In the good old days, employee communication was one task of the Human Resources department. Unfortunately, most companies still live in the good old days while the demands of the workforce have changed for good.
People want to gather around shared values and create meaningful experiences. Especially at work. They are no longer satisfied being on the receiving end of corporate decisions. They want to be heard before decisions are being made. It’s not enough to carve out one day a year to support Habitat for Humanity. And have problems getting out of bed the remaining 364 days because your employer doesn’t have a corporate vision or mission that gets you going in the morning.
You’ll be amazed how little people know about the corporate vision and mission of their employer. They don’t know why the company was founded, what the company stands for. And bolt at the first chance working for a company that incorporates their internal belief system into everything they do.
People want more than money. A good salary might get them in but it won’t keep them around.
Developing a comprehensive work experience that keeps people engaged, allow them to gather around a bigger cause and share this experience with their networks should be a no-brainer for any company. It decreases turnover and recruiting costs, leads to better performances (individuals and company) and, ultimately, attracts more clients.
And, that’s why HR and Marketing should talk. Marketing focuses on communicating, using the right channels to engage with people, creating memorable experiences. HR should tap into these skills and jointly develop a communication plan, answering these questions:
- Who owns your brand?
- What is your employer brand?
- How do your employees perceive your brand when they get hired? And leave? What happens during the employment experience?
- Do former employees recommend your brand and ask prospects to stay away?
- What is the recruitment experience?
- On-boarding process: How does it communicate the values of your company?
- Does employee engagement fade over time? Does it increase?
- Is career development tied to the bigger picture of your brand?
- Does everybody understand what they need to deliver?
- What’s the departure experience?
- Is communication there to get information? Or is information there to get communication?
- What is being measured? And what should be measured?
- Are you focused on internal communication? Or employee communication?
Like it or not, everything we do is marketing. Every communication says something about your company. There’s a reason why companies spend a lot of time and resources on finding/developing the right fonts, logo, website, building, office furniture and Christmas presents. And leave the internal branding to a few tasks on the HR Director’s to-do list. Don’t get me wrong: external branding remains important. But it feels soulless and empty without any internal branding. Allowing the enterprise to evolve its brand organically.
That’s why HR and Marketing should talk.
uwehook 
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