September 18, 2009

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Should Employees Access Social Media at the Office? According to new data from ScanSafe, a web filtering company, companies are cracking down even more on employee use of social media sites in the workplace. They indicate that 76% of companies now block social media sites, a 20% increase over the past six months, making social media sites the most blocked type of site within companies. ScanSafe says employers are linking the negative impact of productivity to the use of social networking, online banking and Webmail. Before blocking these sites, are companies thinking through how they could use social media to benefit the company? Using social media appropriately can be used to increase customer service, and can help boost employee engagement. Other sources, such as Watson Wyatt Worldwide, suggest social media is the new frontier for companies to communicate, especially internally. They compare companies' productivity fear to the 1990s productivity fear, which was based on allowing the internet into the workplace. They recommend taking the same steps as in the 90s - establish clear acceptable usage guidelines while also adopting social media for internal purposes. On the sales and marketing side of the business, companies are rapidly embracing Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and other social media sites to promote the company, build traffic to their website and retail locations, as well as buzz about their products and services. Effective HR communicators know that employees need to understand the role they play in your company marketing. Do your employees understand the company? Its products and services? Its goals? How you market your business - including on social media sites? Of course, there may be some employees who abuse the privilege of having access to social media sites. But the other benefits to allowing employees to access these sites - higher employee engagement, better customer service, etc - can far exceed the downside. Establish some rules around usage - appropriate sites to visit on company time vs. over the lunch hour, limit the amount of time allowed on social media, posting to company sites, etc. Once your policy is in place, be sure to send your employees links to the company marketing social media sites, so they can understand what the company is doing, and become a more engaged part of the team. How is your company handling social media with its employees? Have you blocked access to social media, or do you encourage employees to learn the technology? How have you used social media effectively for your employees? We'd love to hear your thoughts and ideas - click on the comments section below and let us know what's worked for you.
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Engage Your Employees Using Your Annual Benefits Enrollment Communications One of the most visible employee communications within a company tends to be its annual benefits enrollment. This program takes many hours of your time mired in endless detail. Once you get the contracts are in place, more work hits: developing and delivering the communications, sending out the information, answering questions, employee follow-up, answering even more questions, and so on. Because this is such a large project focused on the end results of finding the right benefits and getting employees enrolled, companies sometimes miss the opportunity to use this as an effective employee engagement tool. Here are a few tips to help you use your annual benefits communications to better engage your employees: Tell Your Corporate Message. This is a great opportunity to reinforce your corporate message - briefly highlighting the company beliefs and the employees' roles in it. Include this message in your various benefits communications: the information packets you send, the reminder communications, as well as any other tools you use as a part of your campaign. Appreciate Your Employees. Let the employees know how much you appreciate them and the work they do. Studies consistently show that employees want to feel appreciated in their jobs. Your benefits package is one way the company shows its appreciation. Remind employees of this "thank you present" with heartfelt message of appreciation. Add the WIIFM. To boost your enrollment response, remind employees of the WIIFM: "What's In It For Me." Although benefits are something that your company offers the employees, letting them know the reasons they should enroll may help boost your response. As with all effective HR communications, be sure to incorporate the fundamentals: Know Your Audience. If there are different benefits for full- and part-time employees, can you send them only the information that is appropriate to them? Select the Right Tools. Use the tools that your audience prefers. Are they more adept at online communications or print? Providing the tools in a format they are comfortable using will be more effective in getting across your message. Tell Them, Then Tell Them Again. Use more than one communication channel to help ensure that your employees received the message. Even if you send them a printed packet, is the information also available online? Briefly discussed in a staff meeting? Be Clear. Make sure that your message is crystal clear. The benefits selection affects employees as well as their families. They really need to understand the details. Call to Action. Let employees know the actions they need to take and by what date. Highlight it, repeat it, whatever it takes. But make sure it's clear when they must respond. This huge annual communication is a great tool to engage your employees and reinforce your company message. Use it wisely. Have you had success in using your annual benefits communications to better engage your employees? We'd love to hear your story. Click on "comments" below and share your successes. Next week, we'll feature an article on Tips to Help Your Employees Make...

Jane Vanderhorst

Vanderhorst Consulting works with organizations to develop and deliver on-target, results driven communications that engage employees, build sales and retain customers.

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