Summer time in the USA can imply a number of various things— tickets to a ballgame, journeys to the seaside (or down the shore, when you’re from the Philadelphia space like this author is,) or simply time away from the day by day grind of labor to spend with household and buddies. However with all these deliberate actions and holidays, generally engagement across the digital or in-person workplace may be flagging.
This begs the query — how are you going to maintain workers motivated when the tempo of enterprise slows?
That’s the place a powerful communications division turns out to be useful. By sharing messages that deal with each the wants and needs of workers, you possibly can maintain motivation up through the canine days of summer season, and work to enhance retention and general tradition too.
A key time for skilled improvement
Even when summer season sees a lull in enterprise, with purchasers and coworkers taking well-earned trip time, it doesn’t imply that it might’t be a chance for workers to be taught one thing new to upskill their careers.
Dr. Kerry O’Grady, affiliate professor of public relations and company communications and PR advisor, mentioned that these slower intervals might be a wonderful alternative for management to construct in time to spend money on their workers.
“Giving workers the liberty to construct their talent units is so empowering,” she mentioned. “It additionally helps workers know that they’re valued and that their talent set is effective to the group.”
Summer time may present a well timed alternative for communications to reevaluate their channels to achieve out about upskilling choices. and in addition present workers with a second to voice the areas the place they’d wish to construct their talent units.
“Summer time is a good time to make the most of inner comms platforms to facilitate data sharing, group updates, and social interactions,” mentioned Mira Adam, affiliate director of communications on the Georgetown College McDonough Faculty of Enterprise.” Likewise, creating channels for workers to speak their concepts and actively take heed to their issues may also help contribute positively to engagement,”
Ideas for the sluggish instances
If issues decelerate a bit through the summer season at your group, use it as a chance to reassess the challenges you’re up in opposition to as a communications division. It will also be an excellent time for ideation round options to these points.
“Utilizing these sorts of instances to arrange and work by way of challenges which have introduced themselves in different elements of the yr could be actually useful to your general technique,” O’Grady mentioned. “By actually drilling down and understanding what the foundation issues may be in our communications, we are able to work to make issues higher for the entire group.”
O’Grady added that instances just like the summer season are additionally a perfect alternative to extend collaboration with different departments inside the group to get a really feel for a way they function and the way communications may also help. This will in flip foster understanding between workers for an elevated sense of camaraderie and higher morale.
“Discuss with different elements of the group,” she mentioned. “Taking the time to take a seat with individuals who may work in advertising or finance to get a greater sense of how the complete system capabilities is a good way to spend slower instances which may come up.”
Constructive reinforcement
Let’s face it, comms individuals are typically a busy bunch. However slower instances of the yr additionally present a chance to current accolades and reward to workers which go a good distance towards fostering a constructive tradition.
Rachael Matthews, vp of company communications at Group 1001, mentioned that even seemingly small recognition is usually a big step in the direction of constructive tradition constructing.
“Typically we could be so heads down in our work and we’d surprise if what we’re doing is even making a distinction,” Matthews mentioned. “However even when it’s a small shout-out from the CEO or different recognition from management, these gestures can reinforce simply how necessary workers are to the complete operation.”
Easy actions like asking how an worker is doing over lunch or creating house for them to share their needs for his or her future careers can slot in rather well throughout a summer season schedule and assist foster good morale.
“Leaders ought to take this time to say thanks and make their workers really feel valued and appreciated, “O’Grady mentioned.. “It’s so necessary for leaders to spend any potential downtime on the individuals who do the day by day work to foster future development — now’s the time to make individuals really feel indispensable and a part of one thing bigger.”
Sean Devlin is an editor at Ragan Communications. In his spare time he enjoys Philly sports activities, an excellent pint and ’90s trivia evening.
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