Employees need context to help understand management’s decisions

One of the most rewarding aspects of my job is helping employers find solutions to their challenges.

Some of the issues are simple and straightforward; others are messy and complex. Communications increasingly fall into the latter bucket. While there are more ways than ever to send and receive messages, they are too often vaguely written, ineffectively timed, missed, misunderstood, or even ignored by recipients.

Some leaders have become so frustrated with the current state of communications that they’ve scaled back on their messages to employees. Unfortunately, this is not a panacea, and in most instances, it makes matters worse.

In a recent Inc. article, the CEO of PwC shared that when he decided to send fewer communications, he learned the hard way that employees were filling the vacuum with their own narratives. While he didn’t need to share every detail related to important decisions, employees needed context to help them understand and support his decisions.

While the benefits of meaningful context have always been clear, today’s employees expect it more than ever. Almost every employee engagement survey conducted by HR Source in the past few years has uncovered opportunities for leaders to improve their communication strategies and tactics. Team members don’t only want to know what’s happening — they also want to know why.

Companies and organizations that utilize employee surveys to assess the satisfaction and/or engagement levels of their workforce almost always uncover ways to improve their organization’s performance and culture. Communication is vital to moving the needle on both.

Here are a few of the questions and average national responses from the communications section of HR Source’s Employee Engagement Survey:

• I am kept informed about new plans and developments: 70.8% agree.

• I am informed about changes in a timely manner: 69.2% agree.

• Our organization supports open, two-way communication between employees and management: 74.6% agree.

As you can see, there’s ample room for improvement. When delving into the written feedback given by surveyed employees, the specific examples they provide are not usually tied to the quantity of information coming from leaders, managers, and supervisors, but more often to the level of detail and timing of the messages. And employees aren’t shy about providing personal examples of how these communication vacuums negatively impact their ability to do their best work and to lend support to necessary changes. The dearth of context leads to poor morale, disengagement, and ultimately, unwanted turnover.

If you’re not sure how communications are landing at your organization, it might be time to solicit some feedback. Feel free to use the questions referenced above for inspiration or draft your own. Then, be willing to listen, learn, and make constructive changes. Test out different approaches and continue to adjust course as necessary to move the needle.

Communication challenges are far from new and unlikely to ever be completely resolved. Self-aware leaders want to improve and are willing to accept constructive suggestions for improvement. Leaders resistant to sharing context related to critical decisions and unwilling to change their ways are doing so at the peril of their organizations.

• Mary Lynn Fayoumi is president and CEO of HR Source in Downers Grove.