What does Bruce Springsteen and Employee Engagement have in common?
The answer in a second. But first. Quick! Close your eyes and imagine your all your organization’s various processes as an expensive golden chain link bracelet. Gorgeous.
Now, keep your eyes closed: Which link in your organization’s process is Communications?
For too many, it’s in one of the last positions.
Is your Comms team brought in only after a new employee rewards system or human resources policy or pick any type of idea or change has been decided upon and is ready to roll out? You know, the situation in which the Chief Marketing Officer or the Chief Information Officer or the Chief Whatever Officer calls in the Director of Communications and says, “Tell everyone this is happening” type of approach?
No. no. no!
Put Communications foremost in your strategy at every stage!
Instead, consider what might occur if management brings the Comms Director to the table at the planning stage. Your Comms Team should be experts in crafting and guiding strategy to drive Employee Engagement.
Last Friday, I was fortunate to lead a “Lunch and Learn” session with the super-committed Communications Team from Ireland’s electricity company, ESB Group. We explored and discussed a variety of ways to better connect the company around ideas of efficacy and activation.
For instance, consider:
- How can you reduce the work-load from first reports and get employees to comply with a new policy – on their own accord –and happily???
- Who are the various department influencers out there beyond supervisors who could help promote the new idea internally?
- Conversely, who are the known naysayers and what can be done preemptively to help bring them on board to champion an idea?
- What will it take to properly socialize your new idea?
- Is there a way to incrementally roll out the new idea in controlled phases and make it fun?
- How do you socialize the new idea?
- Is there a way to gamify the new idea?
- How can you create a friendly competition with real prizes around the new idea?
- What’s the #Hashtag around the campaign on social media?
It might be as simple as a popular ESB competition going on right now to winBRUCE SPRINGSTEEN tickets which, I’m told, has awesome employee engagement behind it and proves you don’t have to be “Born in the USA” to love the Boss.
Good Communication ideas aren’t simple. They’re strategic.
Employees often fear change, because it sounds like a code-word for MORE WORK! So, bringing in your Comms Team at the planning stage (and throughout the entire process), can help your organization better strategize, plan and implement change.
Think of your Comms Team as People Strategists! And since any organization is comprised of People (NOT “HUMAN CAPITAL” – Blech, what a term), you need those People Strategists at the onset of any new idea, not merely in the implementation phrase!
It’s the human way and it’s the right way. Research (duh, not surprisingly) shows that employees who have fun, feel valued and therefore are more productive!
Get Real and Get Going!
Here’s to engaging employees in the real way, Gina
Copyright 2016 Gina London. All Rights Reserved.
