When it comes to facilitating productivity and achieving corporate goals, effective communication is the key to success.
Whether you work for a small startup or multi-level conglomerate, transparent communication both within and across teams and departments is imperative. In addition, with the recent shift to remote work environments, communication has never been more important. Not only does open communication establish stronger relationships among employees but it also creates a stronger organization as a whole. We asked 8 leaders how companies can improve their corporate communication and this is what they said:
- Use Social Media to Expand Audiences
Allan Borch, Founder and CEO of DotCom Dollar stresses the importance of using corporate communication to foster company growth. He recommends that companies leverage social media in order to reach larger audiences, both internally and externally.
“Develop new strategies that would allow corporate communication efforts to penetrate wider internal and external audiences. Improve your plans for your social media communication where you could reach vast numbers of users to communicate the company’s message towards its prospects and current customers.
“Not only will this increased communication attract clients and prospects, but it will also engage employees in planning and executing the visions of the company with efficiency.”
- Communicate Via Newsletters
Malte Scholz, CEO and Co-Founder of airfocus explains how the creation and delivery of an internal newsletter can help keep team members in the loop at all times.
“One of the best ways of keeping all your employees up to date with the latest developments in the company is an internal newsletter. Oftentimes people are simply not informed enough which creates large discrepancies and may affect corporate communication. However, if you come up with a creative newsletter that summarizes all important news and share it regularly, you won’t have anyone feeling left out of the community. Plus, you can even ask people to contribute to the newsletter and suggest ideas for content or even write a paragraph or two.”
- Encourage Two-Way Communication
When it comes to creating a positive workplace culture, two-way communication is key. Rex Freiberger, CEO of Gadget Review explains this further:
“There needs to be a way of facilitating two-way communication between corporate and the employees who work ‘in the field.’ If communication is one-sided (corporate just sending down memos or meeting minutes) it doesn't feel authentic. It's just an afterthought at that point to give the illusion of communication and transparency when employees still have no voice in the corporate culture.
“Whether it's an anonymous feedback tool or direct meetings with employee representatives, corporate needs to be open to hearing from their employees. These are the people that are in the thick of it day in and day out. They understand why the business is performing the way it is and they can give valuable insights corporate can't get from looking at data.”
Katherine King, Founder of Invisible Culture discusses how the voices of employees stay silent out of fear. She explains how leadership should be working with human resources to build an organization that isn’t afraid to hear the truth from their employees.
“Organizations that reward people for speaking up and encourage 2-way safe feedback will generate a more efficient flow of information and find solutions to their challenges from within when multiple perspectives emerge. External consultants can also be a way to generate feedback that is not threatening to the employee. Internal consultants in HR can provide insights that external ones can’t. Employees and leaders don’t often know that they have that available to them."
While it’s no secret that open communication is crucial, Mikkel Andreassen, CEM at Dixa explains how the frequency of communication can have a major impact as well.
“In the ideal scenario, everybody will communicate regularly and reach out to one another. However, developing such a habit takes time and managers need to take the first step. Reaching out to employees on a regular basis is a great way to keep everyone connected. It also shows that managers are genuinely interested in the employees’ work which can be a big stimulation. Conversations shouldn’t only happen when there are problems, quite the contrary. The more people talk to each other, the more supported they’ll feel.”
- Create an Open Door Policy
Chris Norris, Managing Editor at Sleep Standards explains how to improve corporate communication in the workplace through an open-door policy. Whether utilizing social media to have meaningful workplace conversations, keeping employees in the loop with frequent sharing of updates, news, etc., it is important to show your employees that you encourage open dialogue and want to hear all voices and opinions, even if the information being communicated is difficult.
“We always emphasize to our employees that they can come and make suggestions, comments, and feedback, or even great ideas at any time they feel like doing so.”
Stacey Howard, Accounting Expert at Cogneesol also shares her insights on how an open-door policy can eliminate the discomfort that employees experience when being honest with their managers or CEO:
“An open-door policy helps to encourage your employees to bring anything to your attention, and it is the best way to motivate them and improve communication. It promotes having positive conversations, and you can make positive changes in your business environment.”
- Offer an Outlet for Anonymous Feedback
Paul Lewis, CEO and Founder of Scrum Explainer, discusses how companies can improve corporate communication by offering an outlet for anonymous feedback.
“In my company, we not only value positive, but negative feedback as well. It’s the secret recipe for the healthy communication we have. And nothing beats an old-school suggestion box in collecting tips and complaints from your employees without them having to worry about repercussions. Many employees find it uncomfortable raising issues to their boss, whether it’s regarding a co-worker or with the management. If you want your company to continue to learn and grow, you need to provide a way for your employees to voice out their true and honest opinions and constructive criticisms. It will not only improve communication in the workplace but will also break down barriers to honesty.”
Whether looking to attract new talent, enhance performance or strengthen employee engagement, workplace culture plays a major role when it comes to the overall success of any organization.
At WhistleBlower Security, we understand that a positive workplace culture begins with open and honest communication. Our anonymous whistleblowing software empowers employees to speak up and voice their concerns regarding misconduct in the workplace, ultimately creating a positive workplace culture and healthy organization. Contact us today to learn more.
