Post-pandemic comms winners and losers

The Covid pandemic set a line in the sand for the employee experience, and there are clear pre and post-attitudes and policies. The obvious one is that employees were trusted to work from home, where they could, and that productivity didn’t suddenly drop as some had feared. But productivity isn’t the only measure of a successful business, and the employee experience is just as important. 

So, who is responsible for ensuring employees feel engaged and satisfied with their role and the company they work for? How had the global pandemic affected Human Resources and Internal Communications

A recent survey by UNILY showed that 50% of Internal Comms Leaders reported that the scope of their role had significantly increased. Unfortunately, investment is lacking behind budget, and many communications and HR teams face the familiar challenges of limited budgets and resources.

When the pandemic hit, it thrust internal communication teams into the spotlight.  Where the responsibility of managing an intranet and employee surveys might have previously been shared between marketing and HR, suddenly, internal comms professionals were in high demand. And they needed creativity and communication skills in the bucket load. 

At first, the free reign would have been liberating. Everyone was in survival mode and trying to make sure their businesses ticked over. So, a seasoned professional would have surely found themselves in their element. But what about the companies without an internal comms team? Marketers suddenly had to figure out the best way to keep a displaced workforce happy, engaged and informed during a turbulent period.

Similarly, for HR departments, becoming virtual and learning a new normal of Zoom meetings and Team chats whilst balancing the department's needs with a new demand for communication strategy would have been immensely challenging.

Data is still being collected on how much internal communications and the employee experience got the much-needed financial investment. Still, we know that the responsibility and scope of the role are felt to have increased.

Regardless of the pandemic, investing in employee experience can make a huge difference to your business productivity and morale, as well as increase the happiness and job satisfaction of your workforce. Without internal resources though, it can feel overwhelming and unclear where actually to begin.

Contact one of our team here to learn how we can support your teams.