Too often communicators create one version of every message and cascade it in multiple global markets. Efficient? Perhaps. Effective? No.

Every message isn’t relevant to every market, and when audiences continuously receive communications that don’t resonate with them, they stop listening and end up missing out on important, applicable messages in the mix.

You can help communicators overcome this by equipping them with tools to enable them to customize messages to resonate locally.

We’ve recently learned about one tool in particular that can help companies figure out which messages they want to prioritize, by timing their delivery based on the target audience’s receptivity. Communications teams can use a set of questions applying to the following steps to guard against over-communication:

• Step 1: Auditing your existing message mix
• Step 2: Assessing your message mix
• Step 3: Understanding local priorities
• Step 4: Adjusting your message mix

CEC members, access the complete set of questions to help you time your messages to maximize audience receptivity. Read More »

By Kirsten Robinson

If you often feel like a “one man island”—you’re not alone. Communications teams dispersed globally often struggle to interact, share information, and collaborate across time zones and geographic locations.

One way that CEC member Novo Nordisk has overcome this challenge is by launching a simple, yet sophisticated suite of online networking tools to facilitate communicator-to-communicator peer learning across their global team.  It may seem obvious, but the reality is that despite the amount of effort that we in Communications put into creating communications tools for other departments in the company, we ourselves aren’t always the best users of this technology.

Of course, just because internal collaboration tools exist, doesn’t mean that they are in use or make life easier! However, there are some fundamental pieces of advice to consider to make an online network work for your team. We had the chance to speak with Tanya Wymer, Strategy Director at Novo Nordisk, who shared the secrets behind the company’s corporate communicator network. Elements of their network include tools that:

• Help communicators find peers in other countries with shared challenges or projects
• Facilitate discussion boards that help communicators get quick help on specific questions
• Formalize peer collaboration through structured mentoring programs Read More »

By Kirsten Robinson

Every week, employees are expected to make hundreds of decisions that affect your company’s big picture strategic goals.

The problem? Though they are often in the best position to make an impact, most employees lack the knowledge to develop business-aligned solutions on their own.

That’s where you come in. Your communications team can help immensely by equipping employees with the kind of information that enables them to solve problems on their own. There’s no doubt that you’re already sharing lots of information with employees, but is it the “right” information?  That is,  rather than doling out directive information that explains what employees need to do, how about providing tools that empower employees  to build their solutions themselves?

We got the scoop on how one member company helps business partners think get inside their employees’ heads and think differently about the information shared. ConAgra Food’s information need assessment process involves using a series of refining questions to drill down to the information employees need in order to create their own solutions. They help by:

• Clarifying business goals and challenges
• Determining  how to explain information to someone not sharing your expertise Read More »

By Kirsten Robinson

Online newsletters are an all-important way to relay information and keep employees up-to-speed on company happenings—if they’re executed correctly, that is.

With continuously evolving technology and an ever-changing audience, it’s easy for companies to fall into a rut and for newsletter styles to become outdated.

In case you’ve been wondering how your peers are designing their newsletters, we got the scoop from members who recently gathered in our Employee Communications Forum to offer tips on making changes to improve electronic employee newsletters. Here are some of the takeaways:

• Make it easy to read. This may seem like a no-brainer, but a lot of companies still send out newsletters that are hard to browse. Keep in mind that time is scarce, and text should be simple to scan for key points—no one wants to spend a long time searching for pieces of information. Create clearly defined segments, e.g., group info by region, and have a separate section for employee news. Bulleted headlines that are hyperlinked to a full article on the company site are also a good way to reduce clutter. Read More »

By Kirsten Robinson

Imagine that the competitive landscape surrounding your company is dramatically shifting. As a senior leader, you know that the company needs to shift its strategic direction and that it will take the entire organization to effectively respond to these changes. How do you get employees to lift their heads up from their immediate role and consider the broader picture?

In order to help employees become more change-ready, Saudi Aramco implemented strategy dialogue sessions with employees to personalize information—and with great success. Recognizing that traditional communications channels for sharing such information were unlikely to broaden employee perspective, the company’s strategic communications team partnered with senior leaders to create a “Speakers Bureau” made up of passionate advocates from the business. Within group dialogue sessions, these peer speakers share their personal connection to corporate challenges—giving employees tangible, credible examples to emulate.

Saudi Aramco’s personal connection modeling is three-fold:

1. Present employees with information on market trends
2. Share speaker’s personal connection to issues
3. Prompt employees to make their own connections

CEC members, get more in-depth details on how Saudi Aramco helps employees become change-ready by enabling them to personalize information.

Read More »

By Kirsten Robinson

When it comes to employee and executive relations within a company, a little extra face time can go a long way. Establishing a connection between lower-level employees and C-level executives can help boost office morale, and increase the staff’s discretionary effort.

But, given everyone’s busy schedules, it’s often too difficult to create those connections.

So, what can you do to improve executive visibility with employees?

A member recently posed this question in our Employee Communications Forum, sparking a dialogue between executives offering suggestions on new and creative ways to reach the employee base. We also had a similar question asked separately in the forum, specifically on connecting the CEO with staff.

Here are a few key takeaways from the two discussions:

• Solicit Q&A. Companies have found success posting a “solicitation” for questions, and then asking the CEO or executive to answer them in a video posting. While other forms of media can be used to deliver answers, being able to see the executive speaking is a particularly authentic way. Read More »

By Kirsten Robinson

To keep your competitive edge, your company has to adapt to change—and quickly. But to do this, it’s crucial to have strong leaders who can promote the necessary culture of action by providing employees with the information and support to make smarter decisions.

Unfortunately, most leaders are under pressure to simply tell employees what to do, versus empower them to come up with their own solutions. Even with all of the right intentions, leaders tend to revert to the managerial mode of “command and control”—and inadvertently resist empowering their employees.

In a recent webinar, members sounded off on why they think managers resist empowerment,

• “Managers are afraid that the employee they’re empowering may have better ideas or better initiatives than themselves.”
• “They’re concerned with how poor results from their reports will reflect on them.”
• “Managers fear of losing control.”
• “They feel like they are supposed to have all the answers.”

These answers all have something in common; they address underlying fears in leaders. But, you can’t just tell leaders to empower employees—you have to help them discover how to empower. Read More »

By Kirsten Robinson

I have a confession: I love Facebook. I use it to communicate and keep in touch with friends and family dispersed globally—and the platform’s functionality makes it easy to do so. In fact, I probably communicate more with out-of-area friends now than I would without the network. Working and on different schedules, it’s often difficult to catch a friend for a phone conversation. Facebook enables me to share photos of what I’ve been up to, and shoot a quick “thinking of you” message that does the trick until we can catch up in full later on.

Even if you don’t use Facebook, odds are that you know at least 2 (or 200?) people who do for personal communications. What if you could transfer this massively popular method of communicating into your business?

The question is, does Facebook, or a tool like it, have a place in your internal communications strategy?

An executive in our Intranets Working Group recently posed this question, starting a dialogue among members. The majority was in favor—as one Senior Manager of Online Comms said, “Business success is often built on strong working relationships, and internal social media can foster those across the organization.” But, they also recognized that tool management is key in order to avoid misuse. Here are a few key takeaways from their discussion: Read More »

By Rebecca Canan

Communicators are often regarded as the ones who can put “lipstick on the pig.” Or, as Diane Gilman, Enterprise Communications Global Leader at W.L Gore put it, “perfume on the goat.” We’re often asked to communicate a message that is positioned in a rosier and more sugarcoated version than reality. Do we push it out for the “good of the business?” Or do we take a stand and partner with our business partners to find a truthful alternative. In other words, what is the role of integrity in Corporate Communications?

This question was raised after we received thoughtful feedback on our competency model from Diane. She wondered whether integrity should be one of the core expectations on the competency model. Below you can see Diane’s question and our response (published with her permission, of course – thank you, Diane).  Leave a comment and let us know what you think too.

—–Original Message—–

From: Diane L Gilman

Sent: Tuesday, June 28, 2011 11:51 AM

To: Canan, Rebecca

Subject: Feedback on CEC Skill Development Grid

Hi Rebecca,

Just want to chime in with an observation about the framework and grid.

But first, thanks are due to the whole team. The framework is a solid description of competencies that I believe will resonate with both communicators and business leaders. I intend to use it to start conversations with senior leaders about the communicator’s role, and especially to help lift the mindset that communicators are implementers, rather than strategic partners…

One competency that does seem to be missing is integrity. In my experience, the most effective communicators are those who understand, and can help others see, that the only messages that really work are those that are real. “Truthful, authentic, honest” — you pick the word, but surfacing the truth of a situation is a critical part of the communicator’s skillset. We are often the ones who counsel leaders to be more real in their communications. Too often, communicators have been seen as the ones who can “put perfume on the goat” and use our wordcraft to make messages that shade or even misrepresent reality in tone and/or content.

Read More »

The Research & Technology Executive Council examines solutions when working for a bad boss in their latest Talent Matters series.

Everyone complains about their boss from time to time. But there’s a difference between everyday griping and stressful dissatisfaction, just as there is a clear distinction between a flawed manager and a truly horrible boss.

Difficult bosses come in lots of different flavors. Your manager might be overly controlling, giving you little to no autonomy. Or perhaps she rarely shows up at the office, doesn’t give you direction or feedback, and has no idea what you do all day. Bad bosses may be insecure, incompetent, or simply new and inexperienced. First-time managers are often more likely to hinder than enhance employee performance and potential. A 2005 study by CEB’s CLC Learning and Development Roundtable found that nearly 60% of first-time managers underperform in their role.

Working for a bad boss has a large effect on your work experience. Managers have a direct effect on how you perform and whether you want to stay in your job. They are the conduit between you, the organization, the team, and your job. CLC Human Resources found in its research that managers are increasingly important for improving discretionary effort: the impact of manager quality on whether employees go above and beyond the call of duty has jumped by 50% since the recession began. On the flip side, bad bosses sap motivation, kill productivity and drive everyone crazy.

If you work for someone you wish you didn’t, consider this:

1. If it’s truly bad, speak up and/or leave: If you have a boss who is harassing you, bullying you or violating other workplace laws and policies, document as much as you can. If you feel you can have a direct conversation with your boss, then do that. If not, then take your case to HR or your boss’ superior. If nothing is done, you need to ask yourself if you want to continue working for a company that tolerates such behavior; it may be prudent to move somewhere that will treat you better.
2. Accept it don’t fight it: If you’re dealing with more run-of-the-mill incompetence, there are other things you can do. Don’t continually rail against your boss. Accept that he has flaws and that you need to work with them. In fact, there may be ways that you can help compensate for them. It is always in your best interest to help your boss achieve his goals. Find out what he cares most about and focus your efforts on making him successful.
3. Commiserate: One of the most helpful things you can do is seek out corroborators among your peers or others in the company. This will allow you blow off steam by venting with others who understand the situation. You can also rely on these alliances to help you develop strategies for dealing with the situation. Perhaps someone else has figured out how to approach your boss when she’s in a bad mood, or to circumvent her if she continually gets in the way.
4. Adapt where possible: It may be not be that your boss is truly a bad manager but that he is a bad fit for you. Take a good look at yourself and see if there are things you can change about your own behavior that will make the working relationship easier. Remember the goal is to succeed not to be right.
5. Look after yourself: Working for someone difficult will take its toll on your health as well as your productivity and performance. Since many people spend more time with their manager than they do with their spouse, it’s helpful to take breaks and carve out work time when you don’t need to interact with the boss. This may be a lunch break outside of the office or a side project that allows you to work elsewhere in the company. Also, bad management can be contagious; if you are being micromanaged you are more likely to try to control those around you. Try to stay true to your own values rather than succumb to passing on bad behavior.

CEC Related Resources:

• Understand your manager’s communication style to flex appropriately: Dialogue Assessment Tool
  
• Build stronger networks of peer support
• Assess your skills to better understand how you can leverage your strengths to build a work environment that works for you