Communicating with Employees

I've written a lot about the importance of communicating with customers during the estimating/ sales process for a painting job. We do this to: 1. learn what they want, need, and expect; 2. explain how we can meet those values.

But employees are "customers" too. We must communicate our vision to them, as well as how we intend to pursue that vision and their role in that process. Too often that communication involves little more than the owner pontificating. As Bill Hogg points out, "if it isn't two-way, it isn't communication. It's simply message distribution."

There is certainly a time and place for one-way communication. But if this is our modus operandi we become little more than benevolent dictators, imposing our ideas on employees. Now only does this deprive us of ideas that the employees might have, it can also lead to less acceptance of our ideas. As Hogg asks, "Do you have a process set up that stimulates a conversation or is your messaging primarily just being pushed out from the communications team?"

This does not mean that we should operate our business as a democracy. Employees want and need leadership. But they also want to feel like their ideas matter. And that can only happen if we talk with them, not talk at them.

© BEP Enterprises Incorporated 2008