As Always, Communication is Critical
A topic that is often talked about in management magazines and books is communication. It seems that an enormous amount is written on the topic yet management time and time again get it wrong. I was chatting with a friend today about his work place and he commented that people are anxious and communications are not flowing.
This got me thinking – what are the do’s and dont’s of great communication from management to the employees.
So what are the top dont’s about communication …
- No communcation or very sparse communication
- Senior management not communicating bad news as well as good news
- Senior management not communicating directly with employees – perhaps using middle management to do the communication
- Senior management isolating themselves from employees
- Sanitised emails from HR
- Closed door policy or seperate management floor
- Senior management doing one thing then asking the employees to do another
- Hiding behind emails for communication
So what are the top do’s about communication …
- Be open and honest in communications
- Tell the good news and the bad news – early
- Communicate frequently and on topics that are important – e.g. financial position of the business
- Share as much information as you can with the employees – take them on the journey
- Have an open door policy – allow everyone to come and chat with you about issues – this will make sure that the team is onside
- Have open meetings in which employees are encouraged to ask questions – and give honest answers
- Make sure your actions are consistent with your words – employees are not silly
These actions should be taken all the time. However in tough economic times it may be important to over invest in communications. The last thing a business needs at this point in time are employees that are anxious and concerned about what is happening in the business. They need them focused on driving reveues and building a strong business.
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