4 Times Employee Communications Can Make or Break Your Business

4 Times Employee Communications Can Make or Break Your Business According to anHBR study,the second biggest influence on a companys success is effective employee communications.Wecan see this fact in action in mainstream media Elon Musks tweet about taking Tesla private was followed by a leaked memo to staff that explained his statements and what they meant for the Tesla workforce. Earlier this year, Google employees protested the companys decision to work with the Pentagon, a project that many felt had leid been accurately communicated beforehand.Inmy work with companies across industries, Ive identified four landmark events in which strategic communication is especially crucial a high-profile hire, a product launch, a merger or acquisition, and recovering from layoffs. When dealing with these situations, companies need to go beyond mass emails and trickle-down communications.Heres how they can do just that1. A High-Profile HireAfter a client of mine has made an executive hire, theyll often ask me something like this We just made an offer to a CMO candidate. Any tips on sending out that email once the ink is dry?My responseRethink that approach.Employees want to know more than what they could find out on their own with a brief glance at LinkedIn. A storytelling strategy can help a business bringits new executive to life, connecting employees to their new leader on a deeper level.Some key questions to ask when creating a storytelling strategy for a high-profile hire includeWhat unique trait or experience caused us to hire this person?What do our employees value about our culture, and how will this person cultivate that aspect of the culture?What are the three things this person stands for and expects from others?Most importantly, what makes this person their most comfortable and authentic self when in the spotlight?Consider using multimedia channels to tell a new executives story. A succinct, well-done video can make employees f eel like they know their new leader before even meeting them. A live chat session on the company intranet demonstrates that this new executive is approachable. Partner with the PR team to create a buzz in the media and share the resulting articles with employees. A coordinated unveiling creates a human connection thatbreaks the icebefore any big, down-to-business appearances.2. A Product LaunchEmployees are more likely to feel engaged at work if they understand and believe in the goals toward which they work. All too often, internal communication around a new product or service is handled as if it were outward-facing marketing or sales, which makes it easy foremployees to tune it out.To get an audience engaged, consider creative and interactive ways to putemployees in the customers shoes and humanize the problem the company or productaims to solve.For example, lets say a biopharmaceutical company is launching a new medication.The company couldhold an exploratorium where employees le arn about the typical patients journey from diagnosis to treatment by traveling through a museum-like gallery.The same tactics used for a live event can be replicated in a virtual environment through audio, video, and interactive activities. departeure by creating a daily or weekly series to pulse out different parts of the story, ending with an interview with an actual patient that speaks to employees.3. A Merger or AcquisitionCulture can eat a merger or acquisition for breakfast. When Daimler and Chrysler merged in the 1990s, a lack of cultural alignment around things like business formalities, pay, and goals caused employee satisfaction plummeted. Layoffs followed,and ultimately a sale was carried out all within about 10 years.When two companies merge, its an exercise in creating a new culture that amalgamates the old cultures of the two companies. When an acquisition happens, one company usually sets the tone for the other organization. Regardless of the scenario, the question becomes How can internal communications help to unify the company and minimize disruption?A communication plan for something as complex as a merger or acquisition should always starts with a unifying human element, like the companys core values.A campaign on company values in action solidifies an important set of expectations around culture and behavior. Beyond traditional tools like handbooks, consider bringing those values to a series of podcasts or videoswhere employees talk about how they put values into practice.Use internal social channels to empower employees to share their own thoughts and build on each others perspectives. Weve seen great engagement when we implement campaigns that give employees a platform.4. Recovering From LayoffsPost layoff, companies are usually grappling with one of two issuesCompany leaders are overcommunicating because they want to be transparent, which often leaves employeesoverwhelmed with information.Company leaders are undercommunicating because they are sensitive to the situation and dont want to create more disruption, which leaves employees with unanswered questions.Start from the employees point of view What do they think leadership isnt sharing? What do they think will happen next? When planning, always assess the current emotional intelligence of the business as a baseline.This isa basic concept, but more often than not, companies skip this important step during times of change.Some companies try to find that balance between over- and undercommunicating. In either case, culture-driven messages and activities must remain part of the plan. For example, we worked with a company that wanted to keep its culture in balance while going through a transition. Based on the climate at the organization, a series of engagement activities were put into action across several weeks, including a managers on-the-move program for impromptu conversations with employees, fireside chats and reverse town halls, and even an outdoor celebrat ion for National Hot Dog Day. These purposefully placed moments of engagement some with key messaging, some just to listen, and some just to have fun kept the culture in a positive space and ready for transition.While strategic communication is important to employee engagement and therefore to productivity, turnover, and the bottom line in these four specificevents, it is also critical to have a communications plan in placeat all times. If you want to keep employees engaged on a daily basis, your internal communication needs just as much attention, planning, and execution as outward-facing forms of communication.Chris Viscount is head of the internal communications department atBlueprintNYC.