In 2021, effective communication is more critical than ever before, especially with remote working having become the new normal. But how do you reach and communicate important information to your workforce amidst the information overload we all experience every day? Relevance and personalisation are both essential, so too is the ability to receive information quickly and easily.
Communication has advanced and developed at an incredible speed in recent years, which is worth considering when thinking about how to communicate with different generations in the workplace.
Workplace veterans will most certainly remember fax machines, while the youngest generations will find it impossible to imagine a time without the internet and social media.
Furthermore, following the advice of local health authorities around the world, many employers have made the decision to let their employees work from home. For employers, knowing how to communicate a remote workforce is of utmost importance. Don’t miss our tips for communicating with employees working from home.
Three Things to Consider When Choosing Work Communication Tools
To make sure your employee communication reaches and engages every one of your employees, it's important to choose communication tools that:
1. Enable targeted communication
Information needs to be relevant and personalised to stand out and capture the attention of the recipient. One way to do this is through targeted communication. Filtered at the group or individual level, targeted communication ensures that the recipient only receives information that is actually relevant to him or her.
For example, with targeted communication you can inform a specific age group about a new pension benefit, advise everyone in a particular region about a local offer, or welcome all new employees with a personal greeting.
2. Are available as a mobile app
While not every person is working in front of a computer every day, almost every person has access to a smartphone. With an employee app, employers can send push notifications with time-sensitive information directly to their employees' smartphones. Since an app is available anywhere, anytime, employees can access information about their employment information whenever and wherever it suits them.
Take for example, market-leading building materials and wood supplies company, Bauking who employs almost 4,000 employees spread throughout approximately 130 locations. The company uses an employee app connected to its employee benefits platform called BAUKING4you, which enables them to communicate with their entire workforce. As Marc-Oliver Windbacher, Divisional Manager of Human Resources Management, shares, "BAUKING4you allows us to reach all employees, even those who do not have a PC workstation, like those working in the warehouse or logistics."
3. Something employees are familiar with
By using existing tools and platforms that employees are already familiar with, employers can begin streamlining their internal communication faster.
Benify's market-leading global benefits and total rewards platform is used by more than 1,500 companies and 2 million users around the world. Since the platform is already known to employees, employers can use the platform's integrated communication engine to send messages on the welcome page of the platform, which employees will see as soon as they log into their platform. Additionally, employers can send messages via e-mail or push notifications using the Benify app. Using a platform that employees are already using is a smart way to ensure messages get read.
Want to learn more about Benify's communication tools? Watch this short video for a quick overview or let us show you our platform in person. In the meantime, be sure to download our new whitepaper, An Employer's Guide to Effective Communication.
