Category: Employee Communication

Don’t Keep Your Strategic Plan a Secret!

Having been involved in corporate communications and public relations for a number of years I’m well aware of the concerns that organizations often have about too much information being shared with too many audiences. Transparency, I believe, is under-rated! While there are obviously “trade secrets” or “inside insights” that organizations wisely protect, too often information that does not really present any real risk is kept close hindering the ability of the organization to actually achieve its goals.

One big example of this is Continue reading “Don’t Keep Your Strategic Plan a Secret!”

Do Happy Employees = Happy Customers? No!

Common wisdom suggests that there is a direct correlation between employee and customer satisfaction. Common wisdom, of course, is often flawed. Just ask a couple of my favorite business authors, Dan Ariely (Predictably Irrational) and Steven Levitt (Freakonomics). Sometimes the things that we believe to be true, simply aren’t.

A few years ago an article in the Harvard Business Review Continue reading “Do Happy Employees = Happy Customers? No!”

Are We Over-Relying on Technology for Interpersonal Communications?

Anybody who has ever observed people–usually, but not always, teenagers–standing together, yet communicating via text messaging can recognize that sometimes technology is overused. Whether email, social media, texting or the use of mobile devices, the downfall of these practices is to minimize face-to-face or voice-to-voice contact which can be a definite drawback. In business settings, studies consistently indicate Continue reading “Are We Over-Relying on Technology for Interpersonal Communications?”

Why Communication Fails

“They just don’t get it!”

“How many times have we told them this?”

“Why don’t they understand?”

These are common phrases in the world of business, whether applied to employee communication, marketing communication or customer communication. But there is something fundamentally wrong with each of these statements which contributes immensely to our failed communication efforts.

Continue reading “Why Communication Fails”

Branding From the Inside Out: Two Critical First Steps

Generally I advise clients to view their organizations, products and services from the “outside in.” In other words, they need to put themselves in the position of their desired audience and consider what is important to their audience, rather than what is important to them. Too often I’ll hear organizations talk about how they need to “communicate our Continue reading “Branding From the Inside Out: Two Critical First Steps”

Lofty Language Fails to Connect

For those communicators who work with — or who are! — professionals who required multiple, high-level degrees to practice in their careers, there can be a tendency to “speak in lofty language.” They forget that those who are *not* members of their profession *don’t* speak in their language. They fail to realize that, rather than being impressed by their advanced knowledge, their intended audience is simply confused and disinterested. Worse, when their intended audience doesn’t “get” the message they don’t *get* the message. Continue reading “Lofty Language Fails to Connect”

What Kind of Manager Are You?

Many managers struggle with choosing a management technique for the decision making process. Some managers tend to simply issue orders based on their own judgment and expect obedience, while others actively engage their subordinates in the decision making process. Listed below are some common management styles along with some of the pros and cons for each. There’s nothing necessarily right or wrong about any of these styles, but some are more appropriate in certain situations than others. Continue reading “What Kind of Manager Are You?”

Should You Use “Real People” In Your Advertising?

I recently spotted this posting about one of the latest examples of an “employee on a rampage” to go viral. Bad enough to have a situation like this make the social media rounds, but what if you’d just used this employee in a “feel-good” advertising campaign? Or, what if Domino’s had used its now-infamous employees in a campaign? I was just interviewed by a trade publication about the wisdom – or lack thereof – of using “real people” (generally, real employees) in advertising spots.

Those who have worked with me know that I’m Continue reading “Should You Use “Real People” In Your Advertising?”

Wellness Programs – Preaching to the Choir?

I just wrote a very interesting (interesting from the standpoint of the response I received, not trying to tout my own writing!) article on wellness programs for Human Resource Executive.

The premise was based on a recent AP story that challenged Continue reading “Wellness Programs – Preaching to the Choir?”

Focus on Effective Employee Communications

A recent study by Watson Wyatt and WorldatWork, the 2009/2010 U.S. Strategic Rewards Survey, suggests that actions that companies have taken during the recession have had a negative impact on employee morale and commitment – particularly on the morale of high performers. Top performers were  Continue reading “Focus on Effective Employee Communications”