What Makes Employees Tick?
Lise Michaud
The following is part of our most recent publication released online, "IC in 2017 & 2018 FROM HOPE TO REALITY How Far We've Come | The Road Ahead." Looking back at their greatest hope for the IC profession in 2017 in terms of where the discipline should be, 21 communication professionals from different countries answer two questions: How far have we actually come in 2017? What remains to be done in 2018?
Aniisu K. Verghese, Corporate Communications and CSR Lead at Tesco Bengaluru, shares his views on the progress made these past months, to what extent he believes his hope has translated into reality, and what remains to be done in 2018. To read the views of all contributors, download the free 42-page eBook here.
The state of internal communication is gradually improving although there is more we can aspire to do. My hope is that the profession gets more inclusive in its approach to driving organizational change and success.
- Inclusive in taking managers along to become better communicators.
- Inclusive such that different generations at the workplace feel they belong. It is predicted that there will
be 5 generations working together by 2020.
- Inclusive in being sensitive about helping employees make sense of communication and manage the
‘noise’. Employees are overwhelmed by the amount of messages they receive.
- Inclusive in giving employees a voice at the workplace.
- Inclusive in inviting and embracing ideas beyond the profession such as drawing on insights from
research and academia to grow the function.
- Inclusive in thinking about the future of the organization and not just the profession.
How far we've come. Next steps.
It is probably early to gauge whether a shift in the profession has taken place or not. However, there are positive signs that communication professionals can take note of.
- Organizations are considering newer actions to make their workplace more digitally inclusive through
the use of collaborative tools. Cross-organizational collaboration is also growing steadily.
- Personalized experience, a thriving work environment and support in managing an uncertain world are
few of the expectations employees have of their employers. An inclusive employee value
proposition will seemingly drive how organizations invest in their staff.
- Productivity at the workplace is increasing because of stronger social media networks, one of the ways
of making the environment more inclusive.
- Communication is valued more as a high impact resource, especially when it comes to strategic
approaches to engagement and benefits.
- Organizations are investing in sensitizing their managers about diversity, inclusion and unconscious
bias with communication tools.
We need to revisit all that we know about how employees think and work. Employees seek more control over their lives and expect employers to respond to their needs. It means focusing on the crucial role of internal communication, allowing staff to be their best at work, directing tailored and meaningful messages and encouraging boundary-less behaviors.
Click here to download the free 42-page eBook "IC in 2017 & 2018 FROM HOPE TO REALITY How Far We've Come | The Road Ahead."
Aniisu K. Verghese
Corporate Communications and CSR Lead
Tesco Bengaluru
India
