Internal Comms Talk

Today’s Internal Comms Talk episode is a conversation with Sally Helgesen, premier expert on women’s leadership; best-selling author; and international speaker, and author of, “How Women Rise: Break the 12 Habits Holding You Back from Your Next Raise, Promotion or Job." There exists a language barrier between men and women in communications which causes us to build a wall to block success. How do we break it down? How important is it to build relationships, especially in the virtual remote working office, to effectively lead teams? And why is balance in communications essential for a leader? 

Companies desire high-performing teams. Leaders and managers who communicate effectively have teams who outperform competitors and help organizations achieve their bottom line. The heart of effective communication is the ability to lead with emotional intelligence. What is emotional intelligence? How does it tie into communication? And why should company leaders desire better emotional intelligence? 

This year has impacted the level of trust within organizations and businesses, and among leaders, managers and teams to a great degree. Covid has brought a lot of issues to light that many businesses probably didn’t realize they had. Why is trust so important? How does trust impact the bottom line? How does listening and taking risks contribute to building trust? This episode is a conversation with Ron Harvey, vice president of operations and chief operating officer of Global Core Strategies and Consulting. 

Communications are important within organizations. During crises, it’s more important to communicate clearly and consistently with every person. How can internal communications be managed effectively? What can leaders and management do to strengthen communications? And what challenges to onboarding new employees need to be addressed in this remote working environment? Join me for my conversation with David Zalesne, president of Owen Steel Company. We also talked about safety and culture in manufacturing in our Covid era. 

Leaders have faced new challenges with coronavirus upsetting all operations of the business in 2020. Working from home is now part of work environments and leaders have to manage employees virtually. What challenges have they had to overcome with what results? And how are leaders managing their teams in a virtual world? This week’s podcast episode is with Ann Melinger, CEO of Brilliant Ink. 

Leaders are navigating rough waters and making tough decisions during this era of change. And when they lead a company that requires them to be engaging with people while social distancing is emphasized, their innovation and creativity are challenged. What are some tough decisions they have had to make? How has this affected their role as a leader? This week’s conversation is with Henry Rischitelli, president and CEO of Next Marketing, Inc, and co-founder of TourHealth. 

The manufacturing industry has met with challenges since not everyone can work remotely. How has this industry addressed safety, health and well-being? What changes have they made in communicating with their employees? And how have they been able to engage their employees to keep operations moving forward? I talked with John Kramer, CEO and owner of Cambridge Air Solutions, and Meg Brown, vice president of human resources, about what they've been doing to keep employees safe and communicate effectively with them. (Justin's chair video mentioned in podcast: https://youtu.be/MFLodFJukqA)

Organizations want the best communications methods to engage and inform employees and leaders. Internal company newsletters are a powerful, effective communications tool to motivate and educate employees. Consider your goals and objectives to make this piece a valuable asset to your communications. (Report: A simple, cost-effective tool to boost employee morale - and the 9 steps you can do to make it work and Article: Why companies should have an internal newsletter staff)

Communicating with employees during a crisis is imperative to earn their trust. Whether dealing with a global pandemic, economic downturns, or safety concerns, organizations should strive to unify their executives and leaders to communicate clearly with their employees. How can you produce a solid communication plan to allay employee fears? And why should you incorporate strategy days into the process? (Articles mentioned in episode: Negative communications: How they should be delivered and the effect on employees http://bit.ly/2kBYDMp and "Crisis and emergency risk communication, Psychology of a crisis" from the CDC https://bit.ly/3hhb8ou)

Asking why is critical to motivating ourselves and others. We have to be convinced that what we communicate is important in order to move others to take action. Here are several “whys” to ask to boost productivity.