Investing in communication skills makes good financial sense
In today’s tight labor market, retaining workers is of paramount importance. In last month’s Employer Best Practices Focus Area meeting, we heard that frontline workers want more communication with their leaders. Other studies confirm this, including:
A recent survey of 1,000 frontline workers found that 66% were satisfied with the level of communication they have with their employers. However, there was a large discrepancy between managers (74.2%) and non-managers (57.8%). This means that almost half of all frontline workers in non-managerial roles are not happy with the amount of communication they receive. (https://www.workvivo.com/blog/internal-comms-for-frontline-workers-guide/)
Gallup reports that 51% of employees are watching for or actively seeking a new job. Typically, the decision to leave a job happens quickly, within a three-month period, and many who leave report that they may have stayed if there had been more intentional communication about their role in the company. Consider the following Gallup chart:
Source: https://www.gallup.com/workplace/646538/employee-turnover-preventable-often-ignored.aspx
It follows that investing in your managers’ communications skills makes good financial sense. Here are the top recommendations for improving manager’s communication skills:
Recruit for the future: Develop a talent pipeline by including internships and on-campus programs, thus creating long-term commitment to your company from the start.
Train beyond the mandatory requirements: It’s not enough to train for competency in the technical job requirements. Training must help managers build their interpersonal skills. Training is not a “one and done” experience; it must be ongoing and adaptive to the changing work environment.
Use mentors: Budding managers need someone to talk to about ongoing challenges. Senior leaders make ideal mentors and also can transfer institutional knowledge and skills to newer managers as their mentors.
Incentivize your frontline manager: Yes, this means pay a competitive salary. But it also means investing in them through tuition reimbursement, continued certification, and ongoing recognition programs.
If your company wants more information about developing ongoing manager training programs, NKY Works can connect you to local resources and experts who can address your specific needs. Contact us at 859.657.WRKS or NKYWorks@NKADD.org.