Communication is essential to a productive workplace. This rings especially true if the workplace includes employees working from a variety of remote locations. Email, text messages, voice calls, video meetings, etc., are all part of a modern communications strategy.
How can your organization make the most of its internal communications? Successful communication today requires a combination of modern technology and traditional techniques. Failing to embrace communication best practices could result in inefficient collaboration and a fractured workforce.
Why It’s Important to Improve Communications
All company communication used to take place face-to-face. There were hallway meetings, team meetings, department meetings, and management meetings. When you needed to communicate outside of a meeting, you sent a memo or made a phone call. Communicating was simpler because everyone was, most of the time, all in one place.
Communication has become more complex as the workplace environment has become more varied. Many companies have multiple locations that need to coordinate and communicate with one another. Some employees are on the road while many more, especially since COVID-19, are working from home. Getting everybody together in a conference room is simply no longer feasible. Communication has to take place via other methods and channels, utilizing both existing and newly developed technologies.
Today’s faster-paced society also demands faster responses when we do communicate. You can’t wait for someone to receive a letter via postal mail or even overnight via FedEx. Employees, business partners, suppliers, and customers demand immediate replies. Questions have to be answered now, files have to be available now, and decisions have to be made now. The business world has been absorbed into our evolving on-demand culture, and communications have to evolve to keep pace.
5 Best Practices for Communications
There are many things you can do to improve your organization’s communication. Here are five best practices guaranteed to help you communicate more effectively and efficiently.
- Use the Right Tool for the Right Message
Communication is not a one-size-fits-all endeavor. It’s essential to educate your employees on all of the communication tools at their disposal and when to use each of them. Some communication needs to take place in real-time; another communication isn’t that urgent. A quick answer to a simple question doesn’t require a video meeting; it’s best obtained via a text message. Clarifying a complex issue is often tricky via text message; a voice call is the better way to clarify things. Instead of cross-firing a barrage of text messages between team members, get everyone together on a video conference to discuss things face-to-face.
- Be Clear and Concise
Whatever communication tools your employees use, they need to use them appropriately. In all instances, communication needs to be clear and concise.
Clear communication means ensuring that everyone gets the correct message. Don’t leave anything to chance — include all necessary information and instructions.
Concise communication means saying just what needs to be said and nothing more. There is such a thing as over-communicating — repeating the point wastes valuable time and annoys other employees.
The trick is to communicate just enough to understand the message, but not so much that it is repetitive.
- Keep Remote Workers Engaged
With more employees working from home, it’s easy for them to feel disengaged. In fact, 20% of remote workers struggle with communication and collaboration. Remote workers often need to get pulled into the discussion, whether in a group video meeting or via text message thread.
At the same time, you have to be aware that remote workers like to work on their own time and at their own pace. You need to draw them into conversations and not expect an immediate response at all times of the day. They may be busy doing something else.
- Track Key Metrics
Just as you track your advertising and external communications’ effectiveness, you should track key metrics for your internal communications. Use your communication platform’s dashboard and reporting system to determine which tools your employees are using and how. Track whether employees are using secure channels and devices. Examine employee comments, likes, and dislikes to determine how engaged your employees are with your internal communications. Use this analysis to learn how to improve your communications further.
- Secure All Communications
It’s crucial that sensitive company information stay secure. Employees should be trained on the importance of secure communications and how to communicate safely. This is especially important for remote workers or those using their own personal devices for work purposes. Stress the need to use approved communication tools, avoid sharing confidential information from public Wi-Fi hotspots, and employ end-to-end encryption.
Make Wickr Part of Your Best Practices for Secure Communications and Collaboration
Wickr is a secure collaboration platform that will enhance the effectiveness and efficiency of your organization’s communications. Its industry-leading end-to-end encryption makes it especially useful with a remote workforce, providing secure text, video, and voice collaboration options. Contact us to learn how Wickr can enhance your organization’s communications.
Contact us today to learn more about Wickr!