Effective employee communication enables team members to have an in-depth understanding of the company’s mission, vision, and values. Unfortunately, employee communication is something that is often overlooked by businesses and it ends up costing a fortune. On the other hand, companies that pay attention to employee communication and work towards its improvement successfully increase the productivity of their workforce.
The success of a company is impossible without the existence of an engaged workforce. Effective employee communication can:
- Improve cooperation between departments. All the departments in a company depend on each other for results. But their cooperation is only possible if communication channels remain open between them.
- Promote harmony among a diverse workforce. It doesn’t matter what the social, religious, and ethnic background of your employees is when they can work together as a cohesive team. When employees feel heard, there will be less room for misunderstandings and dissatisfaction among the workforce.
- Increase productivity of the employees. When the necessary information is relayed to the employees from the management, it will become easier for them to do their jobs in an effective manner.
Tips on Effective Employee Communication
Studies show that almost 46% of the employees do not have any idea about what they going to do soon after the meeting. Inadequate communication between the team members results in a lost trajectory towards business goals.
Keep in mind the design and visual communication principles when communicating with your employees, it goes long way. Include visuals whenever you need to communicate via email or any written form. You can use a flowchart marker to design visuals and add them to your email regarding the business processes.
If you want to run a successful business, then you must pay attention to employee communication. However, it is fairly understandable to feel lost in the beginning. But with the help of a few tips, you can figure out how to promote effective employee communication.
Use Simple Language
Technical jargon that is not related to the work of your employees could be confusing for them and creates misunderstandings. If the language of communication is not clear, employees will fail to do their job properly. It’s that simple.
When communicating with employees, whether verbally or through emails, it is important to use a language that clearly conveys your message. It will make it possible for employees to figure out how they should handle a task instead of confusing them with useless information.
Use simple, concise sentences when communicating with employees. It goes a long way. If it helps you, consider writing what you want to say to your employee, and then run that text through Grammarly app or Hemingway Editor so these tools can suggest ways to simplfy what you wrote. It’s an extra step, but it’s worth it and will promote clarity of thought too.
Be Concise
When explaining something to your employees, be concise and keep it to the point. Going into too many unnecessary details will waste everyone’s time. Your employees lose interest in what you are saying, and it would be hard for them to consume what you just mentioned.
For example, if you include unnecessary details in the weekly email that you send to your employees, the original message can get lost somewhere in the middle. The best way to avoid this problem is to always stick to the issue and avoid talking about irrelevant details.
Choose the Right Channels
Effective communication heavily relies on the channels you choose to share information with your employees. Since you understand your company’s dynamics better, you can figure out which communication channel would be the best for sharing important information.
It is also important to remember that relying on a single communication channel is not a wise option. For instance, an email could be the right option when a one-on-one meeting is not possible. It will help you make sure that there is no delay in communication when one channel is not available.
Normalize Two-Way Communication
A company that only focuses on telling its employees what to do and never listens to their voices won’t be able to last for a long time. If you really want your employees to give their best, make them feel listened to.
Two-way communication will improve the overall outcome of every project. When employees are given the option to share their ideas, they will feel eager to work for the success of the company. Make them feel heard by valuing their voice and normalizing two-way communication.
Be Respectful
When it comes to workplace communication, you don’t just want your employees to listen to you, but also to remember what you have shared and then act on it. However, if you are not kind and respectful during communication, your employees will not want to listen to you, let alone remember what you have told them.
If you want effective communication in the workplace, you will have to learn to be a good communicator, and the first step towards that goal is to be respectful. When communicating with your employees, use polite language and don’t disrespect anyone.
How to Improve Employee Communication
It is not uncommon to have communication problems within an office. Common causes behind such problems can be outdated communication models and ineffective communication strategies. Fortunately, you can improve the quality of employee communication by taking certain steps.
Meet with Employees Regularly
Before you expect your employees to start giving their 100% at work, you need to establish a rapport and build trust with them. Don’t be shy to have informal communication. Using informal communication helps them to open up.
For example, meeting your employees over lunch where you discuss their personal interests can help you establish a connection with them. And in order to gain the trust of your employees, you need to walk the talk.
Meeting regularly with employees will not only get them to trust you but also improve their performance at work. You can listen to their suggestions and complaints during these meetings. When you resolve their issues, they will feel heard and become more motivated to work hard.
Leverage the Power of Modern Communication Tools
The best way to keep your whole team informed of important decisions and to keep them in the loop while they are working on a project is to use a helpful employee communication platform. Such platforms open the doors to effective communication.
Since there are multiple communication tools and platforms available these days. Choose a platform that best suits your company’s needs. The platform you choose must not only be easy to use but should also allow you to broadcast information to all employees at the same time.
For example, you can opt for Slack and it’s alternatives and create different channels like ‘General’ or ‘Social’ where your team members can discuss topics related to their social life or common interests.
Ask for Feedback
In order to improve communication in the workplace, it is imperative to ask for feedback from your employees on a regular basis. It will not only make them feel heard but also allow you to make the necessary changes in your communication strategy.
Your employees can tell you whether your method of communication is helpful to them or not. You can also ask questions to gather additional information from your employees about their opinion on workplace communication.
Be Professional during Communication
You may be tempted to discuss personal matters with your employees. You will also find it difficult to control your emotions when communicating in the workplace. However, it is essential to keep your emotions in control and avoid personal matters if you want to seem credible to your employees.
It is important to remember that there’s nothing wrong with being friends with your employees. But problems arise when you become too personal with them. You should also avoid controversial topics when communicating with employees to avoid unnecessary conflicts.
Conclusion
Effective communication keeps everyone on your team stay informed and working towards a common goal. Now you have enough information to improve employee communication in the workplace and how to make strategies for effective communication, follow these tips to bring better results for your company.
Do you think we have missed any important tips on effective employee communication? Let us know in the comment section below.
