Tribe Topics Oct 2017 TRB-147 Oct Topics v1 | Page 2

Breaking it down into bite-sized pieces
With broad topics, try slicing and dicing to make them easier for employees to digest.
For example, after open enrollment, when employees have been inundated with
benefits information, the topic may not be broached again until the following fall.
But you could remind employees of the broad range of benefits the company provides all year long by
working a monthly or quarterly benefit feature into one of your regular channels — like the intranet or
digital signage or newsletter. Perhaps you could do an interview with an employee who used the tuition
reimbursement benefit to get her master’s degree, or talk with an employee who used the EAP group to
help him find eldercare for his mom. (Showing examples of how actual employees used the benefits is
bound to be more engaging that standard HR jargon, but of course many employees will want to keep
their experiences confidential.)
Calendarization is key
By developing an annual editorial calendar as part of your internal communications
strategic plan, you can dole out bite-sized chunks on a wide range of topics with a
predictable cadence. The calendar might include evergreen topics like vision, values,
leadership communications, quarterly financial updates, recognition and wellness,
as well as seasonal topics like performance management and open enrollment. But
that calendar can also help you plan sustaining communications for any major launches that might slip
through the cracks once they’re not new news.
The launch is not the finish line, but the start
Before introducing any major initiative, it’s easy to focus on the necessary
communications. Whether you’re launching an employer brand, a new intranet, evolved
values, a wellness program or sustainability goals, most companies do a good job of
developing communications to get it out of the gate.
But that’s just the beginning. Unless you’re talking about an isolated event like open enrollment, the goal
with most initiatives is to build ongoing employee engagement. We can’t assume that employees will
keep topics top-of-mind, just because we told them all about it when we launched.
Explore the same topic from different angles
Let’s say you’re launching new company values. After the launch, you can rotate
through each individual value as the theme for your monthly or quarterly employee
publication. You could create a manager’s toolkit of pre-shift meeting taking points. Or
you can shoot executives discussing that value for a leadership video.
So, for instance, if one of the values is innovation, one issue of the employee publication could include a
Q&A with the CEO about why innovation is so important to the company’s future, a feature article about
the R&D department and some of their recent innovative work, and an employee spotlight on a frontline
person who came up with a simple (yet innovative) solution to some persistent challenge. The next issue
would include articles supporting one of the other values.
By giving employees a way to view that topic from different angles, you give them more opportunities
to really understand how that topic applies to them and their work.
CHANGE MANAGEMENT IS DIFFERENT
When you launch a major change, think about the shelf life.
There’s a point where you need to stop communicating about
the change and put it in the past so you can focus on the now.
Move on to the next topic, and help employees move on as well.
For instance, if you have to communicate a negative change —
like a reorganization that results in lost jobs — you certainly want
employees to have the information they need and to know that
leadership is being honest with them. You want to make sure
employees who are impacted are treated with respect as they
transition out of the company. But you don’t want to leave your
remaining workforce wallowing in survival guilt.
Once the change has occurred, switch the focus to the
organization’s future. Engage employees in the positive
developments and show examples of success as the company
moves forward.
Interested in sustaining communications?
Tribe can help.