Workplace communication lays the foundation for employee satisfaction and well-being. Poor communication can hinder employee happiness; effective communication can amplify it.
Communicating in the workplace isn't just about exchanging ideas and information-it's also about fostering an open, nurturing environment where employees feel safe and supported.
Effective workplace communication:
• Compassionate, inclusive language • Context and transparency • Predictability • Clearly defined rules and guidelines • Directness and brevity
Poor workplace communication:
• Insensitive, exclusive language • Lack of context and ambiguity • Inconsistency • Conflicting rules and guidelines • Passive language and verbosity
Each one affects employee well-being in a different way.
Openness means the range of subjects discussed in the workplace
Companies need to create space in the workplace to talk about mental health. Why? Stigma starts from the top down.
Strategies:
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Listen continuously to employees. Establish quarterly pulse surveys and provide tools that let employees give feedback at any time, e.g., an anonymous suggestion box or open forums during All Hands Meetings.
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Model and be vocal about mental health from the top. When leaders use mental health resources and talk about their experiences, employees feel safe to do the same.
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Expand your mental health strategy to include prevention. Reduce the mental health stigma by offering self-care tools that employees can use every day to manage stress, anxiousness, and sleep issues. Talk about mental health self-care.
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Focus on sleep support as a safe entry point to mental health. More than 70% of workers across all generations want to get better sleep. 3 By focusing on sleep solutions, you can help break the mental health stigma and lay the foundation for broader mental health discussions and solutions.
Inclusivity means how welcoming company language and employee correspondences are.
If you don't lead with inclusiveness in company communications, employees won't feel valued, respected, or supported. Inclusive communication welcomes everyone regardless of gender identity, sexual orientation, race, ethnicity, ability, or family structure.
Strategies:
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Evaluate company communications and policies. Bring in a diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEl) expert to help update company language and implement policies that support employees who are disproportionately affected by issues like racism, sexism, and homophobia.
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Improve the experience. Intentionally develop a total employee experience that addresses the complex needs of diverse employees. The experience encompasses purposetul work, flexibility and work-life balance, social and supportive cultures, career development, and well-being programs and benefits.4
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Support and promote Employee Resource Groups (ERGs). ERGs help create a more inclusive workplace by involving employees in company-wide policies.
Tone means the attitude employees and leaders adopt when speaking to one another.
The tone in a workplace can either help cultivate trust or cause tension. Whether your company prefers a casual or professional style of speaking, infusing compassion and kindness into your tone can help employees feel more comfortable at work.
Strategies:
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Offer "mindful manager training". Leading organizations are training managers to become more self-aware, regulate their emotions, and create a less stressful work environment for their teams.
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Recognize and reward. 82% percent of employees say they're happier at work when they're recognized. And organizations that have formal recognition programs have 31% less voluntary turnover than those that don't have recognition programs.
Clarity means how easy is it to understand workplace communications.
Only 46% of employees think that communications shared from leaders have the context employees need to do their jobs well.? Encouraging transparency and clear communication minimizes confusion and boosts confidence.
Strategies:
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Create an employee guidebook. Develop and distribute an internal guide that outlines company policies, employee benefits, and department responsibilities.
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Find out what employees want in communications. Survey your workforce to discover what they're looking for in workplace communications. How often do they want to hear from leaders? What type of content do they need? What are their preferred channels and frequency? Modify your communications accordingly.
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Get on the same page. Make sure supervisors and team leaders use clear, accessible language to set expectations and define employee roles.
Consistency means how predictable workplace communication is.
When workplace communication is consistent in tone and frequency, employees have a better idea of what to expect and how to conduct themselves at work.
Strategies:
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Create an internal communications plan. Take the time to articulate your company's preferred communication style and goals.
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Keep leaders accountable. Train company leaders on effective workplace communication, and incorporate communications into their performance reviews according to agreed-upon standards and protocols.
Frequency means how often managers, leaders, and coworkers communicate.
Over-communicating can confuse and distract employees, but under-communicating can stress them out. Thirty-six percent of employees want to hear from their leaders more often.
Strategies:
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Rethink channel effectiveness. Determine how much value each workplace communication channel-from emails to apps-actually adds to the company.
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Establish a meeting policy. Consider what types of meetings help your company achieve its goals, while still respecting employees' time and work preferences. Depending on the answer, you may need to minimize meetings or increase one-on-one check-ins.