Employee Engagment, the missing link!

Two of the most burning topics in all corporates regardless of the industry are strategy execution and employee engagement. You find teams working on each with big plans, yet gluing those plans together is hardly in place. The bond between the two remains weak until Internal communications kick in to tighten it up!Employees are the driving force behind the improved performance. Informing employees about the company’s future direction is one thing but involving them in its making is another. Putting the right communication channels in place is key to reach the desired involvement. While always keeping in mind that Internal communications need to be both relevant and humane, those are two key ingredients.A lot to consider, yes I know! Sometimes we fall in the trap of strategy communication being too dry and distant from the people, those who will actually be putting it in action in their daily encounters. Which is why shedding some light on our employees and their contribution in making our strategy come to life is invaluable. It seamlessly tightens the bond we talked about earlier.One way of working around this is by featuring our employees in different communication channels. Sharing their personal quests on their stake in this journey towards the company’s wanted position, this unites them around a unified cause while considering their individuality and embracing their differences be it in roles or locations…you name it!We tried that out and it worked! Employees were encouraged to share their quests, backgrounds, cultures, and hobbies. The results were amazing. It made our staff curious about each other and left them feeling familiar with each other’s roles though they are continents apart. We called our channel “Meet the Crew”, check Joanna’s quest out. Once it was out there the ball started rolling. For the first time, as Internal Communications, we experienced a pull from employees raising their hands and wanting to share more about themselves rather than us pushing for it. This is what we call engagement!Another successful example was the wellness program that has left a very positive impact on our people. Feeling that the company cares by simply sharing small bites or scheduling sessions on how can we lead a well-rounded life and strike the balance between our bodies, minds, and souls. Under the slogan “Live Well, work well” our employees engaged by sharing how do they de-stress in their daily routines so we inspire and remind each other that it is never too late to pursue a passion or perfect a hobby. Check Edith’s contribution out!We needed data to confirm the improved engagement we were seeing, so we launched our employee survey. Want to know the results? the communication index witnessed a leap of 14 points in 6 months mentioning those channels by name as a best practice.Piece of advice? Create platforms that radiate positive energy in your organizations and encourage engagement. The impact of these platforms is determined by how genuine and purposeful the intention behind them is.let us put our employees at the center of everything we do!#leadership #communication #people