Print This Page

Profiting From Good Employee Communication

Effective employee communication helps any business organization to improve productivity and its bottom line. Genuine employee communications is a form of public relations that reduces employee turnover, decreases absenteeism, and reduces dissatisfied customers.

Companies that put in effect good employees communication programs find that workers are in tune with the organization's objectives. There may potentially be more innovation.

For large companies this is important. They use professional business communicators and internal social media. There is even an international association of business communicators that holds an employee communication conference. The employee communicators manifesto is a web site which is a wiki for internal communicators.

Companies want to communicate about the specifics of a job, the company expectations, facts about the company, ways for attending to customers, and about the company's products or services.

Employees want to know about job promotions, job security, their retirement plans, and their health coverage plans. For this employees usually resort to their human resources department. They need to know who are their internal communicators to the company.

Employees need to believe that they are valuable to the organization. They need a sense of belonging and self worth. This comes from managers who listen to their concerns. A feeling of respect and being trusted goes a long way toward creating a valuable employee.

Facets of Employee Communications

Employees communications covers verbal and nonverbal, written documents, dealing with conflicts, and negotiating with others. It also involves team building.

At one time or another each employee will be engaged in each specific type of communication.

A sensitive topic has been workplace sexual harassment. This could turn out to be a misunderstood form of employee communication between two individuals. Unfortunately for some companies it has risen to legal precipice. Internal methods of employee communications need to deliver definite guidelines that anticipate this potential problem.

A number of businesses monitor employees communication within the organization. A survey of more than 700 companies by Society for Human Resource Management found that almost 75% of companies monitor their workers use of the Internet. They also review their employee's e-mail. More than half were recording employee phone calls.

The American Management Association found that financial service companies were more likely to monitor their employee communication. Employers justify this on anti harassment laws, anti gambling policies and the use of company resources.

Conclusion On Employee Communication

Laws favor the employer's right to monitor employees communication. There has to be a proper balance before the employee begins to feel scrutinized and becomes demoralized. Employees who continuously follow company policy should also be recognized. It's effective employee communication when employees know they are able to obtain healthy raises and rise through the ranks into management.

The previous article is on Team Building Activities.

Other wiki resources: communication skills; team building; employee communications; corporate communications; conflict resolution