EMPLOYEE RELATIONS
INTERNAL COMMUNICATIONS IS WHAT A
JOB LISTING WOULD ACTUALLY SAY
First, just because it is interesting…
Millennials Will Benefit & Suffer Due to Hyperconnected Lives
-- Pew Research Study
 Become nimble analysts and decision makers
 Lack deep engagement with people and knowledge
Positive: Learning more and becoming adept at finding
answers to deep questions
Negative: Do not retain information, waste time on short
meaningless information, focus on being entertained , and
easily distracted
News of the Day: Windows 8
Employee Relations
Communications to
Employees must be
Candid, Clear and
Credible.
In the midst of economic
uncertainty and
organizational change, it
is critical for
organizations to
implement Effective,
Believable, Persuasive
internal communications.
Strong Employee Relations = Solid Organizations
Proof of the growing importance of internal communications:
 60 percent of CEOs report to spending more time communicating with
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employees
Employees are suspicious, anxious and critical. Organizations must
work harder to communicate honestly.
There is a HUGE gap between the very public salaries of senior
leadership and “common workers.”
Continued movement toward globalization makes the integration of
business and markets around the world a communication challenge.
Research shows that organizations that communicate with their people
financially outperform those that don’t.
Strong Employee Relations = Solid Organizations
Intellectual Capital has value.
 Increased importance!
 Employees considered most important assets – not always the case.
 Helps fill the “trust gap” that exists between management and workers.
Dealing with the Employee Public
Not as simple as it sounds:
 Many subgroups with different motivations/fears; targeted messages is
required.
 Today’s staff is younger, increasingly female, more diverse, ambitious
and career oriented, less complacent, and less loyal than in the past.
 Effective internal communications requires management to ask:
1.
Is management able to communicate effectively with employees?
2.
Is communication trusted, and does it relay appropriate
information to employees?
3.
Has management communicated its commitment to its employees
and to fostering a rewarding work environment?
Lack of understanding leads to discontent,
frustration, miscommunication & problems.
Trusted Communications in Uncertain Times
REINFORCE
 Respect -- R.E.S.P.E.C.T.
 Honest Feedback – Let them know where they stand.
 Recognition – Encourage early and often.
 Voice – Give them opportunities to share!
 Encouragement – Money and benefits only motivate to a
point, employees need something else for long-term
sustainability.
Trusted Communications in Uncertain Times
According to Milton Moskowitz, coauthor of 100 Best Companies to Work for in
America, six criteria have stood out over the years:
 Willingness to Express Dissent – Employees want not just a voice – but a
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voice that can be critical without consequences. They want access to
management and for management to pay attention.
Visibility and Proximity of Upper Management – Smart executives
practice MBWA – “Management by Walking Around”
Priority of Internal to External Communications – Employees MUST
learn critical information FIRST – not on the news.
Attention to Clarity – Your goal is to be understood. Period.
Friendly Tone – The best companies give a sense of family.
Sense of Humor – Helps to keep things in perspective and hopefully, make
work not all work.
Mini Case Study: Sam Zell/Tribune Company
 In 2007, Sam Zell, a real estate magnate, whom Gawker.com called the “salty
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billionaire”, bought the Tribune Company.
First order of business, he threw out the employee handbook and republished it
leading with this:
 Rule #1 – Use your best judgment.
 Rule #2 – See Rule #1.
And this, “Question authority and push back if you don’t like the answer.”
But his communication was harsh, money-centric vs. employee centric, and
aloof. SEE FOR YOURSELF.
In 2008, he was sued by a group of current and former Los Angeles Times
reporters accusing him of “recklessness.” Four months later he filed for
bankruptcy.
Credibility is the key!
 Employees KNOW your business. They will know facts vs. wishful
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thinking.
One on one communication – supervisor to employee is most effective.
Research shows trust would increase if management:
 Communicated earlier and more often.
 Demonstrated trust by sharing both good news and bad news.
 Involved employees by asking for ideas/opinions.
Employees are an organization’s best goodwill ambassadors.
Employees want to feel they are important and they are contributing to
something important – nothing does that better and more quickly than
being honest, letting them in on the good and the bad, and asking for
their help.
An example (a bad one)
“Just over a year ago, AOL embarked on an incredibly complex
and significant transformation as we fundamentally shifted our
business model from a subscription-based ISP to an advertisingsupported Web company.
Today I want to give you an update on where we are in this
transition, and talk about further actions we’re taking and
where we’re headed as a company.”
-- AOL CEO Randy Falco, 2008 memo to staff
TEN long paragraphs of mumbo-jumbo later, in paragraph ELEVEN he gets
to the heart of the matter:
“As part of this realignment, tomorrow we will begin a reduction in
force that will, over the next couple of months, affect about 2,000
people out of our 10,000 person workforce.”
20 PERCENT LAYOFF!
S-H-O-C
How does management build trust when employee morale is
so brittle?
 STRATEGIC
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Where is this organization going?
What is my role in helping us get there?
 HONEST
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They can handle the truth
 OPEN
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Ask for feedback, make feedback channels regular and ongoing – but more importantly,
show you’re doing something with it.
 CONSISTENT
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Be regular, on-time and predictable. Sometimes painful but helpful in the long run.
Internal Communications Tactics
 Internal Communications Audits
 Online Communications
 The Intranet
 Print Publications
 Bulletin Boards
 Suggestion Box/Town Hall Meetings
 Internal Video
 Face-to-Face Communications
And then, of course, the “Grapevine”
 Address rumors
immediately and directly
 Explain how/why you came
to a decision to avoid
people filling in with their
own back-story
 Pay attention to the
grapevine – it’s one of your
best tools.
Case Study: Circuit City
 In 2007, Circuit City was struggling to compete with WalMart and Best Buy and
reeling from drastically reduced consumer spending.
WTF were they thinking?!?!
On March 28, they announced they would fire 3,400 employees – 9 percent of their 40k
staff. Their reason? People were making too much money and would be replaced by
people willing to work for less.
 “Retail is very competitive and store operations just have to contain their costs. We
deeply regret the negative impact that was had on these folks. It was no fault of theirs.”
 Fired employees were told to leave immediately but encouraged to reapply for their jobs
– with less pay – after 10 weeks.
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Case Study: Circuit City
Predictable Backlash
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“Circuit City Firings Blow Public Fuse” – Washington Post.
The story quoted disgruntled CUSTOMERS offended by
the horrible treatment of employees.
Offended that they went after “the little guys.”
Most fired employees made $11.50/hour; Circuit City CEO
earned $716k/year plus a $705k bonus, $3 million in stock
awards and another $350k in options.
Even analysts predicted, their hit in customer service (one
of the only differentiators they had going for them!) would
far outweigh the gain of cost savings. Not to mention the
reputation management FAIL.
The company filed for bankruptcy just over a year later.
Despite bad press, when the CFO announced he was
leaving, the revised the terms of his contract so the $1
million-a-year CFO could cash an additional $250k of
option payoffs.
Case Study: Circuit City
 How do you feel Circuit City handled the communication of
the layoffs?
 How would you have improved on the communications?
 How would you characterize the company’s treatment of
fired employees?
 What would you have counseled management in terms of
the departure of the CEO?
Unsolicited Career Advice #7
Your mom should
never call your
boss. Ever.