just like starting over...title just like starting over author wilma mathews, abc keywords...

employee morale

16 Communication World • March–April 2010 www.iabc.com/cw

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Just likestartingA dramatic change in an organization’s structure is an opportunity to communicate differently—in message, purpose, method and measurementby Wilma Mathews, ABC, IABC Fellow

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ichapmanTypewritten TextEn Español

http://www.iabc.com/cw/private/archives/2010/es_201003_mathews.htm

www.iabc.com/cw Communication World • March–April 2010 17

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employee morale


L iterature and case studies aboundon how to prepare for and commu-nicate a layoff of employees. But lit-tle guidance, beyond checklists forrecognizing survivor syndrome, isavailable to help company leader-ship and communicators deal with the remain-ing employees.

Ironically, post-downturn anxieties and con-fusion provide extraordinary opportunities fordeveloping true, purpose-driven communica-tion, closer collaboration between the executivesuite and the communication team, and theimplementation of newer communication tech-niques and tools.

However, the path to those opportunities isnot easy. Consider the difference between thetrauma of an event like a mass layoff and that of a natural disaster. In the case of a natural dis-aster, there is a universal outpouring of supportfor the victims. Neighbors pitch in to provideimmediate support; national and internationalorganizations provide money, food, shelter andhope; governments provide on-site resources forre-creating identities. The media focus on thesurvivors and give them a face.

In the corporate world, the situation is dra-matically different and painful in other ways.

Those employees who have been let go may beridden with guilt, embarrassment, shame and alack of self-confidence. They are often politelyshunned by former co-workers, neighbors, andeven family and friends. They may believe thatwithout a job they’ve lost a large portion of theiridentity, their purpose. Unfortunately, familyand friends may privately believe that the laid-off employee probably did something to deservehis or her fate. So much socioeconomic wealth istied to having a job that the loss of that job sug-gests weakness, fault and incompetence.

Laid-off employees do receive the kind ofimmediate help appropriate for them: specialcounseling from internal and/or external orga -nizations; sympathy from family, friends andneighbors; job fairs; financial help and guidance.Unfortunately, that support doesn’t take awaythe stigma of having been told, “You’re no longerneeded.”

But on the opposite side, workforce reductionsurvivors are supposed to feel grateful to still

have a job and are supposed to be able to startthe next day as though nothing had happened.

What really happens with survivors? Andwhat is the communicator’s role in that nextstage?

Post-layoff/closure recoveryMuch of post-layoff literature focuses on sur-vivor syndrome: those behaviors, feelings andactions that betray a survivor’s anxieties, anger,remorse and/or guilt. While diagnostics aboutthis syndrome are valuable, they offer little inthe way of providing long-term and sustainablerecovery and healing.

A real issue for communicators is how tointroduce and maintain a new way of com -municating with employees, shareholders and other audiences with a vested interest in thecompany. This isn’t the time to return to communication directions and methods usedpre-layoffs/closures.

As a communicator, you are now in a newcompany. A company that has fewer—and pos-sibly different—employees. A company that hassuffered great loss and humiliation. A companythat is redefining its purpose and direction. A company that has a new future to explore. Acompany that has been badgered by external andinternal constituencies. A company that needsthe support of its employees more now than everbefore. A company with angry and afraidinvestors, including employees.

The act of asking

questions—regardless

of the method—is an

indication to survivors

that they are still

of value to the

organization.



A dramatic change in an organization’s struc-ture is an opportunity to communicate dif -ferently—in message, purpose, method andmeasurement.

The first call to action for the communicatoris to assess the communication situation. Thismeans basic research to confirm what topics are top of mind with employees. Money? Jobsecurity? New investors, owners or customers?More layoffs?

One method of communication researchprobably won’t be enough to get to the root of survivor anxieties. An all-employee, online,multiple-choice survey will give you direction.Follow-up sessions in focus groups or depart-mental groups will provide clarity, and anemployee advisory group will give you the realissues and feedback.

The act of asking questions—regardless of themethod—is an indication to survivors that theyare still of value to the organization. Takingaction on the answers to those questions is proofto employees that they are being heard. This isnot a time to rely solely on electronic communi-cation. This is face-to-face time.

Numerous surveys conducted both before andafter a layoff strongly indicate the critical role ofhuman communication. For example, in a sur-vey of U.S. human resources and communica-tion professionals conducted by HeymanAssociates Executive Search, respondents notedthat while they receive a lot of mass and elec-

tronic communication about the state of theircompany in the recession, they wanted more in-person communication.

Specifically, the 452 respondents wantedincreased informal in-person communication(65 percent) and in-person meetings (50 per-cent), along with formal written materials (31percent).

A query to readers of the online EmployeeEngagement Network on how to inspire trustafter major layoffs garnered these suggestions:● “Listen to employees. Find out what they need

to do a better job and give it to them. Lis ten totheir complaints, suggestions and questions,and respond to them very respectfully.”

● “Visible leadership is extremely important,particularly in times of uncertainty. Visibleleadership is great! Can we have some, please?”

● “I wish the process of open dialogue had started BEFORE the layoff…”

● “Recovery is possible through three steps:■ Healing: Conduct honest truth sessions to

open communication and express emotion.■ Hope: Present a vision of the organization

that inspires employees.■ Health: Invite employees to collaborate and

build on the new visions.”

A new day for communication leadershipThis is not a time for executives to communicatethe way they did before the meltdown. This is atime to reeducate company leaders.

It’s a new day, with new organizational goals,new leaders, new owners, new ways of doingbusiness and new customers. With that in mind,it’s also a new day for communication leadership.

Your organization’s senior administration isdealing with unfathomable challenges regardinginvestors, inventory, customers, regulatorychanges, loans, etc. They know they need tocommunicate but are looking to you to tell themthe best ways to do so.

Take your leadership through the five Ws ofcommunication: What are we communicating, to whom, why, when and where? Defining thescope of needed communication into areas suchas finance, products, investors, procedures, man -agement team and owner(s) will help you andyour executives develop both content and style

This is not a time

for executives to

communicate the

way they did before

the meltdown. This

is a time to reeducate

company leaders.

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employee morale

for communicating. It will also help you developand articulate a detailed communication plan.

Remind your leadership that employees mayneed education along with information. Therules of bankruptcy, consolidations, closures and government support all may have to beexplained.

Time lines can provide both a visual sense ofwhere the company is going and how it plans toget there. In concert with that, however, shouldbe the never-ending opportunity for employeesto ask questions and get real answers, no matterhow trivial those questions may seem.

Additionally, leaders will need constantreminders to never make promises they can’t keep.Never! This is a time for honesty and leadership.

High Stakes, the newsletter of Washington,D.C.-based Levick Strategic Communications,focused an issue on internal communicationin—appropriately—a high-stakes environment.The proposed strategies include:

“If companies effectively demonstrate sincereconcern for, solid commitment to, and strongaction on behalf of the most precious resourcesthey’ve got, they can limit reputational damage

and even lay the groundwork for a speedy returnto prosperity.

“First, companies need to communicate inreal time with all of their employees, especiallythose they are retaining. Employees need toknow why actions are being taken, the chancesthat additional layoffs could take place in thefuture, and what management hopes to gain.

“Companies need to be seen as being in con-trol. When a company simply declares, ‘We haveno choice but to lay people off,’ it appears help-less. By contrast, a message that conveys controlcould be: ‘We’ve explored every option and thisis the most reasonable course of action under thecircumstances. We’re going to provide severance.We’re going to provide training. We are going todo whatever we can to soften the landing forthose who are our family.’”

The May 2009 issue of High Stakes includesan interview with Anne Deeley, founder of theemployee communication firm Deeley Trimble& Co. in Atlanta, in which she suggests thatleaders create the opportunity to engage in“intentional conversations,” those informalcommunication links between managers and

The physical and

mental shock to an

employee of having

survived a layoff can’t

be underestimated.

How an organization

responds to that

shock is critical.

Give employees what they want most: information

In many ways, survivors of a major closure or layoff gothrough the five stages of griefjust as they would at the loss ofa loved one: denial, anger, bar-gaining, depression and accept-ance. The longer the employeehas been with the organization,the more intensely she or he willexperience the breadth anddepth of these emotions.

While communicators can’t becounselors, your communicationefforts could—and should—takeinto account what employeesare feeling and how your effortscan help them. Here are sometips for communicating withthose who remain:

● Share the facts: Employeesdon’t want platitudes, gentlepats on the back or promises ofa better tomorrow. They wantfacts; they want information.

Facts and basic informationhelp the surviving employeesknow what to do, where to beand how to respond. The factscan be small (say, a new organi-zational chart) or large (the com-pany plan for survival). Thesebasic pieces of information slowlybut surely build confidence, pro-vide structure and bring relief tobeleaguered employees.● Communicate often. Perhapsmost important, employees needa daily feed of information. ● Provide employees with theopportunity to express anger

toward the company. ● Establish online sites specifically for suggestions/concerns, with employeeanonymity built in.● Make sure employees knowthe symptoms of workplacedepression and that workplacedepression is a normal emotionalproduct of major change. Pro -vide documented ways of coun-tering or addressing workplacedepression.

How long should communica-tors continue these practices?Until employees start to say,“That’s enough!”

—W.M.



about the authorWilma Mathews, ABC, IABC Fellow, is a writer/editorbased in Phoenix, Arizona. She is co-author of On Deadline:Managing Media Relations andthe author of numerous articleson communication topics.

employees that happen every day.“It’s all about equipping managers to speak

intelligently and confidently about what’s goingon at the company,” Deeley says. “Supervisorsoften serve as the first point of contact betweenemployees and the company they work for, so it’s absolutely imperative—especially in times of crisis—that each and every…supervisor isinformed of the workplace messages and able todisseminate them as effectively as possible whentheir subordinates come asking questions.”

This is a time for a new employee communi-cation culture.

Closures, layoffs and bankruptcies in a com-pany are akin to having a death in the family.The affected members of the (corporate) familyneed time to grieve, to remember, to heal and,ultimately, to look forward.

This is the time when new employee and orga-nizational cultures can be formed. The physicaland mental shock to an employee of having sur-vived a layoff can’t be underestimated. How anorganization responds to that shock is critical.

Universally listed as a first post-trauma step iscommunication with a trained therapist; withcolleagues, friends and family; with one’s imme-diate supervisor; and with senior leadership.Critical to this process is the art of listening.Communicators should provide executives andsupervisors with training on how to listen toemployees, in both large groups and in one-on-one sessions.

There is no standard for how often post-trauma communication should occur, althoughresearch has clearly indicated that daily postingsshould continue until employees indicate(through formal feedback or other methods)that daily updates can cease.

Let employees decide what they want/need to know. If they ask for a new organizationalchart, let them have it. If they want to see how the stock is doing on a daily basis, providethat information. If they want to see executives’calendars, let them (within reason, of course). Ifthey want more information on new investors orowners, give it to them.

Equally critical to creating a new culture is the art of asking employees for input on pro -cesses, procedures, ideas and policies—in short,

anything that affects the organization’s andemployees’ working relationship. Perhaps mostimportant, ask employees how they want toreceive their information: face-to-face, print,electronic (be specific), large-group gatherings,formal versus informal, etc.

Post-trauma communication to remainingemployees is the key indicator of how organiza-tional life will be and what the future may hold.Professional communicators would be wise totake advantage of this rare opportunity. ●

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