We’re often asked how to improve employee engagement. Leading up to Open Enrollment, this question becomes more urgent…especially with clients who have a dispersed employee base.
It’s a year-round challenge to get messaging from corporate desks to remote locations. But when it comes to enrolling employees in their benefits, HR must rise to the challenge every fall.
What’s the fix? A big piece of the remedy is effective employee communications.
You also need to close the communications gap between corporate and frontline workers. This involves communicating with purpose.
Survey Finds….
From the 2020 OE communications survey by IFEBP:
The biggest challenge with OE communications: Employees don’t read the materials (76% agreed).
The most successful way to fix that: Simplified materials (35% agreed).
FIVE FIXES for Your OE Communications
If your OE communications are regularly ignored at the local level, you can take them from blah and burdensome to compelling and concise…with these great tips.
- Really get to know your audience. One-size-fits-all-messaging lacks the motivation needed to drive action. It’s better to construct targeted, appealing communications that engage each employee, including those dispersed in the field, on the floor, or at a store.
- Talk in plain language. Content that’s too complex clouds your message. It is possible to build effective communications that are both easy to understand and legally sound. In the simplest of terms, write like you talk and avoid jargon.
- Find out how they like to get information. Using the same channel to reach everyone tends to reach no one. You may be excluding a large portion of your population. You know email is no longer the answer. There are far better ways to reach frontline workers (the way they want you to).
- Reflect your diverse employee base. Ensure you’re including everyone in the conversation. And that means more than just in photography.
- Engage support at the local level. Make it easier for local HR and line managers to get the word out, and even consider expanding your support team to include employee ambassadors.
Want to see some real-world examples for how to reach non-desk employees and fix the most common HR communications mistakes? Download our ebook that offers 25 years’ worth of experience and know-how.
