Effective Internal Communication leads to Employee Engagement

Have you quite often wondered how few organizations are masters of effective employee engagement, while few others find it difficult to maintain the same levels? Well, the secret lies in effective internal communication. Now that employee engagement is the buzzword, organizations do keep on coming up with various activities and plans. But a consistent internal communication plan is the ever important ingredient.

Internal Communication, translates to the exchange of information among st members of an organization; across all levels and organizational units.

When information travels down the hierarchy to the lowest level and the employee feedback moves back up the same hierarchy, it is Vertical communication.

On the other hand, Horizontal or Lateral communication is information exchangedamongst employees of the same hierarchy in an organization.

Effective Internal Communication can

·        Increase Productivity

·        Build a better workplace, stronger teams

·        Enhance organizational competitiveness

·        Reduce day-to-day team conflicts

·        Increase financial returns and enhance overall profitability.

So what can be the various tools employed for internal communication?

·         Internal Newsletters

·         Project Reports and evaluation feedback.

·         Group Emails

·         Employee Resource Groups

·         Organizational App or online forum for feedback

·         Informal meets

·         Town Halls

·         Leadership Communication

·         Videos

·         Developing and Managing employee tool kits like

·         Detailed policies and procedures

·         Legal or compliance information

·         ‘How to’ information for common business processes

·         Organizational information – about the business, brand, products/services, positioning and more

There cannot be asacrosanct list of what an organization needs to do. Naturally, the strategy and vision of a customer service organization would be different from that of a production unit.

The bottom line is the keep transparent and updated communication channel with all employees such that there is no room for discontentment or disgruntlement. Be it a project, appraisal, crisis or a reward; an organization that shares information equally with all, clearly scores an advantage. Each employee having the opportunity to access information definitely feels a level playing field.

Today, when employee engagement and experience is being increasingly recognized as a vital contributor to bottom line profits, the importance of internal communication increases more than ever.