Do You Know How to Communicate Change To Your Employees?

Do You Know How to Communicate Change To Your Employees?
Do you ever find yourself confused on how to best
communicate changes to your employees? Here is where you
need to do some serious brainstorming. Why? Because it
takes a lot of communication to make a change successful.

As soon as you know that you will be creating change in
your department, you must communicate to your employees so
they know what is happening. You are probably
thinking...why get them anxious about the change when you
don't know all the details yet. They sense it already...as
if the walls in the conference rooms have ears. It's much
better to hear from you and not from someone outside the
department or company.

Your communication plan needs to start right alongside the
strategic planning. Aligned your communication plan along
with all the steps of the project. Even if the change is
relatively small, communicate throughout the whole process.

You will make changes as your receive feedback from
employees and others, but if you have a solid communication
plan in place already, making minor changes is easier.
You and your employees have to feel as much in control as
possible...so no surprises if possible. This plan will
not guarantee there are no surprises but will reduce the
possibility.

What you need to do is create a communication template and
use it diligently in all of your significant changes. Here
are some ideas to creating your communication plan

==>Communication Plan

-What is the goal of the change?

-Who are the stakeholders? (who is driving the change
and/or benefiting from it?)

-Who is the project leader for your communication plan?

-What changes will need to occur in the department in order
for you to meet your objective(s)?

-How long will it take to implement the change?

-What are the tangible results you would like to see from
the communication plan?

-Who will need to change in order to insure the results
will occur? Critical to know who will be most impacted as
they are the individuals who you will need to insure fully
understands the change.

When planning your communication events you need a solid
foundation for all messages to your employees. Your
communication must include clarity, consistency of
messaging, continuous communications, and a forum for
feedback. You want to insure that the information is
received correctly and you are providing the necessary
details for the employees to understand and accept the
change.

Note: Before you send out your messages, test the message
with a few people to get their feedback. You probably
have worked on the message numerous times and can't see the
more obvious missing points. You need to provide
information in a language that people will understand. A
fresh pair of eyes will be helpful.

Build a master list of communication activities that make
up your plan. Here are some sample headings.

-Create a list of communication events organizing them in
the order that you will distribute. Include date and how
you will communicate the message. These communication
events will be aligned with milestones of the project.

-For each communication event, create a list of details.
For example, who will write it, what is the topic, how will
it be distributed, and how will you follow up.

-Create a Calendar with Planned Events - you can visually
see all of your communication events and plan accordingly.

-How will you communicate the message? (verbal and written)

-Who is responsible to communicate the message

-Pretest message

-Actual Delivered Date

Note: Communication Calendar - have one on the wall or
close by so you can see visually all of your planned
communication events.

==>Verbal communication

Make sure you mix verbal as well as written communication
so that the employee gets an opportunity to ask you
questions and come away with more clarity around the
change. Create a script for your verbal messaging so you
are consistent with the written message.

==>Receiving Feedback

Create several ways to receive feedback and let the
employees know how they can share their thoughts, concerns
or suggestions. People handle their concerns differently,
some more outspoken, others more reluctant to speak in a
large group. If you have several venues for them to give
you feedback, you will have more information and fewer
surprises. Here are some ideas to use for gathering
feedback:

-Focus groups

-1:1 meetings with managers

-Create a separate website for employees to ask their
questions.

Note: A separate website can also hold past communications
and FAQs for repetitive questions.

Employees feel more comfortable when a manager informs them
throughout the process. They may still feel anxious about
the upcoming change, and yet if you are open, you build a
lot of trust with them. When an employee trusts their
manager, they are more open to the change.

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Pat Brill is the author of the blog "Managing Employees"
http://www.ManagingEmployees.net . You can reach her at
pat@TheInfoCrowd.com.