkably strongly with commitment, enthusiasm and motivation. Now is the time to work together," Brooke concludes.

 

Have your say
Has your organization changed its approach to communicating with employees in the current economic climate? How do you maintain people’s enthusiasm for their jobs given today’s uncertainties?

 

About the Threshold study
Threshold worked in partnership with YouGov to compile the research during January 2009. 954 people in full time employment in Great Britain responded.

Recommended resources:

Top Tips: A six-step engagement process

TOOL: a strategy map for engagement

Ensuring engagement while avoiding burnout

Got a news story? Contact the newsdesk

News archive