Emerging Issues in Internal Communications
Findings
Metrics Associated with Employee Engagement
The final research question asked how are internal communication and engagement being measured? Most of the participants reported using online metrics such as page visits, returning visitors, time spent with content and referring sites. Other common metrics included click through rates for electronic newsletters or attendance at employee meetings. A positive trend is the use of routine surveys on communication and culture, and several participants (n=6) discussed how they used employee feedback to support changes in communication programs and the organization as a whole. A central focus of the survey questions is employee engagement. A manager of employee programs for human resources described the specific questions they use:
We want to know if people are proud to say that they work for the company, are they extremely satisfied working for us, would they recommend us as a great place to work, are they willing to give extra efforts to help the company meet its goals… related to engagement is their intent to stay…We ask them do you think about looking for a new job outside of the family of businesses here, if you were offered a comparable position with similar pay and benefits somewhere else would you go or would you stay here?
Other participants reported using similar questions such as familiarity with business priorities and how employees rate the organization on its core values. Others said they look for signs of improvement compared to previous years' responses (n=3) . In addition, several executives said they look for ways to address employee concerns. As a chief marketing officer said, "They're administered, the results are given and then every division and leader is responsible for taking those results and crafting an action plan based on the results of those surveys". Similarly, a regional public relations director in the tourism industry said,
We took that feedback and we listened to it and we're doing something about it. We're changing our whole system of how we recognize and reward talent and how we set expectations for employees that are not of the standard that they have to be held accountable.
One participant pointed out that low response rates in taking the survey also can be an indicator of low employee engagement. An indicator that was unique to employers seeking to place among the lists of best places to work was the requirement to find employee stories. As a human resources consultant, who previously worked for a company featured on Fortune's best list said,
If you're not able to find really rich stories or you're finding yourself relying on stories from two or three years ago, you know something's amiss. You lack flexibility and you can't find folks that believe in being able to enjoy that because things have gotten so slim…the things that you're saying are perks for working here aren't really true; that's not people's reality, so that's a gauge.
Another key metric that internal communicators are examining is turnover, specifically regrettable attribution, which involves tracking the loss of the most valued employees. Some participants (n=6) also reported using qualitative data gleaned from informal conversations with employees or supervisors. A more formal program at one employer for gaining insights was an internal communication advisory council.
On the other hand, three participants reported using no metrics, and one participant said she only looks at click through rates for email newsletters, evidence that some internal communicators have yet to adopt more advanced metrics.