Effective Communication with Employees & Customers

Chief Encouragement Officer

In bad times, your title is Chief Encouragement Officer. Look for opportunities to recognize your team and celebrate victories along the road to recovery.

Inspire your team

Share stories of wars won together in the past, to assure them that we will win again and “this too shall pass”. Share videos that inspire your team to use their time to constantly learn, grow and improve, personally and professionally. View Sample Video

“The day soldiers stop bringing you their problems is the day you have stopped leading them. They have either lost confidence that you can help them or concluded that you do not care. Either case is a failure of leadership.”
Secretary of State & General Colin Powell

Water what you want to grow

Catch your employees doing something good, and celebrate them publicly, to inspire others to imitate their positive example. Water what you want to grow, and it will.

Appreciation goes a long way

How you treat your employees will directly drive how they treat your customers, so love and serve them and they’ll do the same for others.

People don’t care how much you know, until they know how much you care.

Seek to understand

The key to good communications is less about what you say and more about what you hear. The best communicators don’t always say the right thing or have all the right answers, they ask the right questions and leverage the wisdom of others. They listen and learn, then they speak more intelligently, and their audience listens more because they feel understood.

Hard times require hard decisions

Discuss challenges openly with your team, invite them to help you find the causes and solutions, because they’ll be more likely to buy into a plan they helped create.

It’s not what you say, it’s how you say it

When communicating in crisis, delivering tough news can be tough to hear, so be honest and straightforward, but speak with empathy, sincerity and compassion. It costs nothing to make people feel good, but it can cost you a lot if you don’t.

Be there when they need you most

Many families are struggling, experiencing fear and personal pain, from the uncertainty and fallout from the crisis. Acknowledge their pain, listen and learn how you can help or connect them with someone who can. Equip them with the Corona Care Guide to help them protect themselves & their family.

State the facts:

Connect employees to timely, accurate information from CDC, WHO and your State and County Health Departments. Provide clear instructions about what to do if employees suspect they have been exposed to COVID-19.

Demystify the fear and outline the steps the organization is taking on behalf of its employees:

Communicate the facts from authoritative resources on how COVID-19 is spread and how to avoid infection. Clearly articulate and communicate preventive actions the organization is taking to avert or contain transmission of COVID-19 at work (focus on technology and techniques for employee safety, hygiene, biohazard disposal)

Promote safety steps that employees can take at work:

Use posters, memos, emails, intranet postings, supervisor talking points, FAQs, etc. to promote preventive actions employees can take (hygiene and avoidance) – see WHO and CDC recommendations.

Describe the impact on the organization:

Describe the potential impact of an outbreak on your operations, services, travel, supply chain, business, revenues, etc., so employees can plan accordingly.

Summarize company policies/positions:

Describe health plan coverage (preventive and treatment), attendance, paid time off, payroll continuation, travel, and group meetings.

Articulate work-from-home policies:

One of the most effective strategies for limiting the spread of contagion among employees is to reduce human-to-human contact. If your organization supports telecommuting practices, clearly articulate procedures and expectations that employees should follow.

Promote safe travel policies:

Consider the organization’s stance on employee travel and restrictions. Promote alternatives to travel, such as web conferencing and phone meetings. If employees must travel, offer clear guidance on safety protocols, augmenting with guidance from CDC and WHO.

Marketing