9 Ways to Enhance Top-Down Communication

Ensuring effective top-down communication is a key responsibility of senior management. However, many organizations still struggle with ineffective communication.

According to our benchmarks for Employee Opinion and Engagement Surveys, only 54.3% of employees feel that communication flows effectively from upper management to employees. This is unfortunate. When management doesn’t consistently communicate openly with employees, the result is an unproductive work environment filled with speculative rumors and a loss of trust in management.

When the CEO or president regularly communicates with all employees, whether through e-mail, video, or a town hall meeting, most employees appreciate the communication. The challenge for senior managers is that they will never be fully effective at getting the communication down to the front lines unless they are supported by managers and supervisors who place a high value on making sure employees are kept “in the loop.”

The following 9 tips will help increase your effectiveness when communicating with employees. These tips are simple, but they can make a world of difference in an organization. When managers use these techniques, employees notice not only better communication with their boss, but greater morale in their department.

Over-communicate
Increase the frequency of your communication, particularly during periods of rapid organizational change. Tell your employees what you know, even if you preface it with, “Based on what I know today…but it could change tomorrow.” Telling employees what you know, even if it may be subject to change, helps build trust. On the other hand, withholding information erodes trust levels between management and employees.

Keep Your Door Open
Whenever possible, keep your office door open. In addition, make sure your body language also tells employees that you have an “open door policy.” Crossing your arms, sighing over interruptions, and not looking at the speaker all say that you may be accessible, but not approachable.

Review Schedules
Keep your employees updated on your schedule. Knowing your schedule will help them prioritize their work and allow them to make better decisions relevant to supporting you. Likewise, knowing their schedules/deadlines will help you understand their current pressures.

Offer Assistance
On a regular basis, ask your employees, “What do you need from me?” Doing so gives employees the opportunity to update you on projects. It also prompts you to provide the information needed to keep those projects on schedule.

Check In Frequently
If you are away from the office, touch base with your support team on a regular basis. Doing so allows you to respond quickly to messages and troubleshoot potential issues that may have surfaced in your absence. It also says to your employees, indirectly, “I care enough to check in with you when I’m gone.”

Hold Regular Meetings
Keep employees informed about management decisions, goals, and direction. Allow employees time to question issues that impact them. Have employees update one another on the status of their projects. Scheduling short, well-planned departmental meetings on an ongoing basis will not only keep employees informed, but boost team effectiveness.

Keep Personalized Files
Keep an anecdotal file for each employee. Doing so will help you stay informed and current about that particular employee. A simple note saying, “Janice said that she plans on taking a web design course in the fall,” will not only help you remember the fact, but impress Janice when you bring the point up in a later conversation.

Conduct Quarterly Reviews
Want to make annual reviews less dreaded for both manager and employee? Conduct quarterly reviews. Doing so allows the employee time throughout the year to address performance issues. Meeting with an employee on a quarterly basis also conveys to the employee, “Your success is important to me.”

Tackle Tough Issues
Conflict is alive and well in most organizations. What differs from organization to organization is the way conflict is handled. Healthy organizations address conflict. We recently ran across the term “carefrontation.” It takes courage and guts to honestly communicate the real issues to people. When you do not honestly discuss but instead sidestep the tough issues, employees may feel that you do not care. If you do care, you will confront people with compassion. When you honestly communicate, even the tough issues, people trust you because they know you really value them.
Communication is an art, not a science. You can easily learn principles related to communication, but to become a master, you must practice. Monet was not a great artist the first time he put brush to canvas. It took years of practice! With practice and commitment to effectively communicating with employees, you will eventually become known as a “great boss!”