April 21, 2008

Give your HR communication a makeover

Everyone loves a good makeover story. Whether it's the transformation of a room or a person's outward appearance, witnessing the improvement of something is both inspiring and uplifting. Give your HR communication a makeover—and make it far more effective—by delivering messages that are more clear, easier to understand and employee-centric. Here are five easy steps to get started:

1. Be clear and conversational
   Make sure your materials are written in plain language. HR communication tends to be loaded with jargon and corporate buzzwords like "sustainability," "utilization," and "interface," which mean nothing and are confusing. Take a close look at your HR materials, or better yet, ask a non-HR colleague who you trust to review them to flag jargon for you.


2. Consider what your audience needs most
   Too often, HR communication is written to appease leaders and executives. Clear away lengthy explanations and background and cut to the chase: What are the key things employees need to know and do? Make sure your messages highlight these points up front.


3. Use visuals whenever possible
   Employees don't have time to read lengthy copy, so look for ways to communicate using photos, illustrations, callouts and sidebars. For example, a chart comparing the various medical plans or a graph showing projected 401(k) earnings over 20 years help employees get critical information in short order.


4. Write in the first or second person
   HR communication is often written in the third person, e.g., "Due to a large number of incorrectly filed forms this year, the Company has decided that all employees must participate in training to learn the online performance management system (whether or not they currently use the system)." Third-person writing is clunky and awkward, doesn't engage employees and is wrong for something as personal as HR and benefits.


5. Communicate at the right time
   When communicating is your job, you might feel it's not your place to tell your stakeholders to hold off on sending messages, but sometimes that's exactly what you need to do. Don't communicate benefits changes until they're about to take effect. No one needs a message explaining a program where the only action item is to look for another message with more details in two months.