Communication with Employees in Business

Effective communication is always important during recession as it “bolster flagging engagement and productivity” (Ceplenski, 2008). In addition, good communication also affects the employees’ job satisfaction and loyalty to the company (Ceplenski, 2008). For those companies who keep communication lines open even during financially robust times will keep employees loyal to the company (cited in Ceplenski, 2008). Furthermore, managers can also think of non-financial rewards to boost employees.

Providing the employees with recreational activities, a Christmas party for an instance, maintain the employees loyalty and eagerness to stay in the company (Craig, 2008).

Canceling small activities such as this will wrong send signals to the employees. Even at the point of recession wherein certain measures are needed to be done in order to cut costs, managers must still consider how the employees will feel in such situations. The company must make the employees feel that they are worthy of company bonuses and perks such as flexibility in working hours or extra holidays.

Once the economy gets better, managers should reward the employees well, as they can grow to be more loyal to the company and organization compared to employees who will be recruited after the recession (Craig, 2008).

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Employee Benefits Benefits during recession are one of the many concerns of employees. Companies and organizations should address issues such as employees’ worries about investment choices, account balances and retirement plans because these can negatively affect their overall productivity (Mercer, n. d). Employers must grab the chance to enable their employees focused in their work through communication.

Moreover, they should continue to reassure their workers and think about investments that will yield high returns.

One way to do this is to introduce investment option choices and low-cost defined benefit options (Mercer, n. d. ). During recession, employees are greatly concerned about gas and food prices (Employee Benefit Adviser, 2008). Most importantly, the employees’ benefit plans are often affected during recession periods. During a recession, while there are so many additional expenses allotted for employees, benefits can get more expensive (Employee Benefit Adviser, 2008).

While recession has kept employees financially burdened, employers may offer teleworking, flexible time and compressed work weeks for the employees. Teleworking is basically using information and communications technology (ICT) to enable an employee to work at other places aside from the main office. However, some employers have found out that teleworking can be a hindrance to push successful programs. Moreover, managers find it hard to interact and connect with the employees who work outside the office.

To solve this issue, some employers have suggested the use of carpool boards and shuttle buses to alleviate employees’ spending on gas. However, gas prices are not the only concern of employees. They also need financial coaching to help them improve their credits and budgeting (Employee Benefit Adviser, 2008). Meanwhile, employees need to think about the available flexible working options. According to Kay Curling, VP of HR, Compensation, Benefits and HRIS, doing this correctly can benefit managers, workers and clients. In addition to these, reward expenditure can also be offered to employees (Mercer, n. d).

Employees have the choice to purchase more of the things that they value most and less of what they do not need through the flexible benefit programs. This ensures employee appreciation, which is in turn a great value to the employer. The management must still monitor the impact of “benefit plans on corporate finance, employee motivation and talent management” (Mercer, n. d). Pay rates during recession falls below the minimum at which employees are willing to work for (Bewley, 2002, p. 263), which results to employees leaving their jobs. Benefit plans in a way can keep talents intact within an organization.

Managers can opt to offer benefits such as severance pay, which can generate loyalty and may be increased in relation to employee tenure (Bewley, 2002, p. 263). Together with loyalty, reputation and morale, these benefits can help the organization during recession periods. During recession, both employees and employers are affected. Employers through providing benefits may be able to retain good and competitive employees with the company even at rough times. As such, good and open communication between the managers and the employees should be kept especially at times of recession in order to retain employee loyalty towards the organization.

The employees must be kept informed regarding the company’s development. In addition, the company management and administration must be able to let their employees feel appreciated at all times. For the employees who remained loyal to the organization throughout recession, employers must offer financial and non-financial rewards as a way to let them know that they are valued and that they have contributed to the development and welfare of the whole organization.

References

1. Bewley, T. F. (2002). Why wages don’t fall during a recession. London, England: Harvard University Press.
2. Ceplenski, C. (2008, September 29). Benefits and retention strategies in a recession. Business and Legal Reports. Retrieved November 18, 2008, from http://hr. blr. com/news. aspx? id=78927
3. Craig, T. (2008, September 8). How to reward staff during the recession. Personnel Today. Retrieved November 18, 2008, from http://www. personneltoday. com/articles/2008/09/08/47451/how-to-reward-staff-during-the-recession. html