3 Keys to Improving Internal Communications
Most businesses are comprised of several separate departments, each of which fulfills a different role to ensure the success of the company as a whole. However, these same divisions of responsibilities can sometimes create communication barriers between employees and departments. When this happens, your team may actually become less efficient, making it harder to achieve your overall company goals. Here are a few ways you can improve internal communications for better results.
1. Use Transparency-Promoting Tools
The right software tools can go a long way in ensuring that needed information is shared between departments. For example, you can improve transparency and communication with FinancialForce ERP, which makes it easier for sales and finance teams to share the same information set updated with real-time information. This allows these teams to better collaborate on customer issues and improve efficiency for greater revenue growth.
Other online communication platforms can serve as a hub for employees to share information or project updates. Tools like Slack have become especially popular thanks to their ability to facilitate communication between remote collaborators.
2. Create Internal Reference Documents
If you’re not careful, it can be surprisingly easy for employees to lose sight of your company’s mission and vision, or even basic internal practices. Because of this, you should create internal reference documents that are used by management teams to direct their staff’s work. Protocol guidelines should be readily available to all employees, and should be reviewed on a regular basis.
Management also has the responsibility of explaining the company’s goals and mission in a way that all employees can understand and appreciate. When you encourage buy-in to your overall vision, your staff will become more motivated to give their best effort.
3. Plan Employee Bonding Activities
Far too many miscommunications occur simply because of a lack of quality relationships among the staff. Management training programs should emphasize the importance of getting to know staff members and having an open communication policy. Employees who feel better connected to their managers will feel more valued and be more likely to deliver desired outcomes. Don’t be afraid to plan fun get-togethers for your staff, either — fostering friendships and connections will help unify your team, which will improve engagement and retention.
Conclusion
By taking a few basic steps to improve internal communications, you can ensure that your entire team is on the same page. By reducing miscommunications and fostering a greater sense of team unity, you will be better equipped to get everyone working together to achieve your company’s vision.