Talking Internal Communication...

Absence, stress & depression in the workplace – line managers may hold the key

A recent study from NICE, the National Institute of Health & Clinical Excellence, caught my eye.  Reported on the Management Today website, it  suggests that poor line management is responsible for rising levels of stress in the workplace.

NICE reckons the total cost to the UK economy of work related stress, anxiety and depression is now a staggering £28bn - more than 14 million work days are lost every year due to these conditions.

It says that businesses can make their employees happier, reduce costs and boost productivity by following a few basic guidelines - like giving positive feedback, encouraging flexible working and giving days off as a reward.

And it’s not the only study to highlight this issue recently. Recruitment firm Badenoch & Clark found that 91% of employees are stressed at work - and worse still, seven in 10 are too scared to raise their concerns with their bosses. And back in the Spring a Finnish study concluded that poor team spirit at work can increase the chance of developing depression by more than half.

Now line managers clearly aren’t solely to blame for rising levels of stress and depression at work – the state of the economy doesn’t help - but their actions can play a big part in reducing or encouraging it. 

And it’s often the little things that make the biggest difference – like saying hello to team members in the morning, recognising and celebrating successes, communicating regularly as a team, listening, providing constructive performance feedback, ensuring employees are clear on what they need to do by when and promoting a sense of ‘esprit de corps’. These are all practical things that line managers can do to help create a healthy and happy workplace.

Again and again in study after study the pivotal role of line managers is underlined. They hold the key to so many aspects of organisational success and, in my mind, represent the frontline in the battle for hearts and minds – and health - in the workplace.

If they are not already, I believe internal communicators should be focusing the bulk of their time, resources and energy on enhancing the quality of line managers, equipping them with the right skills and information and directly engaging them. As my old boss used to say, happy people + happy customers = successful business – and the first part of that equation rests largely in the hands of line managers.

Lee Smith, Gatehouse

The power of focus groups and other qualitative techniques in communication research

It’s currently 6.30am and I’m sitting in a hotel room in Hong Kong, thinking about the day ahead... I’m here to facilitate the final round of employee focus groups for a client research project – eight more sessions to complete the qualitative programme and then it’s reporting time.

This is the culmination of the third phase of the project – preceded by qualitative interviews with the leadership team (phase one) and an all employee survey (phase two).

We used the initial interviews to identify key themes to explore, to investigate perceptions of internal comms by the top team and to understand their needs and expectations of the function. We then used the focus groups to ‘get under the skin’ of the issues identified in the survey, to test the findings and explore some of the themes in more detail. All in all during this process we’ll have canvassed the views of more than 2,500 employees and actually spoken to around 150 in person.

What this project has reminded me of is the enormous power of qualitative research in general – and focus groups in particular – and the importance of doing communication research in a thorough, joined-up way.

Now we get asked to design and run a lot of communication surveys and benchmarking projects on behalf of clients – and they’re always useful and enlightening exercises. But I have to confess that the real value often comes from the qualitative side, where the budget permits this to happen (and unfortunately it doesn’t always).

Useful as the numbers are, the really rich insights often emerge from conversations – whether it’s the one-to-ones with the senior team, or focus groups with a selection of front-line employees. Indeed, this is so important it’s something we try to incorporate into every Gatehouse research project.

We are, of course, lucky to be working with a client right now who really understands the value of research and genuinely wants the insights this sort of approach brings - and who is willing to allocate a meaningful budget to enable it to happen (particularly commendable in this economic climate).

And insights it will bring by the bucket load. It is, for instance, fascinating to contrast the results of the survey with what’s said in the focus groups – to get to the reality behind the numbers and really understand why people answered (or not) in the way they did. It’s also extremely eye-opening to talk to employees in different regions – the US, Europe, the Middle East and Asia on this occasion – and to see how different their views and perceptions on organisational communication are. We often forget the impact of culture on employee attitudes and opinions.

Had we not been able to talk to people to the extent we have been, we just wouldn’t have unearthed half the insights we have.

I can’t go into the results of this research for obvious reasons, but it has once again provided a range of genuinely valuable perspectives on internal comms – from all levels and across a wide geography – which will inevitably have a direct impact on the activities and approaches our client adopts next year and beyond. Put simply, it will change the way they do things and help improve the quality and effectiveness of their employee communication. And that's the acid test when it comes to investing in research – whether it makes a difference.

Having seen this project through from the start, it’s a process I wouldn’t hesitate to recommend to other clients. In fact, i think every in-house internal comms chief should do comprehensive research along these lines every three or four years – backed up by a more frequent survey to keep tabs on the trends.  This exercise has been so valuable it should be mandatory.

No matter how strong and connected you are, the truth is that as a full time communicator sitting in head office you rarely get the opportunity to immerse yourself in the organisation like this.  But the value that comes from doing so is immense.

The other challenge in-house practitioners face when trying do do something like this themselves is around honesty – and therefore the overall reliability of the results. From the leadership team down, employees are more likely to open up to a third party – and that’s when the really interesting views begin to emerge.  That’s why it makes absolute sense to bring in a consultancy like Gatehouse to conduct the research for you.

I’ve always been pro-research but my recent experience has renewed by interest and belief in it. I’m now a qualitative research evangelist!

L

View from the Summit part 2 - Wayne Clarke, Best Companies

Following an introduction from Melcrum CEO and co-founder Victoria Mellor, keynote speaker Wayne Clarke from Best Companies Partnership LLP kicked-off the SCM Summit 2009 with an informative session exploring the links between employee engagement and internal communication. 

First off, Wayne defined engagement in simple terms - “doing something because you want to, not because you have to” – a nice definition which captures in plain English the essence of engagement, discretionary effort. He then went on to underline the role of engagement and its value to businesses – showing how companies with high levels of engagement typically outperform the corporate norm.

Sharing new data based on a re-analysis of the Best Companies research from the past decade, Wayne explained how ‘quality dialogue’ could be identified as one of the key drivers of engagement, productivity and, ultimately, profitability.

Using the Best Companies model (purpose/principles/ambition/plan) as a framework, Wayne explored the role that internal communicators can play in enhancing employee engagement in each of the eight areas their research investigates (see below).

Tips included focusing on providing direction – clearly articulating the vision for the organisation; recognising and celebrating progress; helping leaders and managers listen and creating a conversation culture based on genuine openness and honesty.

He went on to discuss the Best Companies methodology – how it explores eight factors: leadership, my company, my manager, personal growth, my team, fair deal, giving something back and wellbeing. Check out the above link for the low down on each of these.

His session included lots of examples and secrets of success - like Amex, which has worked hard to equip managers with the right skills to unlock engagement, and Nando’s, which operates each of its outlets like a small family or cell. Like the Best Companies report itself, Wayne’s session provided an excellent insight into the art of employee engagement.

In summing up, he suggested that the key to building a high engagement workplace is ‘doing small things consistently well all the time’. It is not necessarily about big symbolic gestures – like having a well equipped free gym in the office – but is about having managers and leaders who show they care, who listen and respond to what they’re hearing.

Hear, hear!"

L

PS – for more on Best Companies, check out the articles and downloads on its website.

View from the SCM Summit 2009 – conference highlights part 1

This is the first of a number of posts reporting on the proceedings at yesterday’s SCM Summit in London. 

More than 200 communicators packed into the conference suite at the Tower Hotel for one of the highlights in the professional calendar – and once again Melcrum didn’t disappoint.

Leanne Carmody, ING Wholesale Banking – on communicating business strategy and managing the cascade

After morning coffee Leanne Carmody of ING Wholesale Banking took to the stage – for a fascinating session focused on the financial services industry and the internal impact of the credit crisis.

Leanne joined the organisation in 2007 – at which point engagement within the Wholesale Banking function was, by her own admission, relatively low. One of her first tasks was to launch a new strategy to employees and build engagement around it. 

Working with the ING leadership her team developed and packaged a three-pronged strategy dubbed FFF – Fitter, Focused, Further. Her primary audience was straight-talking wholesale bankers – independent, ambitious, busy and clear thinking professionals – and this was reflected in the simplicity and clarity of the campaign. In line with this, Leanne focused on boosting the visibility of the leadership team and improving the consistency of communications across the division.

A three phased campaign was developed, based around first telling, then facilitating the discussion, and finally living the strategy. There was no  rigid timeline for communications – the desire was to be as flexible and adaptable as possible.

The highly visible campaign was launched via a global CEO webcast – followed swiftly by regional town halls. A nicely integrated campaign, all this was supported by an online micro site, posters and branded merchandise. Managers were  also trained and equipped with toolkits.  A strong visual identity – based around three simple icons – was used to give strategy comms a consistent look and feel and provide the ‘glue’ to bind everything together. 

Measurement was at the heart of Leanne’s approach and informed her planning throughout. Key metrics included recall of key messages and understanding and support for the strategy. They also tracked engagement levels.

The results? Campaign awareness was extremely high at 94% recall, but more importantly an impressive 82% of employees said they supported the strategy. 

Focus groups were also carried out to test and fine-tune the comms plan. One key finding from this qualitative research was the need to do more to mobilise and motivate the middle managers – to engage them, encourage them to communicate the right messages and effectively ‘translate’ the strategy for their team.

All was going well for Leanne and her team. Then the financial crisis hit. Public sentiment turned against the banks overnight (apparently jogging employees wearing ING t-shirts were heckled in the street) and the media onslaught began. During the turmoil that followed a new CEO was bought in, the group needed Government support and the business began restructuring, fast.

Her next step – a necessity in the face of all that change - was to develop a simple quarterly cascade. This process kicks-off with the top 100 management team joining a briefing conference call and receiving a supporting toolkit containing key messages, Q&As, etc. Managers are asked to cascade the material to their teams within a specific timeframe (which differs according to the content). The IC team provides help and support around this – coaching managers in how to bring the content to life for their teams and manning a special IC ‘hotline’ for managers.  As you’d expect, Leanne emphasises the need to capture feedback, monitor, measure and respond to it. 

The good news is that this process is working really well – though Leanne admits some managers would benefit from training to improve the quality and consistency of their delivery.  Employee feedback has been extremely positive – managers feel more empowered, staff feel more confident, improved trust, enhanced engagement.

One of the other big benefits is that the leadership team now have a more sophisticated understanding of internal comms.  As a result, Leanne’s team is now focused much less on sending stuff out and much more on supporting and advising line managers and leaders.

Key lessons learned:

• Need for scenario planning (think the unthinkable - what could possibly go wrong?)
• Don’t under-estimate the time needed to educate and engage the leadership team
• Research, research, research – get the evidence, test as you progress and prove the value add 
• Involve a small group of managers in shaping-up the cascade pack – their input is invaluable  

What this session underlined for me, more than anything, is the need to adopt a joined-up approach when it comes to planning, research and evaluation (PRE). PRE is a constant, ongoing process – not something you do only at the beginning and end of a project.  

Pete Stevenson, The Edge & Mark Shaoul, Network Rail – on using video to embed a culture of safety

There is no doubting that The Edge make truly great short films for business. I remember seeing some of Pete’s work from a few years back for McDonalds – so i had high expectations of this session, which focused on the role of video in creating a safer environment for track maintenance workers – literally a life or death comms challenge. 

As with all good communications, it all started with a good understanding of the audience – in this case working class lads typically in their 30s and 40s.  To succeed where previous campaigns had failed, this one would have to get to – and get through to – that rather tough and often cynical audience. 

At its heart, this was all about ‘cutting through the noise’ – the title of the pair’s presentation - and developing a communication campaign that the audience would notice and, more importantly, respond to.

The stakes were high. This is a serious issue –every year there are railway workers who either die or get horrifically injured at work. The rules and regulations already exist - and in almost infinite volume – but unfortunately not everyone takes them on board – sometimes with dire consequences.

The resulting campaign, entitled ‘Safety 365’, featured clear branding and well conceived and constructed comms materials.

‘Don’t do your doughnut’ – a set of communications explaining how to lift properly - is a good example of the team’s approach and shows how they talked the language of the audience.

Like so many good campaigns, this was unashamedly consumerist/marketing inspired stuff.  There were custom water bottles featuring the words “for once we’re asking you to drink more” on the label. The team even tapped into the competitive spirit with the 365 challenge - which tracked the number of days since a team member last had an accident/incident.

All this was great, but what really drove the message home was the video. 

The first film in the safety series was called ‘hit or miss’ and is one of the most impactful corporate videos I’ve ever seen. And definitely the most gory!

Complete with severed hand, this hard-hitting film told the story of a track worker who got hit by a train – and the aftermath of his actions. Emotive it most certainly was – and a great example of the power of video to tell a story far more effectively than mere words.

But how do you get them to watch? These guys are out on the tracks day and night – they rarely if ever sit in front of a computer and there’s no way you’d get them to watch corporate stuff at home. The answer was simple but ingenious – take the cinema to them. This involved a creating a mobile cinema in a truck and literally driving it around.

The team also used PR to gain exposure for the campaign in the tabloids – including a major feature in The Sun - helping reinforce messages using a trusted medium.

Lessons:

• Acknowledge the reality of the situation, however painful
• Speak the right language for the audience
• Use the right channel for the audience
• Lead them to the right conclusion, don’t tell them  – let the audience fill in the gaps for themselves

Hard evidence – most importantly the data around accidents is heading in the right direction. Message recall is extremely high. There are fewer accidents and fewer deaths on the tracks.

Talk about communications making a difference!

For more views from the Summit, check out Rachel Allen’s blog.

More to follow….

L