If you have ever been in a relationship, you know a communication crisis in companies doesn’t appear from one day to another. These problems usually build up gradually in relationships and same thing happens in organizations. You need to be solicitous if you want to detect problems at early stages…
What is internal crisis communication?
When a crisis hits, timing is everything. Planning ahead will ensure you get the right information to the right people, keep your staff safe, and minimize any negative impact. Developing a crisis communication plan should form a critical part of your IC strategy.
Which are the internal communication symptoms that we should consider in your company.
Too many complaints from customers
What does this have to do with “internal” communication? It could be a sign that the members of your company are not in the right rhythm or mood because if there area happy employees we will get happy customers. Ask yourself If your Internal Communication strategy is contributing to this purpose.
Employees are afraid to ask
They should feel free to ask questions. If asking for help or for feedback get them anxious, be careful: they could make assumptions or hide important mistakes. This can lead to an internal communication crisis in your company.
Unhappy employees
According to Harvard Business Review, one of the factors that feed insatisfaction is to feel “out of the loop”. And this is one of the main jobs of internal communications: keep everybody informed.
- Low participation in business events
How many people attended to the last after office? How many enrolled at the game you launched, or they offered as a volunteers for the RSE area? Low participation on these events could mean:
1) employees don’t receive the message or 2) it doesn’t impact as much as you expect.
More (expensive) mistakes
If employees are making mistakes frequently, it could be a symptom that they miss direction and that expectations from the company are not clear. Mistakes could be reduced with a fluid internal communication process.
High turnover of personnel
Because of all the previous reasons, it is quite possible that some people may be willing to quit their job. Employees leave when they feel insignificant, lost with their task or when they feel they are taken for granted. Is time to make an assessment of your internal communication in your company!
Which other symptoms could you add to the list?
Oxean Cross is an internal communication agency that will help you prevent these 6 symptoms from happening in your company in order to avoid a possible crisis. Contact us!
