Has recession communication hit bottom at companies?

When corporate America was slammed with recession and started clearing the deck with layoffs to save costs, a good portion of companies upped their in-house communication in an attempt to thwart water cooler gossip and keep a handle on morale. But such talk is waning according to a new study by Watson Wyatt and it might not bode well for retention of skilled employees. 

Even with hopes for a rebound on the horizon, ” few companies are planning to increase their communication with workers about pay, benefits and business performance in general”. That finding is from the global services firm just released 2009/2010 Communication ROI Study. 

The study suggests that companies ” have made substantial adjustments in response to the downturn,” but Kathryn Yates, global director of communication consulting at Watson Wyatt adds “As the pace of change slows and recovery draws near, it is more important than ever to explain the rationale underlying decisions and communicate to workers about the changes that affect them the most.”  The study took the pulse of 328 employers between April and June of 2009.

What Yates says makes a lot of sense. The fear mongering that occurred when those pink slips started streaming in December of 2007 was mildly tempered when companies stepped up to the plate to inform their employees about the dreaded downsizing to come. Peoples lives and careers were threatened and information helped quell the fear. With a potential recovery in sight to the financial crisis (although from today’s retail and jobless numbers, one wonders) now is not the time to skimp on small talk within company walls. 

As humans, we are communicators with consciousness, especially as we continue in our quest for better work life integration. We articulate not just with words but through body language, and an innate intuitive quality which goes beyond the rhetoric we read in company memos and hear at the water cooler. When the proverbial— hits the fan, we feel it in the gut and can see it on our co-workers faces before it hits the headlines.

In the same breath an employer can say one thing –  and mean another –  if not properly communicated and heard by an employee. Therein lies the conundrum with regard to morale and productivity. Mystery fuels fear. Instead of pulling back, companies should look at this time as a new opportunity to foster employer/employee relationships.

Companies have streamlined their operations and kept their stealth performers. To retain them when things start looking up again takes work. Why would companies keep quiet in the corner office now, when they have the ear of workers just as concerned about a turnaround? Now is the time to step up communication as there is an open channel of activity. Employees are more eager than ever to know which way the business pendulum is swinging, and if they still have a place in the orchestration of the company’s growth.

It’s simple psychology. A happy employee is a more productive employee and more likely to stick around as companies start to shore up their business agenda for the hoped-for rebound. If a worker knows that an employer is still up front about the business trajectory, still concerned with examining benefit structure and pay issues, then the lines of communication between rank and file stay open. To reverse that transparency in any way sends up red flags and potentially will send the best employees packing.