Communicating With Your Employees a First Step to Success

One of the many functions of public relations is internal relations. A common misconception in our industry is that we communicate solely with external publics. To establish effective relationships with your customers and stakeholders, you must first manage relationships within your own organization.

There is one local business that immediately comes to mind when I think of great internal relations: Home Depot. During a recent trip to the Carmel Mountain Ranch location, I had the opportunity to witness a staff meeting on the floor. The manager and group of employees were huddled around discussing weekly agenda items. Most companies do this behind closed doors, but I love the fact that they take care of business out in the open. While I didn’t stick around for the entire conversation, I caught the part where the manager acknowledged an employee for their commitment and hard work.

Communication is essential in any organization for many reasons and it plays a big part with the success or failure of a company. Here are four tips to ensure your company is communicating effectively with your employees:

1) Encourage two-way communication: Companies that have an open-door policy where team members can share ideas or present issues they’re experiencing will not only do better than others, but they’ll have happier employees. If you aren’t allowing for two-way communication or eliciting feedback, you’re running the risk of giving your employees the impression that their opinions don’t matter and they aren’t truly part of the organization.

2) Develop a communications strategy: The last thing a company wants to deal with is a false rumor spreading around. If your company has news to announce, ensure there’s a process for relaying that information in a way that can’t get misconstrued. Many employees prefer face-to-face communication, so it would be in a company’s best interest to coordinate in-person meetings where the CEO or department managers share important announcements. For team members in remote locations, consider incorporating videocasting so those employees can participate in meetings as well. In addition, videocasts can be recorded and shared for those unable to attend. Lastly, many companies distribute newsletters, and while that is a useful strategy, it doesn’t allow for active participation by employees.

3) Hold regular all-hands meetings: Gathering employees and having regular discussions on the mission, vision and other company happenings is important. If your organization has teams that work on various accounts, try something different and ask those groups to deliver fun quarterly presentations at the all-hands events so others in the company can see what they’re working on and how they’re contributing. In addition, this is a great time to recognize employee achievements and successes similar to what Home Depot did when I visited the store. Employees appreciate feeling like they are part of an organization and not left in the dark about what’s going on.

4) Spend time with new hires: When hiring new team members, take the time to go over the company’s mission and vision to ensure they know what direction the company is looking to take. By reviewing this information, it can provide employees with a better understanding of their role and how they can help achieve goals.

Establishing and maintaining positive working relationships within the organization should be a top priority for any company. If you’re able to create and maintain a successful communications plan with employees, the company has a better shot at success.