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4 Areas To Focus On For Better Employee Communication

Forbes Human Resources Council

Debby Routt is Chief People Officer at Marathon Health.

I’ve been lucky to have 35-plus years of experience in HR. While it has certainly been a wild ride, the HR role has never been more tumultuous than in the past few years. I regularly network with HR leaders, sharing stories (and a few grumbles along the way), supporting each other and offering advice. A common thread in these conversations is how our role has pivoted and our strategies continue to adapt to this new world of human resources. However, one thing remains the same: consistent employee communication is critical.

Although it’s essential that we look at what our employees value, we also must be reasonable with our approach and level-set expectations. Here are some of the areas my HR network and I have been talking about and some tips to help you approach these topics.

1. Encourage employees to use the mental health resources you offer.

We’ve been talking about mental health issues in the workplace now for a few years. The stress of the pandemic isn’t going away anytime soon. Many organizations have added behavioral health programs, but many employees are not actually using those resources. According to The State of Mental Health in America 2023 report by Mental Health America, 55% of adults with mental illness receive no treatment—that's over 28 million individuals.

It’s up to us as HR leaders to help reduce stigmas around mental healthcare and reinforce the importance of using the services we offer. Programs won’t be successful with a “set it and forget it” attitude; they need to become a part of your culture. Offer training to help leaders learn how to have better conversations around mental health. Regularly encourage or incentivize your employees to use the services.

Whether you offer "lunch and learn" programs to help employees learn how to cope with stress and anxiety, behavioral health apps, virtual or in-person workplace behavioral healthcare or EAP offerings, it’s essential for your workforce to see leaders actively utilizing and promoting these resources.

My company's employees, for example, earn points through our wellness program for visiting with a behavioral health counselor or health coach and for watching wellness webinars. Employees can use the wellness points they earn for gift cards, wellness reimbursements and a reduction on next year’s insurance premium.

2. Share how inflation has impacted your business.

There are multiple generations of workers who have never experienced high inflation rates, putting HR leaders in a difficult position. Employees are requesting more compensation while businesses are being forced to scale back their workforce.

As a society, we should be cutting unnecessary expenses, but some employees might need guidance on where to start. We can help our workforce understand how inflation is impacting the business and how to make adjustments. That education could be through open discussions on how the economy is affecting the company overall or through financial wellness workshops to help employees make informed choices.

A good place to begin is by helping employees understand why a high-deductible health plan is often a better investment. I've seen countless organizations where a lot of people are vastly over-insured. By selecting an appropriate plan, employees can help reduce year-over-year insurance premium increases, save money almost immediately and reduce their taxable income by taking advantage of a Health Savings Account (HSA) or Flexible Savings Account (FSA).

HR teams also need to be aware of the competitive compensation landscape and ensure that salaries of internal employees are evaluated as they hire new employees. Monitor compensation to ensure equity and fairness across your organization.

3. Have clear and open conversations if you expect employees to return to the office.

Many employees have gotten used to working at home. If you plan to require your workforce to return the office full- or part-time, be flexible with your implementation. You can’t expect to go quickly from 100% remote to 100% in the office. You can, however, set clear expectations and have honest conversations with employees about your reasons for bringing everyone back to the office, which might include the value of community, camaraderie and collaboration.

It might take some of your budget, but you may also need to look at reconfiguring your physical workspace. Survey your team on what type of work environment works best for them.

4. Communicate, and then communicate more.

All of the areas above focus on one area: communication. It’s critical. During the height of the COVID pandemic, many of us were incredibly gracious and forgiving to one another. But in the past year, I've noticed that people have been growing less patient.

Some people are also struggling right now with team dynamics. Have someone from your HR or leadership team facilitate team-building exercises and communicate your reasoning. This may also mean getting a remote team together in person. Remind people of your company’s core values, and ask them to share how they are living up to them. The importance of teamwork begins with everyone understanding their purpose and the reason they’re a part of the company.

Final Thoughts

As HR leaders, it's important we have more of these conversations. As you peel back the layers of the onion, you'll find there's usually a reason for people’s behavior. Whether driven by mental health concerns, finances, fear or something else, the more one-on-one interactions we have with our workforce, the better we can adapt to the new normal of working in our field. Change won’t happen overnight, but we can do our part in making sure our workforce understands and accepts the motivation behind our actions.


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