4 Ways to Improve Communication with Employees

Improving communication within your company can lead to all kinds of business benefits, with higher workplace morale, better employee satisfaction, and increased productivity being among just a few. Employees who feel that their voice is heard and listened to when it comes to the operations of the company are far more likely to be engaged with their work, satisfied with their role, motivated to do well and loyal to your company than those who feel that their opinions and ideas are ignored. Along with this, employees who are kept informed about the company and where it is headed often have much better retention rates, as there is less worry about the future. We’ve listed some of the best methods to improve communication with and amongst your employees.

Surveys

Conducting an employee survey is a great way to reach out to your workforce as a whole, but get a feel for individual opinions, feelings and ideas. Employee satisfaction surveys such as those available from Insightlink can be a very effective means of understanding more about your employees and what they need to be more satisfied and productive at work. Your employees are at the heart of your business; therefore, making sure that they are happy in their role is important to your success.

Be Transparent

One of the biggest mistakes that many employers make is to announce changes in policies or procedures without explaining the rationale behind them to those that they will affect. Taking a ‘because I said so’ approach with your employees can quickly lead to dissatisfaction and distrust. Treating your employees as people who work with, rather than for you, will create a culture of honesty and transparency in the workplace, leading to better relationships between all members of staff, smoother communication, and higher rates of satisfaction.

Personal Touch

While it’s important for business owners and management staff to remain professional on the job, failing to include a personal touch in any communications may prevent them from connecting well with workers. Although many leaders do make a great effort of communicating with employees through e-mails, newsletters and more, it’s also important to make sure that as a manager or employer, you don’t come across as cold or indifferent. Getting to know your employees on a personal basis and sharing a few things about yourself such as your hobbies and interests, can help to break the ice and make good communication more comfortable for all.

Regularity

Finally, it’s important to make sure that communication with employees is something that you do on a regular basis. Even if you cannot spend time with members of the workforce in person every day, making sure that you have a schedule in place for sharing information with them through a weekly, monthly or quarterly newsletter or briefing, for example, is important for keeping the lines of communication open and ensuring that employees are always kept up to speed.

When running a business, constant, clear communication with employees is key to success.