The challenges of good HR communication

HR communication refers to all the messages that a company publishes in order to inform its employees about the different aspects of their professional life. It relates not only to staff information, but also to recruitment and employer branding. It can therefore be internal, i.e. intended for employees, or external, addressed to the public, customers and candidates. In either case, this communication involves many major issues that companies must take into account for their development. What are the issues? A complete reading of this text will help you discover the answer.

The simplicity of two-way communication

Successful HR communication must be participatory. In other words, it must involve employees through various channels such as:

• corporate social networks (CSR),
• a trusted platform for employee reviews,
• mailboxes,
• meetings, etc.

Such a communication strategy allows employees to exchange or interact with the human resources department and promotes feedback. These refer to valuable information that the structure can use to improve its actions and make better decisions. For example, the company can, thanks to the participation of employees, know the difficulties encountered in the field, the requests and suggestions of customers, existing conflicts and misunderstandings.

Improving employee engagement and motivation

Setting up an internal HR communication project within a company means improving the commitment and motivation of staff. Indeed, good HR communication makes it possible to inform employees about:

• vision,
• objectives,
• values,
• markets and projects,
• difficulties,
• the organization’s successes.

It means explaining to them what they work for on a daily basis and giving meaning to their work, which will give them pride and determination. The internal or external communications department also has an obligation to keep staff informed of everything that is happening internally. This transparency significantly increases employee accountability, involvement, motivation and performance.

Strengthening corporate culture and team cohesion

Good human resources communication must address all topics related to corporate culture. It’s about really communicating the values and myths that define the company’s personality and not just making a post on a corporate social network or distributing a brochure.

An effective communication plan brings employees behind the scenes of the organization and brings them together around a common goal such as implementing a CSR approach. The result is a real solid culture and team cohesion. HR communication thus makes it possible to create a common history or a sense of belonging using a common language.

Employees feel more concerned and become proud ambassadors who work to maintain a strong corporate culture. Such an organizational culture helps the company stand out from the competition through its values, history, actions and vision. For more information, consult these articles on the 4 essential elements for corporate culture and corporate culture: advantages over the competition.

Daily support for employees

A good internal communication strategy for human resources in companies includes supporting employees on a daily basis. It makes it possible to inform each employee on a daily basis of all the changes that occur within the organization.

Whether it is to announce legal information, new regulations or in times of crisis, it is crucial. For example, during the coronavirus health crisis, HR departments carried out internal communication work in order to inform employees about the rules to follow.

Support for managers

In management, internal or external communication is very important. Indeed, the manager being a real intermediary between the human resources and internal communication department and the employees, they are the first person concerned by the information. HR communication provides them with all the necessary information for excellent team management.

With HRIS tools , leaders can easily get employees to adhere to a skills development plan or new strategies. Similarly, they can better assess the promotions and compensation that everyone deserves.

Improving employees’ skills

Another major challenge of HR communication is the improvement of employees’ skills. If the exchanges make it possible to collect the opinions of the employees, they also serve on the one hand to know the defects or defects of each employee.

Based on the information collected, the human resources department may organize CPF-eligible training or events aimed at increasing the skills of each staff member. On the other hand, HR communication gives employees the ability to quickly access essential information to better accomplish their mission.

Sharing between employees

It is impossible to mention the challenges of good HR communication without mentioning sharing. As in all communications, the exchange of information and messages between HR directors and employees and then between employees promotes the sharing of experiences. They encourage the transmission of soft skills, know-how and knowledge.

Improved quality of life at work

Stress, burnout, anxiety, insomnia… There are many evils that affect employees today and that impact the productivity of companies. But with a healthy and pleasant working environment, it is possible to combat these various problems to ensure the well-being of staff and organizations. This is where HR communication comes in.

It consists of listening to employees, being grateful to them, being transparent, taking their opinions into account, etc. All this helps to create a sense of trust and value that improves the quality of life at work or QWL.

In addition, communicating regularly with employees is an excellent way to prevent psychosocial risks and act for well-being at work. In addition, dialogues with IORPs (Staff Representative Bodies) such as the CSE (Social and Economic Committee) contribute to the prevention of social movements and conflicts. They also contribute to the management of workplace conflicts within HR.

QWL, HR and communication are therefore the perfect combo to offer employees a working environment conducive to their development and exchanges.

Recruitment and retention of qualified talent through employer branding

Calling on an external or internal communication company is part of the actions to be taken to improve the employer brand. Indeed, HR communication makes it possible to obtain candidates’ testimonials and employee opinions. These various opinions can be positive as well as negative.

They give employees the opportunity to express their satisfaction, which significantly improves the public’s perception of the company. Also, employee and candidate reviews help the organization identify its weaknesses in order to correct them to become a better employer.

It is also imperative that the head of internal and external communication conveys the employer brand to the general public. In other words, they must communicate about values, working conditions and other elements related to HR.

All these actions offer the company the opportunity to recruit more easily the best talents on the market and retain them. Today, candidates are more attracted to companies that reflect a good employer image through their employees and communications.

Improving the capacity for co-optation

HR communication greatly facilitates internal hiring. In addition to attracting the best talent, it acts on one of the most important levers of recruitment. This is the capacity for employee referral programs. In other words, with this communication, it is possible to integrate employees into the hiring process by turning them into true ambassadors of the company. No need to go through recruitment sites like Cadresonline and Cadremploi to recruit executives.

It will be enough to share job offers internally and clarify the details (benefits for co-opters) surrounding the co-optation system. Employees will be responsible for finding people in their family, friendship or professional network who meet the requirements for the position to be filled.

For greater efficiency, the company can offer co-opters rewards for their efforts and investment. They will be happy and proud of the trust they have been placed in them and the help they have given to their team.

Increasing the company’s productivity and turnover

As you will certainly have noticed, HR communication has a snowball effect. This means that it involves multiple similar and more significant issues ranging from employee engagement to employee retention, including improving employer branding, brand image, etc.

All these issues contribute to increasing the organization’s productivity and sales. Well-conducted HR communication is therefore an essential tool for any company that wants to make old bones face the market and increase its turnover.