A snapshot survey shows that although internal communication in UK plc is steadily improving, staff still feel unable to ‘speak up’.
Sixty-four per cent of workers claim to be aware of their organisation’s long term goals. A figure that compares to just 52% when the same sentiments were tested in 1999.
Kate Pritchard, pollster ORC International’s employee research manager commented: “Our research demonstrates that UK employers are increasingly recognising that effective internal communication is critical.”
Other key findings include:
- 55% of employees believe they are kept informed about what their company is doing, compared to 44% in 1999
- 56% of employees feel they are informed about matters affecting them, compared to 49% in 1999
- 65% of employees believe they are given enough information to do their jobs effectively, compared with 60% in 1999
Opportunities for employees to contribute their views didn’t fare so well, however, with just 45% agreeing they are able to offer their opinions before organisational changes are made. This represents a meagre 1% increase over the past six years.
Pritchard concludes: “True employee engagement comes from people feeling able to speak up and challenge the way things are done. This is why we now need to see more emphasis on upward communication, whereby employees are given channels through which to convey their views to management, as their input and suggestions can be enormously beneficial to an organisation, especially in times of change.”
