Communication is king - so make sure your organisation is getting it right

Inadequate and ineffective employee communications can be your worst enemy when it comes to employee wellbeing and motivation. It can result in high staff attrition rates, reduced customer satisfaction, and falling productivity.

When it comes to the wellbeing of your workforce, employee communications are your best friend. Not only do they have a positive impact on employee motivation, but they also improve employee happiness, loyalty and their mental health and wellbeing, too - because effective communications contribute to employees feeling trusted and respected. Organisations that treat people with respect and trust are significantly more successful than those that don't - it's just common sense, really!

Let's take a look at five ways effective communication in the workplace improves employee wellbeing and motivation. Are there any areas where your organisation could improve?

Relationships

Workplaces need effective relationships between colleagues, managers and departments in order to be successful. Effective communication between employees at all levels strengthens relationships and ensures everyone is on the same page. This creates a positive working environment, and improves both employee motivation and productivity, too.

To be effective when it comes to building and strengthening relationships, communication needs to be transparent and precise. Clarity is also crucial, because unclear communication can lead to expectations not being met, relationships being spoiled, and a breakdown of trust. All of this can result in demotivated and unhappy employees.

Innovation and creativity

Internal communication drives collaboration - when communication and information flows freely and openly between colleagues and those in other departments, it inspires efforts to collaborate, improves knowledge sharing, and gives employees access to other peoples’ skills that might help them do their job better.

Having a collaborative environment is one way to avoid getting a stressed-out workforce, so introducing an internal social media platform that allows people to connect is a great way to encourage collaboration - tools such as Slack, Trello, Basecamp and good ol' Google Docs are really effective for this.

Encouraging this type of collaboration not only improves that all-important staff communication, but can also empower employees to get the answers - to questions they may have, feedback or approval project approvals - they may need quickly and efficiently; meaning they can work smarter - not necessarily harder.

It's also important to recognise that innovation in the workplace doesn't always come from the top, either. Encouraging employees to submit useful ideas themselves helps your company thrive and take advantage of new opportunities.

Formalised employee ideas schemes generate hundreds of business improvement ideas, and feedback is an essential tool - but many companies fail to offer a well-structured means to submit ideas that will be taken seriously by decision makers. 

An employee ideas scheme which includes status updates and feedback is an excellent way to encourage idea generation, recognising the impact every individual can make to your business and improving employee motivation.

Decision-making

Giving employees an opportunity to get involved in making decisions has a significant positive effect on employee motivation. Studies tell us that managers who engage their employees in decision-making and problem-solving within day-to-day operations have more satisfied employees, with higher levels of productivity as their reward.

Involving employees in decision-making by explaining the issue and asking for their thoughts and ideas demonstrates to employees that their perspective and opinions are valued, and it can lead to solutions managers might not have considered.

However, managers need to ensure that they are providing meaningful opportunities for employees to participate in decision-making, rather than just paying lip service to it, or they could find that they're having the opposite impact to what they were hoping for.

Information-sharing

Employees like to know what is happening within their organisation, so it's vital that employers have effective communication channels that reach all their employees. Sharing information with employees ensures that everyone is on the same page, and shares the same understanding of the company goals and vision.

Employers should share all appropriate information with employees unless it's confidential - but care needs to be taken to avoid bombarding employees with information and contributing to information overload.

Career and personal development

The mental health of a workforce is linked to how engaged and motivated they are. After all, it's well-known that career development opportunities are a significant contributor to employee motivation - but, if people know there's nowhere to go, why bother even trying?

Effective communication and between employees and managers, and between managers and HR, helps managers and employees identify opportunities for career and personal development within the organisation - meaning they can stay motivated and positive about their future.

Managers, employees and HR professionals need to work together to develop training programmes that improve employees’ skills and knowledge, whether that's identifying secondment opportunities, training courses, or assigning a mentor.

HR professionals and managers need to understand the critical role communication in the workplace plays in employee motivation and staff wellbeing, and help facilitate better employee communications at all levels.

CLEAR COMMUNICATIONS ARE JUST THE START...

A collaborative and supportive environment is just one aspect of a healthy and productive workforce. But if you're want a truly successful organisation, the health and wellbeing of your staff should be a top priority!

Many forward-thinking employers are now offering Employee Assistance Programmes which give their employees access to professional mental health support; including 24-hour, 365-day counselling services - either face-to-face, online, or via phone and email. Meaning your employees have the support they need while they are working remotely.

Click here to learn more and see how easily you can support your employees during the Covid-19 pandemic and any personal problems they may face in the future.