{"id":3955,"date":"2020-01-02T19:50:00","date_gmt":"2020-01-02T20:50:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sonusbenefits.com\/building-a-foundation-for-communication\/"},"modified":"2020-01-02T21:01:06","modified_gmt":"2020-01-02T21:01:06","slug":"building-a-foundation-for-communication","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sonusbenefits.com\/building-a-foundation-for-communication\/","title":{"rendered":"Building A Foundation for Communication"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><span>Internal communication is at the very heart of making sure your company is running smoothly. Not just within each department, but between departments, leadership, and HR. You&rsquo;re probably nodding your head (or rolling your eyes) because this is basic, like really&nbsp;<\/span><i><span>basic<\/span><\/i><span>, for every company ever. So why are we writing about it? Because lack of communication is something many businesses struggle with and it can cause&nbsp;<\/span><i><span>big<\/span><\/i><span>&nbsp;problems.<\/span><span>&nbsp;<\/span><span> <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>When a company suffers from a lack of communication<\/span><span>, there&rsquo;s always fallout:<\/span><span>&nbsp;<\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><span>A<\/span><span>ccountability drops<\/span><span>&nbsp;<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span>R<\/span><span>esentment builds<\/span><span>&nbsp;<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span>I<\/span><span>mportant information gets lost&nbsp;<\/span><span>&nbsp;<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span>I<\/span><span>nitiatives fail<\/span><span>&nbsp;<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span>E<\/span><span>mployee<\/span><span>s<\/span><span>&nbsp;start looking for other employment<\/span><span>&nbsp;<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><span>The list can go on and on and on. Lack of communication can leave employees feeling directionless and disengaged at the very least, and at worst, cost the business serious money in wasted initiatives, botched sales, and confused and frustrated customers.&nbsp;<\/span><span>&nbsp;<\/span><span>&nbsp;<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>So how do you ensure your company is communicating effectively?&nbsp;<\/span><span>Start by p<\/span><span>ick your channels<\/span><span>.<\/span><span>&nbsp;<\/span><\/p>\n<h3>In-person meetings&nbsp;<\/h3>\n<p><span>Setting up a reliable schedule for meetings is a key part of maintaining consistent communication. There&rsquo;s a lot of talk about how meetings can be a waste of time if executed improperly and without an agenda, but that&rsquo;s&nbsp;<\/span><span>not a<\/span><span>&nbsp;reason&nbsp;<\/span><span>to stop having&nbsp;<\/span><span>them.&nbsp;<\/span><span>Instead, make them better.&nbsp;<\/span><span>&nbsp;<\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><span>Set up weekly&nbsp;<\/span><span>or&nbsp;<\/span><span>monthly meetings between team leaders&nbsp;<\/span><span>to<\/span><span>&nbsp;<\/span><span>review overall company goals<\/span><span>,&nbsp;<\/span><span>update each other on current projects and challenges,<\/span><span>&nbsp;<\/span><span>and stay up<\/span><span>&#8211;<\/span><span>to<\/span><span>&#8211;<\/span><span>date on interdepartmental projects.<\/span><span>&nbsp;Come into the meeting with an agenda and stick to it.&nbsp;<\/span><span>If new topics come up during the meeting, make a note and address them at another time.<\/span><span>&nbsp;<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span>Set up 5<\/span><span>&#8211;<\/span><span>minute start<\/span><span>&#8211;<\/span><span>of<\/span><span>&#8211;<\/span><span>day meetings within departments&nbsp;<\/span><span>for<\/span><span>&nbsp;managers&nbsp;<\/span><span>to&nbsp;<\/span><span>highlight daily goals&nbsp;<\/span><span>and agenda<\/span><span>.<\/span><span>&nbsp;<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span>Set up end<\/span><span>&#8211;<\/span><span>of<\/span><span>&#8211;<\/span><span>day (or week) meetings&nbsp;<\/span><span>covering what has been accomplished and\/or what needs to get done next<\/span><span>.<\/span><span> <\/span>&nbsp;<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3>Digital communication&nbsp;<\/h3>\n<p><span>I<\/span><span>n<\/span><span>&#8211;<\/span><span>person (or video) meetings are&nbsp;<\/span><span>critically&nbsp;<\/span><span>important<\/span><span>&nbsp;to developing relationships<\/span><span>,&nbsp;<\/span><span>but&nbsp;<\/span><span>they&nbsp;<\/span><span>shouldn&rsquo;t be the only way of communicating. S<\/span><span>upplement<\/span><span>&nbsp;regular meetings&nbsp;<\/span><span>with a digital communication channel<\/span><span>&nbsp;<\/span><span>to keep the communication flowing and document what&rsquo;s been discussed.<\/span><span>&nbsp;<\/span><span>&nbsp;<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>Thankfully, there are countless apps and programs companies can use&nbsp;<\/span><span>for<\/span><span>&nbsp;internal communication channels.&nbsp;<\/span><span>While email is a standard<\/span><span>,&nbsp;<\/span><span>it&rsquo;s also<\/span><span>&nbsp;so overused that it&rsquo;s no<\/span><span>t always<\/span><span>&nbsp;the most efficient way for companies to communicate internally. Think about your inbox&mdash;<\/span><span>there are probably emails&nbsp;<\/span><span>waiting to be sorted, emails you haven&rsquo;t had time respond to, and emails you&rsquo;ve forgotten entirely.&nbsp;<\/span><span>Add in the back-and-forth messiness that comes with email conversations and you&rsquo;ve got a recipe for poor communication.&nbsp;<\/span><span>&nbsp;<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>While e<\/span><span>mail&nbsp;<\/span><span>can be&nbsp;<\/span><span>a good option<\/span><span>&nbsp;for some communications<\/span><span>,<\/span><span>&nbsp;<\/span><span>it shouldn&rsquo;t be the only one you use.&nbsp;<\/span><span>There are plenty of apps such as&nbsp;<\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/slack.com\/\"><span>Slack<\/span><\/a><span>&nbsp;or <a href=\"https:\/\/teams.microsoft.com\/start\">Microsoft Teams<\/a>&nbsp;<\/span><span>that are great for&nbsp;<\/span><span>more&nbsp;<\/span><span>efficient and&nbsp;<\/span><span>effective&nbsp;<\/span><span>communication.&nbsp;<\/span><span>&nbsp;<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>With digital apps, you can have direct conversations between individuals. And you can also have conversations in a group format&nbsp;<\/span><span>where<\/span><span>&nbsp;everyone&nbsp;<\/span><span>in the group&nbsp;<\/span><span>can see what&rsquo;s being discussed.<\/span><span>&nbsp;Keep this really focused by&nbsp;<\/span><span>setting up<\/span><span>&nbsp;multiple discussion group<\/span><span>s,<\/span><span>&nbsp;and have each be for a&nbsp;<\/span><span>specific topic<\/span><span>. This lets&nbsp;<\/span><span>people choose&nbsp;<\/span><span>the<\/span><span>&nbsp;<\/span><span>topics&nbsp;<\/span><span>relevant to them<\/span><span>selves<\/span><span>&nbsp;and their roles.<\/span><span>&nbsp;<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>Whether it&rsquo;s a direct or group conversation,&nbsp;<\/span><span>the digital apps provide a&nbsp;<\/span><span>great way<\/span><span>&nbsp;<\/span><span>to have&nbsp;<\/span><span>a<\/span><span>&nbsp;string of conversation that&nbsp;<\/span><span>is<\/span><span>&nbsp;saved and easily searchable.&nbsp;<\/span><span>&nbsp;<\/span><\/p>\n<h3>Keep it consistent&nbsp;&nbsp;<\/h3>\n<p><span>C<\/span><span>onsistency is at the core of good communication.&nbsp;<\/span><span>Once you choose<\/span><span>&nbsp;<\/span><span>your<\/span><span>&nbsp;channel<\/span><span>s,<\/span><span>&nbsp;<\/span><i><span>stick with&nbsp;<\/span><\/i><i><span>them<\/span><\/i><i><span>.<\/span><\/i><span>&nbsp;Create an expectation that everyone from the top down consistently&nbsp;<\/span><span>participates in the meetings and uses the technology. M<\/span><span>ake it clear how and when&nbsp;<\/span><span>the different channels of communication&nbsp;<\/span><span>will be used. The more&nbsp;<\/span><span>they&rsquo;re&nbsp;<\/span><span>used<\/span><span>&nbsp;effectively<\/span><span>, the more people will depend on&nbsp;<\/span><span>them<\/span><span>, and the more efficient&nbsp;<\/span><span>everyone&nbsp;<\/span><span>will become.<\/span><span>&nbsp;<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>Leadership must set the example<\/span><span>&nbsp;and take the lead in adopting&nbsp;<\/span><span>any<\/span><span>&nbsp;new technology. If your leaders&nbsp;<\/span><span>are&nbsp;<\/span><span>still stuck using email or the whiteboard in the common area, the time you spen<\/span><span>d<\/span><span>&nbsp;training your employees to use the program will be wasted.&nbsp;<\/span><span>&nbsp;<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>I<\/span><span>f your company is struggling with a lack of clarity and communication, ask yourself if everyone has a reliable way to contact one another and discuss internal topics<\/span><span>&nbsp;in a timely manner<\/span><span>. Then ask if your leaders are committed to using&nbsp;<\/span><span>those channels<\/span><span>.&nbsp;<\/span><span>People will do as you do far more than they&rsquo;ll do what you say.&nbsp;<\/span><span>&nbsp;<\/span><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><span><em>Content provided by&nbsp;<\/em><a href=\"https:\/\/www.q4intel.com\/employers\/\"><em>Q4iNetwork<\/em><\/a><em>&nbsp;and partners<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>Photo by <a href=\"https:\/\/www.123rf.com\/profile_cynoclub\">Bonzami Emmanuelle<\/a>&nbsp;<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>&nbsp;<\/span><\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/track.hubspot.com\/__ptq.gif?a=1652561&amp;k=14&amp;r=https%3A%2F%2Finsights.q4intel.com%2Femployers%2Fbuilding-a-foundation-for-communication&amp;bu=https%253A%252F%252Finsights.q4intel.com%252Femployers&amp;bvt=rss\" alt=\"\" width=\"1\" height=\"1\" \/><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Internal communication is at the very heart of making sure your company is running smoothly. Not just within each department, but between departments, leadership, and HR. You&rsquo;re probably nodding your head (or rolling your eyes) because this is basic, like really&nbsp;basic, for every company ever. So why are we writing about it? Because lack of&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":8,"featured_media":3958,"comment_status":"close","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"content-type":"","_mi_skip_tracking":false},"categories":[33,30,43],"tags":[34,32,44],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v19.12 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>Building A Foundation for Communication - Sonus Benefits<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/insights.q4intel.com\/employers\/building-a-foundation-for-communication\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Building A Foundation for Communication - Sonus Benefits\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Internal communication is at the very heart of making sure your company is running smoothly. 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