A recent study suggests that what matters even more for employees than their physical location is the nature of how their employer communicates with them. The report, “Keeping Up the Spirit: Internal communication in an increasingly virtual work environment,” is published by the Academic Society for Management and Communications and the University of Vienna.
“It’s important to listen to employees’ concerns to empower them to become effective communicators themselves,” says Dr. Sabine Einwiller, a professor of public relations at the University of Vienna and the lead researcher of the study. She believes this is even more crucial now because “...there is distance between the organization and employees, and this distance is not just physical, but also psychological.”
Einwiller says those in leadership should practice relational communication. This means to “be more human, be more authentic, [and] be more emotional” to create a connection with employees, which will then help employees to connect more with the organization.
Here are several key findings from the report:
The future will be characterized by much more virtuality and the lessons learned during the COVID-19 pandemic will remain important in the time to come. Above all, internal communication needs to think and act strategically as it exercises its role as an important player.
Internal communications must help to foster an inclusive communication culture where all employees – whether working from home or on-site – feel equally appreciated and included. Measures like top management visits and digital channels that can be accessed by all employees are part of the solution.
To strengthen employees’ commitment to the organization, relational communication is required. This can comprise appreciative and emotional messages, virtual events, and interactive formats with executives.
Einwiller says that given that virtual work is here to stay and unlikely to lose its prominence, she hopes that this report will “be a source of inspiration regarding the role of internal communication.”