As we near the end of 2011 and 2012 begins, I reflect on what I heard from many people I connected with by speaking at conferences and visiting a wide range of organizations.  There was a common theme I heard…the need for better communication.  In many organizations email is the number one and preferred way to share information about the business.  HR uses email to communicate about benefits changes, Sales and Marketing uses email to update about new products and the list goes on and on.  The challenge with using email as the method of communication is the sheer volume of email we receive in a day.  People I spoke to readily admit they don’t read every single email they receive…they don’t have time!   When we use email to communicate we leave things up to chance, we hope that the recipient will read and take action.

To have true communication, to have effective communication organizations must adopt and implement a back to basics approach-an approach which involves face to face two way communication.   Let’s use email as an advertising vehicle to supplement what we are telling employees in a face to face setting.

Schedule 30 minutes once a week with your staff to share the news and critical business information passed down for the leadership team.  Employees will love the face to face time and the organization will benefit by having engaged and educated employees who know what’s going on in the organization.

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