Employee and Workplace Communications -

There are a tremendous number of words and phrases being used in today’s workplace to enhance communications best practices. Some have become very familiar: corporate culture, change management, employee communication, business process management, and talent onboarding, to name a few. Corporate culture, in its broadest sense, is an organization’s collective beliefs and practices, which affect its interactions among employees and customers alike. There’s a phrase, “best practices,” that is used in business to define the most effective method to deal with an issue. Some companies become infected with what could be termed “worst practices.”

Deriving feedback from your staff is essential to bolstering engagement, quelling turnover and identifying systemic problems. Follow this guidance for getting the input you seek.

According to the Nemertes 2018-19 Visual Communication and Collaboration Study, over one-third of organizations are planning to expand video employee communications and conferencing technology in large meeting rooms (10+ people). The study, which examined five hundred companies, found that 20% of large conference rooms have video communications capabilities and that number is expected to rise greatly.

There are more women in education technology when compared to the technology industry as a whole, but far fewer when compared to the L&D industry. Several factors can explain the disparity within these three related fields.

Evidence-based vendors should have results to share from one or more clinical trials conducted by medical and research professionals trained in human subjects research.

For a different listening approach, don’t hesitate to open up the playbook a bit. Try these diverse strategies to gather better, rawer, feedback.

Overall open enrollment readiness for employers with 2019 Q1 start dates rose to 48 in August, a full 9 points above where employers stood in July, according to the latest data collected by Employee Benefit Adviser in its monthly Open Enrollment Readiness Benchmark (OERB) survey.

Tools and Apps. Everyone knows what the word “app” means. It hasn’t been around since the beginning of time as we know it, but it’s been in use far longer than many realize. According to an article by Thom Holwerda for OS News, the term was initially used in job postings for programmers starting in 1981. The abbreviated form of “applications” was utilized in employee communication and recruiting simply because job postings cost money. The higher the word count, the more expensive the ad. And programmers knew what “apps” stood for.

Everyone’s heard the mantra that the most effective managers, coaches, administrators, etc. are those who lead by example. Establishing and maintaining the relationship between leaders and those they lead ultimately comes down to communication—how that example is conveyed, received and understood. Can you think of a single list of “leadership qualities” that doesn’t reference communication skills somewhere in the mix? With the two so obviously linked, it makes sense to think of internal and employee communications as leadership opportunities.

It seems pretty obvious that health and financial wellness benefits ought to be very popular and should enjoy high levels of employee engagement. Some are popular and do enjoy high levels of engagement, but many don't. To figure out what doesn't work is easiest if we ask which benefits get the most engagement and work backwards from there.

From working your vocal cords to streamlining your life, these practices will bolster your presentation style and clear your head to make room for new ideas.

One year later: How #MeToo has affected the workplace and what learning leaders can do about it.

Be slow to speak and quick to listen, share stories, and work to build a culture that prioritizes meaningful understanding about what makes people tick.

Conflict is a part of any office space, whether your employees are distributed in different locations or all working under the same roof. Since conflict is inevitable between humans trying to work together with high stakes, conflict resolution has to not only pacify the problem, it also has to lay the groundwork for better employee communication and engagement in the future.

It’s a company that regularly collects Best Place to Work accolades and is known for its enviable employee perks. But ask Facebook’s senior benefits director what she is most proud of, and the answer might surprise you: being at the middle of the pack when it comes to benefits.

Corporate culture has always been affected negatively and positively by how empowered the voice of the employee is in any organization. Recently, in the wake of the #metoo movement, we’ve seen harrowing examples of management gone wrong, and power running amok.

Get your group away from the grind to unleash creativity, build meaningful relationships and share candid feedback.

Simply having a health insurance plan available to your employees is no longer enough to ensure that they actually enroll. This can be incredibly frustrating for any business, as healthcare is part of any reputable company’s employee benefits package.

Employee communication is all about getting the same messages out to the people who need information. It’s also about personalizing communications so that each employee gets the information they need to do their jobs well and make good decisions. Video communications is great, but what features separate some communications platforms from others?

While summer is the ideal time to kick back and take a minute to recharge, it’s also a great time to back away from the daily grind and take a more comprehensive view of your job: Why do you do it? How could you do it better? What would make it more fulfilling?