"Although employees tend to get accustomed to the turbulent environment in sectors deeply affected by the crisis, their level of anxiety is high," said J.B. Aloy, an expert on employee management and engagement for Ipsos Reid. "Concerns about one's professional future are clearly impacting staff motivation."
When Ipsos Reid asked why employees feel their motivation is dropping, one respondent said,
"The atmosphere of looming cutbacks combined with an uncommunicative senior management does little to inspire team spirit amongst the ranks."
The lack of communication between executives, management and employees is a challenge organizations face during times of crisis, but addressing it is the first step to re-engaging employees. In fact, the survey results revealed that 43% of employees consider internal communications about changes in the workplace to be effective.
Communicating during an economic crisis
Nothing kills employee engagement or confidence in the company more than an executive team that hides from the tough questions like ‘Are there going to be more cutbacks’, ‘Am I next?’, ‘When are things going to turn around?’
The messages have to be clear, consistent and transparent; otherwise, employees will feel they are getting the runaround.
"We constantly keep information flowing through our managers and supervisors, as well as by holding quarterly town hall type meetings where all employees are invited,” says Mike Truscott, Director of Human Resources for Marriott in Vancouver. “In these turbulent economic times the information we share is well thought out and carefully debated to ensure that when information is communicated, it is done consistently, with great care, and keeps the interests of employees top of mind."
Once the communication mechanisms are in place, leaders and managers can begin setting up initiatives that motivate their employees to align to corporate objectives – an important factor to re-engaging the workforce and getting employees to perform in an economic downturn.
Stay tuned for when we reveal one initiative that is aligning employees to a timely corporate objective – saving corporate dollars.
About the Ipsos Reid study: Every quarter Ipsos Reid releases the results of its Build a Better Workplace syndicated study to identify key trends in employee motivation and opinion. Studies are conducted through online interviews with a nationally representative sample of 1,000 Canadian employees each quarter.
For more information visit - http://www.ipsoscanada.compdf/Ipsos_Loyalty_ERM_BuildABetterWorkplace.pdf
