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Transcript of Edelman Strategic Insights
8/14/2019 Edelman Strategic Insights
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Edelman Strategic Insights
Edelman Shanghai - December 2009
What channel do you use most frequently to communicate with employees?
Employee Engagement: CSR that matters in China
“Employees are typically the last priority for information, not the first. But these are the people who are in the
best position to go either on the offensive or defensive for your company – so companies need to tell them first.Transparency is the new green. Say what you’re going to do and say why - then actually do it.”
Edelman CEO Richard Edelman
Edelman China’s Employee Engagement practice takes a closer look at how employee engagement fits into the
broader operating environment in China today, and examines the issues highlighted by their 2009 Employee
Engagement and Internal Communications China Survey.
Edelman China’s 2009 employee engagement and internal communications survey highlighted the increasing
importance multinationals are placing on strategic employee engagement in their China-based operations. Over 50
percent of companies had a dedicated, full-time internal communications resource, with almost 67 percent based
at a local level. Over 80 percent of companies are expecting to increase spending on internal communications and
employee engagement activities in the next year. This is chiefly because the timely realization of companies’
ambitious growth targets for the Chinese market is increasingly dependent on successful employee engagement,
specifically in terms of attraction and retention of talent and to meet the demands of business expansion.
Given this, it is not surprising that the primary objective behind employee engagement initiatives overwhelmingly
was to ensure employees understood
the company’s mission or vision. Teambuilding and creating the desired
internal culture within the organization
were also listed as important, as was
supporting corporate transformation
activities. Close to 100 percent of
respondents said that their senior
leadership was either involved or very
involved in employee engagement
activities, and they expected this
involvement to increase in the next 12
months since employee engagement is seen as a business priority for the organization in China. However, most
practitioners continue to follow a more traditional approach to internal communications, with email and the
intranet being the most frequently used vehicles, well ahead of in-person, or face-to-face, communication.
Of the challenges listed by the respondents, the lack of internal resources was most commonly listed as their
primary obstacle. As a result, over 75 percent of companies surveyed use external consultants for a number of
different reasons, including: to provide additional resources, bring an outside perspective to the company’s internal
programs, as well as for the benefit of structured methodologies and best practices.
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[Type text]
Edelman Shanghai - December
The biggest challenge for us is
how we proactively engage our
people, instead of simply
reactively passing down
messages”
Senior Communications Manager
“Employees are the soul of our company, and
we want to engage them on the way forward
for our business. Cross-function collaboration
is very important to us, so we invest a lot of making sure we have effective internal
communication”
HR Director, Greater China
2. Start with where employees are vs. where the organization is headed
To move employees in the right direction, we must first determine where they are now. How much information
and understanding do they receive and possess? What do they really know about the business and its prospects
and, more importantly, their role in its success?
3. Brand = Company Culture = Brand
Brand is built on the internal development and sustainability of the companyculture. Employees must experience the characteristics of the brand in the
culture, manifested in:
Company vision and values
Business strategy
Management’s actions in support of the vision, values and strategy — not
merely its words
Products/services
Building brand equity begins inside with engaged employees because they are the most effective and sustainable
method known for building the brand, and they embody the brand and what it stands for. These are the people
who really do shape a brand’s evolution - for better or worse…..
4. Simplicity creates interest - Limit the corporate speak
The role of employee communications is to help the organization and leadership to keep things simple. As the
world becomes more complex and information overload threatens to overwhelm employees, the ability to keep
things simple remains a true competitive advantage.
We must filter our leadership’s messages from the abundant information employees receive, providing clarity,
relevance and focus. It is here that we as communicators have the greatest opportunity to provide value to our
organization’s culture.
While communication with external audiences will likely focus on the financial strength of the company, internal
communications must also address more personal and specific issues that relate to day-to-day operations.
Employees want to know ‘what does it mean for me? ’ – Internal communications should focus on this.
5. The marketplace should dominate employee dialogue
The company’s external profile provides context for employees. From newsletters to employee meetings to
employee e-mails, we must use every opportunity to bring the customer and marketplace inside the company.
Competition, trends, industry issues, etc., provide employees with the proper frame of reference to assess their
performance and understand the company’s decisions.
6. Use a variety of existing communications
channels
In general people need to hear or see things 5-6 times
before they start believing it. Using a variety of channels
ensures that information will reach a broad base of
employees quickly and accounts for both an unwired or
mobile workforce.
This strategy also builds in an element of repetition and
consistency to the communication, which will aid comprehension. Finally, whilst written communication is
important for routine information sharing, the importance of face-to-face communication to engage staff and to
manage a change environment cannot be understated.
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Edelman Shanghai - December 2009
“We’re always looking for
ways to continuouslyimprove our internal
engagement – we rely on
employees to bring our
strategy to life, so this is
100% business critical.”
Internal Communications
Director
10 Action Imperatives
1. Understand the key business & strategy goals, andreflect these in employee engagement programs
2. Employees must hear news first from management –
not the newspaper or via office gossip
3. Provide as much detail as possible - without over-
promising
4. Bad news is preferable to no news
5. Duplicate communications to ensure key points are
heard & understood (e.g. briefings & letters, team
follow-up & bulletin boards)
6. Be consistent and honest in all communications
7. Avoid jargon and financial or corporate speak8. Be aware of cultural differences & nuances of language
9. Expect the unexpected – especially in personal
reactions & behaviours, and prepare managers
accordingly
10. See middle-managers as both an audience and a
conduit for information and messages.
7. Give managers and supervisors the resources they need
Direct reports play a critical role in the communications landscape, but they need information that helps them
speak knowledgably to their teams. Provide managers with “tool kits” to communicate information to staff. Put in
place ongoing channels for managers to pass on feedback to management and where they themselves can turn to
for support with dealing with employees’ questions and concerns.
8. Measurement gets you a seat in the board-room
Have mechanisms in place that will provide solid quantitative and qualitative
data on the response to internal communications format and content. This
assists management to make better decisions moving forward, but also helps
you benchmark attitudes and measure responses to decisions and events.
Metrics also help convince senior management of the benefit and impact of
employee engagement initiatives.
9. Proper treatment of employees is the new ‘green’ in CSR
Companies often overlook the impact CSR has on retaining and attractive top talent. Directing CSR efforts towards
employees is a powerful means of providing personal satisfaction and empowerment to staff for whom CSR
initiatives are a source of pride. Top talent will choose as a preference responsible employers they can be proud towork for.
According to the Edelman Trust Barometer, the three main drivers for corporate reputation in China are: job
creation, sound environmental policies and respect for local customs and tradition - “makes charitable
contributions” ranks as least important. The upshot of this is that business-aligned CSR drives trust in MNCs in
China. A company’s approach to corporate responsibility is increasingly seen as proxy for good management in
general, and marks a healthy approach to risk and opportunity. Having a reputation as a ‘good and responsible’
company is now business-critical for any MNC in China.
In Summary
Communicating about sensitive information is not
about spin or painting a rosy picture. Employees
want to hear the truth about the future of their
company, pay, benefits and job. In today’s
economic environment business change is
inevitable and employees understand this.
Companies need to develop internal
communications strategies for business change to
build a more informed and engaged workforce.
December 2009, Employee Engagement Practice,
Edelman Shanghai