Communication & Engagement – It’s a Two-way Street

We’ve written many times about how important it is for HR to have the ‘vehicles’ in place to encourage employee engagement in a company.

But it’s just as important for employees to take advantage of these opportunities and be a good ‘corporate citizen.’ Communication is a two-way process after all, and an organization can’t address issues that aren’t brought to their attention…

Leveraging technology to enhance open lines of communication, bring about change and support the organizations business goals is crucial to the successful ongoing operation of a company. HRVoice.org author Nancy Painter writes in her column ‘Effective Communications and HR: Making the Connection,’ “Developing technology has changed the landscape forever for HR and communications.” She stresses that “everyone has a role to play,” and “those in HR who are working in tandem with communications and leaders of the organizations will be the most successful.”

Everyone involved in an organization needs to work together to facilitate change and assist in the ongoing productive evolution of an organization. According to Dr. Eliza Chavez, a change and transition professional, formerly principal of Cambiar Leadership and Organizational Effectiveness, now leading clinical and systems transformation in Vancouver Coastal Health Authority and the Provincial Health Services Authority, “Communication is the number one way that change happens,” according to Dr. Chavez. “And not just from a corporate communications standpoint, but in all the ways that people communicate.”

“Change communication includes leadership laying out what is going to change and what isn’t, but also includes the conversations that happen when employees go to their direct managers with concerns and questions. Organizations that do a good job of blending change strategy with communication and sponsorship strategies “are going to be infinitely more successful than those who don’t think of communication and sponsorship as part of change,” Dr. Chavez adds.

Forward-thinking companies have been instituting technology that facilitates the day-to-day methods of peer-to-peer communication including HR cases, tracked email and chat, and follow-up surveys – to create an environment that makes it easy for employees to stay in touch with each other and keep up with the latest company news and information.

One such method is an HR Shared Services Center providing a personalized portal for each individual within the firm to quickly and easily access and share company information, as well as communicate with colleagues, managers and HR personnel. Open channels of communication foster an environment of trust and thought sharing and leadership – as the last thing an organization wants is for its employees to hear about change from outside sources before they hear it from the company.

In large organizations, communication lets employees know what courses are available to them, and how the different options can be blended together to create the program that’s right for each individual. Honesty and transparency are the building blocks of good communication. “Employees absolutely see through communication that isn’t honest and transparent. Ask yourself; what damage can we cause by not being transparent?” asks Dr. Chavez.