What communicators should be focusing on right now
Prioritize these tactics and strategies to survive the COVID-19 era—and to bolster your internal clout beyond the pandemic.
Pulse surveys are crucial. Employee feedback should drive, shape—maybe alter messaging. Consistently monitor sentiment to identify cultural weaknesses and spot potential problems before they fester.
Consistently ask employees how they’re doing, and present those findings to execs, who are often aloof and disconnected. Acknowledge what support employees need, and respond accordingly.
Pursue internal and external collaboration. Be persistent about cooperating with IT, HR, marketing and other relevant departments to plumb richer data. Use internal data to enhance your storytelling and develop more relevant messaging. Gather customer insights, too, and use that information to keep external messages relevant and empathetic.
Invest in ERGs. Encourage leaders to take affinity groups seriously—in terms of investment and also in terms of voice. Let their diverse perspectives inform company policies, stances and storytelling.
Streamline your workflows. Use this time to standardize and simplify job requests, approvals and personnel announcements. Collect data that either proves or disproves the validity of certain projects, and delegate ancillary tasks that drain your energy.
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