Internal communications: Your secret weapon to retaining employees

Published by Contractor Mag on May 21, 2024

As leaders, communications and HR professionals, we often feel our company’s internal communications are clear and engaging. However, studies show a significant gap between leader and employee perceptions about internal communications. Bad communication can lead to poor employee alignment, disengagement and turnover.

According to a study by Axios HQ, 49% of misaligned employees and 44% of unmotivated employees plan to leave their jobs within two years. Internal communication is your first line of defense when retaining your hardworking and talented team members. Here are a few ideas and strategies for effective internal communications to make your employees feel heard and empowered, and to support your retention initiatives and goals.

Set clear goals

What types of internal communications does your company need to send and what is the goal of each? Examples of internal communication may include company-wide announcements, updates, reminders, urgent alerts, progress reports, overviews, check-ins, training webinars and employee surveys.

A great first step is to audit your current internal communications and identify gaps. What information do people regularly miss? What praises or complaints have you heard from employees about internal communications? What platforms or channels do you have at your disposal?  Are there certain company resources or training materials employees may need more information about? Would it help boost company morale to give more regular employee shoutouts?

A simple internal focus group or survey of employees can provide feedback on preferred types of content, the frequency they would like to receive it and preferred channels. Employees obviously will have different preferences, but you also have to consider external variables or restrictions depending on their roles (access to a laptop/cell phone during the workday, availability of apps on company devices, location of employees, different shifts, etc.).

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