Andie Burjek, Author at Workforce

April 30, 2019June 29, 2023

Instant Messaging: The Future of Communication, With Caveats

The days of face-to-face meetings and group emails may soon be coming to an end. From texting job candidates and using Slack for project management, to building artificially intelligent chatbots that answer questions about human resources, communication technology in the workplace is evolving. All of this is a good thing, said Sharon O’Dea, a digital and social media consultant based in the U.K. These tools enable faster, more efficient communication, via the devices employees have in their hands all the time, she said. “We all use instant messaging in our personal lives. It is natural to see that shift into the workplace.”

Younger workers are far more likely to choose text or Slack over email or phone calls, which they view as cumbersome and outdated, said Adam Ochstein, CEO of StratEx, an HR technology and consulting firm based in Chicago. Email can also be tricky for contract workers and frontline staff, who may rarely check their emails but always have their phones. “They want to communicate in real time with their fingers, not their voices.”

The use of instant and automated technology to support communication isn’t going away, so managers need to get on board or risk creating information gaps in the workplace. A 2017 report from Dynamic Signal found that only 17 percent of companies had recently invested in technology for internal communication, even though 73 percent said communicating company information to employees was a “serious challenge.”

While chatbots won’t be taking over the way we engage any time soon, the tools we use are evolving, and skeptical managers need to get on board, Ochstein said. “If you want to be an employer of choice for this generation, you’ve got to adapt.

Conversation Bots

Along with changing how employees communicate, new technologies are also changing what information they can share, said Rob High, chief technology officer for IBM Watson, IBM’s cognitive computing system. “Artificial intelligence tools, at their most basic, improve the likelihood that employees can find and share information as they communicate.” This enables faster problem-solving and ensures they can make decisions based on data, not gut instinct. High envisions a day where AI conversation agents will be the third party in a conversation, automatically searching for information and providing context.

Also read: Meet Your New Colleague: Artificial Intelligence

High’s team has also created the AI-driven IBM tone analyzer, which uses linguistic analysis to examine the emotion in text messages. The goal is to help employees vet the “tone” of texts and emails, just as you might spell-check before hitting send. “It’s an efficient way to reduce misunderstandings,” he said. High believes AI technology will change the way we communicate at work and at home.

O’Dea agreed. “Chatbots offer huge potential for employee communication. They can take over the tasks that are needlessly complicated.” She believes early applications will focus on things like filling out employment forms, requesting days off and accessing personal data. “Chatbots can provide employees with instant access to this information through an app, which is where they spend more of their time anyway,” she said. For those who think chatbots are too inhuman for workplace communication, O’Dea believes it’s the opposite. Many employee communication platforms and corporate emails are “generic and impersonal, but chatbots can have human conversations,” she said.

In an era of social sharing, the casual nature of texts in the workplace can put companies at risk.

The Trouble With Text

The adoption of instant communication in the workplace isn’t all good news. In an era of social sharing, the casual nature of texts in the workplace can put companies at risk. We’ve all read the stories of managers cursing out employees for some minor infraction or flirting in a way that makes someone uncomfortable, only to have those conversations go viral and result in someone getting fired.

“There is a fine line between casual conversations and inappropriate content, and instant messaging makes that line very easy to cross,” StratEx’s Ochstein said. It’s rarely intentional. He recalls a recent day at his own company when employees were using Slack to discuss whether the company’s “no-shorts policy” should be abandoned when temperatures rise above 90 degrees. That evolved into a conversation about why female employees were lucky because they can wear skirts, which led to a “guys vs. girls in the workplace” battle. “That’s when the HR team had to get involved and shut it down,” he said. “It was innocent banter, but all of [the] sudden it was going in a direction no one wanted.”

Such scenarios are all too common, particularly when teams work long hours together or are out celebrating a project success. “One person may think a text is funny, where the other thinks it’s inappropriate,” he said. “But once you send it, you can’t get it back.”

The instant nature of these tools also creates legal issues with hourly gig workers. If a manager sends an email at night, it is assumed a contractor will respond the next day, but if they send an instant message the implication is that they expect an instant response. “Does that mean you have to pay them for that time?” Ochstein pondered. “Once you cross that chasm, the legal stuff can get bad.”

That doesn’t mean companies shouldn’t use instant messaging apps to interact with employees, but they should define clear policies for their use. Ochstein advised “over-communicating” to employees about texting protocol and reminding them that anything they say on text is as admissible as any other document. He also urged HR leaders to promote a culture of caution. “Encourage them to pause and think about whether a message could be construed as not respectful,” he said. “If there is any chance it could be construed as rude or not respectful, don’t send it.”

April 29, 2019June 29, 2023

Personal Lessons in Communicating Change

At the start of the year, I took a personal crash course in navigating organizational change. Despite consulting on issues around change management for most of my career, I learned it’s a different animal when you’re right in the middle of it yourself. Going through a big change reinforced a lot of what I know — and it gave me some new insights.

The source of all this change? My company, Benz Communications, joined forces with The Segal Group on Jan. 1. By absolutely all measures, this was — and is — an awesome step for our team, our business and our clients.

Segal is an 80-year-old privately held employee benefits and HR consulting firm that works with an amazing group of clients around the country. Our communications team doubled from 30 to 60 people, and we are so proud to be part of an organization with Segal’s history, values, people and clients. One of my favorite comments from a member of my team was “I feel like I just got an even better job — along with 30 of my best friends.”

Still, all the good stuff doesn’t mean change isn’t hard.

One of the things I learned is that it takes people a while to digest information when they are caught off guard. Fortunately, we were able to share our news in person with the Benz team during our annual end-of-year celebration in November.

But they were expecting to enjoy the time with colleagues and rejoice in all the great work we created during the year; no one was expecting me to announce a huge organizational change like this. That kind of surprise, no matter how good the news is, creates anxiety.

Also in Benefits Beat: Make Benefits and Internal Communications Inseparable

One of my team members said, “I know your lips were moving, but I didn’t absorb a thing you said.” It highlights an important lesson for corporate communicators, reinforcing why you have to give people time to absorb information and why you need to say things many times and in multiple ways.

It was also a reminder that leaders and employees experience change in entirely different ways. When I talk to clients about this, I tell them to remember that leaders have more context, more insight, more control and more notice.

It takes people a while to digest information when they are caught off guard. No matter how good the news is, surprise creates anxiety.

Those factors make it hard to put themselves in employees’ shoes. Even so, I was surprised by how big a blind spot I had in predicting my team’s concerns. Fortunately, people felt comfortable telling me exactly what they and their colleagues needed (it helps to have several communications consultants among them!). But over and over, I was disappointed in myself for not being able to anticipate their concerns on my own.

One example: Benefits changes are hard — even for a team of benefits experts. We didn’t have much time to move the Benz team onto Segal’s systems and benefits.

It’s hard getting up to speed on new programs, understanding how they compare to the old ones and making decisions — especially when you have so many other questions and concerns bubbling around. And present discomfort obscures long-term gain.

Our benefits package at Segal is far richer than what we had as a small business — we have a 401(k) match and a pension plan! But when your prescription ID card doesn’t arrive and you’re at the pharmacy with a sick kiddo, you’re not thinking about your pension plan.

And that was a big lesson for me. In times of change, not only do you need to communicate more, but you also need to thoughtfully engineer the small stuff.

Also in Benefits Beat: Employers Should Be Bold With Their Benefits

Go above and beyond to make sure there are no kinks in the systems or information flow. I recently caught up with a longtime friend and client who works for a large global corporation. She is immersed in M&A all year, because their business strategy relies so much on acquiring new companies. She said they have perfected almost everything about acquiring new companies — except delivering medical plan ID cards. That’s still a huge pain point for new employees and the one thing that continues to be a disconnect. It’s the small stuff.

I hope these personal anecdotes will help you navigate your next big change. While they are the lessons learned, we did plenty of things the right way, too.

Most importantly, we started from a place of trust and transparency, built from an employee-centered culture. And we joined an organization that shares our core values and also prioritizes doing the right thing for employees. Those are the best things any organization can have to help navigate the inevitable changes ahead.

April 24, 2019October 31, 2023

Top Effects & Causes of Poor Communication

Summary

Employees across various industries report poor communication as one of the leading challenges they face during the workday.
Poor communication has a negative impact on both employee productivity and mental health.
A mix of face-to-face meetings, training, and using communication software helps mitigate the effects of poor communication.

The workplace is increasingly connected, with 24/7 email, instant messaging and phone calls pulling employees into work matters both during and after business hours. But that doesn’t necessarily mean employees are better connected to each other. Often, all that information can become white noise.

The study “Communication Barriers in the Modern Workplace,” conducted by the Economist Intelligence Unit and sponsored by Lucidchart, has taken stock of communication in the workplace today, and the results suggest leaders have some work to do.

Also read: How to use technology in your internal communications strategy

The State of (Mis)Communication

EIU’s study of 403 executives, managers and staff at U.S. companies found that, across the board, employees believe miscommunication is contributing to their stress, failure to complete projects and loss of sales. “This is not just an unpleasantry. This is really affecting the performance of the company,” said Nathan Rawlins, chief marketing officer at Lucid Software, makers of Lucidchart.

Rawlins emphasized, “Employers just don’t even understand that this is a challenge. We talk about things like diversity and as part of that conversation don’t talk about the fact there are diverse ways of communicating.”

Miscommunication takes on many forms. According to the study, different communication styles, unclear responsibilities and time pressures are the three most frequently cited causes of poor communication. Focusing on communication styles, employees’ struggles to connect often result in unclear expectations that are amplified under pressure.

Employees believe miscommunication is contributing to their stress, failure to complete projects and loss of sales.

The data show that miscommunication is more severe across generational divides. “Nearly a third of millennials and Gen Xers said that they have used instant messaging every day in the past year to communicate with colleagues or clients,” Rawlins said. Only 12 percent of baby boomers reported a similar trend. This leaves part of the workforce with one less way to connect with one another, reducing the likelihood of effective message delivery.

Hierarchy impacts communication as well. Leaders have a hard time making direct contact with their frontline employees, for example. Those serving as bridges between higher-ups and nonsupervisory employees, the middle managers, tend to face the most communication trouble, having to navigate different goals and desires from above and below. “They tend to get caught in the middle of conflicting communication preferences,” Rawlins said.

Loss of morale, stress and frustration abound when employees can’t connect. That’s a burden employees may carry home with them, affecting their home life and future work performance.

The report found that in addition to its effect on productivity, miscommunication also has a heavy emotional impact on employees. Loss of morale, stress and frustration abound when employees can’t connect. That’s a burden employees may carry home with them, affecting their home life and future work performance.

Employees reported that too many unproductive meetings, tight deadlines and waiting for others to pass along information in order to continue working were the top three most stressful situations.

Also read: When Your Workday Is Interrupted, and Interrupted Again and Again

“These inconsistencies in the pattern of how managers who lead are communicating is leading to challenges,” said Philipp Schramm, chief financial officer and vice president of human resources and communications at Webasto Roof Systems Americas. “People are worried, rumors start and that’s a major problem.”

Technological Impact

Surprisingly, the study found a discrepancy between the tools employees know are effective and the ones they continue to use. For example, only 22 percent of employees reported they have meetings every day despite their reported effectiveness. Also, 60 percent of employees said they use email every day, but only 40 percent said it’s very effective at sharing information.

Many reported that technology is actually hurting communication as it has drastically cut down on direct communication, allowing employees to default to tools like email rather than phone calls and meetings. As a result, employees no longer have access to nonverbal cues like tone of voice, gestures and visuals to help them understand messages.

Sixty-five percent of employees reported that face-to-face meetings were very effective for sharing information, making them the most effective method the study examined. That number didn’t change across generations. That means employees may feel they’re missing out on important information, even if fewer meetings and phone calls reduce wasted time and interruptions to their workflow.

However, tools utilizing technology like video conferencing, slide presentations and even conference calls can reestablish some of the elements of visual and face-to-face communication that employees are looking for. For international businesses, digital conferencing has already become an essential element of the workday, and it may become increasingly important to connect with remote workers.

“These are all forms of communication,” Schramm said. “To say that one form of communication is best I think would be the wrong approach to it. It depends on the situation.”

To say that one form of communication is best I think would be the wrong approach to it. It depends on the situation.”

— Philipp Schramm, chief financial officer and vice president of human resources and communications at Webasto Roof Systems Americas

How Can Training Help?

While it may not be possible to completely change one’s communication style, the No. 1 cause of miscommunication found by the EIU, it is possible to become more aware of others’ communication styles through training. However, employees may be missing out on the right kind of training.

Schramm stated that some organizations don’t see communication as a topic where training is essential. “They say, ‘Why do you spend time on communication? We all learn how to communicate. We all learn how to speak.’ ” He emphasized that existing communication training programs tend to focus more on presentation than on communication. This makes them ineffective.

“In the end, it’s not about presenting yourself in an organization; it’s about how we interact with each other,” Schramm said.

One study found that even short communication training sessions for doctors improved patient satisfaction, as well as reduced burnout for participants. Communication training helped doctors better connect to those they serve, and the same can apply to other organizations.

Sixty-two percent of respondents to the EIU study said they believed firmwide training to improve communication would have a significant impact. Additionally, 57 percent of responders reported they enjoyed working with people who have different communication styles. They just need the training to understand how to better communicate among them.

“I think that’s absolutely critical, that we help people understand that not everyone communicates the same way they do,” Rawlins said.

Communication training is more than just increasing written communication skills. It should include training on verbal communication and basic training on the use of new communication tools. As the generational divide between millennials and boomers emphasizes, for example, training on the uses of instant messaging could expand use of the technology and increase efficacy.

More important, communication training should include opportunities to practice in realistic situations. “We think that this is a great opportunity for workshops and practice sessions where people can try different ways of communicating than they’re probably most familiar with,” Rawlins said.

Schramm echoed this point. “Put more emphasis actually on the doing. Don’t put too much emphasis on learning the theory behind,” he said.

Schramm’s team at Webasto has already overhauled the company’s communication training program with great success. “With putting a lot of effort on fairness and proper communication within the organization we have improved in just 15 months from the worst company McKinsey has seen to the second-best category,” Schramm said. And that overhaul has had an impact on the personal lives of employees who reported they are communicating better outside the office, as well.

What’s Next?

Overcoming communication problems needs to be a team effort. Schramm stated that it is the job of leaders to guide teams toward the right tools. “I think that’s the kind of understanding a leader has to get: what tool, what way of communication to use for what situation without losing your authenticity,” he said.

With the help of training, perhaps all employees can gain that level of understanding. Rawlins said, “One of the key skills is recognition of the type of communication patterns that are most common with the people you are working with.” Across the board, individuals should strive to better understand the communication methods that work best for their teams. Learning leaders can facilitate this process by ensuring all team members have the vocabulary to do so.

The workplace is only going to continue to change. That means additional stress on employees and a greater variety of tools available to employers. But by improving how they communicate now, teams at all levels can be ready to navigate what’s to come.

“As we understand this data, as we take a step back and think about communication, we can actually affect the bottom line,” Rawlins said. “We can help people be more effective, help them to be less stressed at work, focus on the things that matter most and ultimately improve the way that the business operates.”

This story originally appeared in Workforce’s sister publication, Chief Learning Officer.

April 23, 2019June 29, 2023

Employees Learn Gardening Basics Through Workplace Program

Fresh fruits and vegetables may be a luxury for certain people and communities, but some organizations are taking a proactive step by creating companywide gardens on their campuses.

Intuit Inc. and PayPal are two companies that use StartOrganic in their workplaces. Founded by Josh Levine and Troy Smothermon in 2011, StartOrganic is a California-based company that brings organic gardening education to employers, schools and private residences.

For organizations with larger locations like Intuit’s Silicon Valley campus and PayPal’s campus in San Jose, employees can plant and harvest their bounty at work. For smaller organizations or high-rise offices, there are educational programs so employees can start gardening at own home.

The art and the science of growing one’s own food has been lost, Levine said, and companies can carry the social influence needed to promote that.

“If they’re able to provide growing space or if they champion a cause like, ‘It’s important for people to know how to grow their own food,’ then they’ll influence the community around them,” he said.

Even on campuses with a lot of space for corporate gardens, that’s not necessarily the end goal of the program, according to Levine.

“We’re there every week to teach them the ins and outs of practically growing their own food so that they can take that home and start their own home garden,” he said. StartOrganic provides gardening tools on site, from trowels to cutting utensils.

Smothermon or Levine will hold a monthly class for all the growers to prepare them for the next month of their garden. Additionally, one of them goes on site once a week to answer questions and provide guidance to growers.

Also read: Green Thumbs and Living Walls in Urban Areas

Robert Scontrino, developing engineering manager at PayPal, is one employee who has taken his gardening skills back to his home, where he has a 2-year-old daughter and two garden plots. “That’s something that I might not have done if I wasn’t part of this program,” he said.

It also allows Scontrino to carry on a tradition that he grew up with as a boy. His grandfather did a lot of gardening. While Scontrino didn’t do very much in his grandfather’s garden, he spent a lot of time in the garden itself, observing what was going on and eating the food.

“[The PayPal garden] does bring back some of those memories,” he said. “There’s a lot of rosemary in the garden, and smelling that rosemary actually brings back some very fond memories of me spending time with my grandfather in his garden.”

Scontrino also enjoys the campus garden because it allows him to meet people with similar interests. The overall experience has been “quite the learning experience,” he said, and he’s picked up knowledge like what plants grow in what seasons, how to grow them and when to pick them.

Also read: Workplace Gardens Taking Root

He also appreciates gardening as a way to help relieve the stress of the work day. He tries to find the time to walk to the garden a couple times a day to unwind and see what’s going on.

Gay Jacobs, executive assistant to VP, general counsel, at PayPal, also participates in the program. As someone who appreciates organic food and has a plant-based diet, this is one way for her to access healthy, fresh organic food. “It’s been eye-opening just to see the process and to see how long it takes to grow [vegetables] and how much fresher they are.”

She typically spends time in the garden twice a week, on Tuesdays when Levine is there to answer questions, and on Fridays before the weekend starts. During growing season, she can check on her plants before the weekend, then in harvest season she’ll pick food that she can use the following Sunday to meal-prep for work. She starts out each day with a protein-packed green smoothie and eats salads every day.

Jacobs also appreciates the social and community aspect of the garden. “You see everyone else out their tending to their gardens, and we talk about what’s going on,” she said. If she and other gardeners are growing different things they sometimes will share with each other.

Also read: Consider Fresh Air and Relaxed Hikes to Combat Work Stress

Loved ones in her life also give her ideas on what to do with her harvest. “One time, I had a foot-long zucchini. I didn’t know what to do with it!” she said. A friend suggested she make zucchini bread, and after experimenting with the recipe, it’s now one of her favorite things to make. She’s looking forward to zucchini season this year so that she can further perfect her recipe.

Gardening has allowed her to add new elements to her go-to dishes and soups. For example, while she was growing broccoli, she noticed how big the leaves were and wondered if they were edible. After some research, she confirmed that they are edible and chops them up for soups.

PayPal has 56 plots, up from 15 plots when the program began in 2013, and generally two employees share a plot, said Julie Vennewitz-Pierce, director of PayPal Gives. All employees are welcome to sign up and there’s usually a wait list that gives employees a spot on a first-come, first-served basis.

“The goal was, and still is, to provide an opportunity for employees to grow fresh vegetables, herbs and flowers in the spirit of environmental sustainability and employee wellness,” Vennewitz-Pierce said.

Moving forward, this year PayPal is working with StartOrganics to launch a composting program. Employees can learn how to compost scraps for their plots and how use that compost in their gardens.

PayPal also has a garden with 40 plots at its offices in Omaha, Nebraska, Vennewitz-Pierce said. This one isn’t managed by a vendor but by the company’s facilities team.

Currently, StartOrganic operates in California, Smothermon said. California works best from a logistical point of view. Growing seasons are different in various geographic areas of the country, and there are certain plant diseases that happen in some parts of the country but not others.

But its founders are open to working other places, he added. For example, a company in New York requested its services for an educational program.

“No matter where you’re growing, there are some basics that are universal,” Smothermon said. “Even in New York, once the weather warms up a bit, you want to have the same sort of infrastructure.”

April 15, 2019October 18, 2024

Successfully Communicating Across Cultures

In early 2016, Emma Seddon picked up her life in the U.K. and moved across the world to China on a three-year international secondment in her role as talent development manager at Jaguar Land Rover. Her colleagues who had previously completed long-term assignments in China warned of “shang-highs and shang-lows,” and gave her as much advice as possible.

Of course, some things must be learned on one’s own. Seddon recalls trying to order noodles without meat in her best Mandarin and the server responding with a stream of Chinese she couldn’t understand, to which she said she was left noodle-less, hungry and frustrated. At work, language differences also posed challenging. Seddon said meetings would often slip into Chinese, which put her at a disadvantage if she missed chunks of the discussion. “I’ve found that making an effort to learn the language really helps; local colleagues appreciate this, and it can be a good way to break back into the conversation,” she said. For example, she might say “I heard you say ‘yi bai wu,’ is that 150?” “Then they will laugh as I will have undoubtedly got it wrong, and switch back to speaking in English,” she said.

While language is a clear barrier in those situations, Seddon encountered many nonverbal cultural differences at work. One challenge she didn’t anticipate was that many decisions are made outside of formal meetings. “Lunch is a big deal in China; everyone leaves the office between 12 p.m. and 1 p.m. and goes to the canteen or a local restaurant and the in-meeting discussion will continue during this time,” she said. “As a foreigner this can leave you one step behind, and so it’s incredibly important to develop some close relationships with colleagues who can help to keep you in the loop.”

Seddon said even when employees do understand and appreciate cultural norms, there is always a risk that they default to their natural style when under pressure, which is common in a fast-paced work environment. She said she often sees this around meeting etiquette. “In China, it’s not seen as impolite to continue a conversation on your phone during a meeting, while Western colleagues see this as a lack of respect,” she said. “Similarly, I often hear Western colleagues using technical or colloquial British terms or speak rapidly, which can make it difficult for Chinese colleagues to follow the discussion.”

Seddon said companies with a global footprint can gain a competitive edge if they are able to harness and leverage the international diversity inherent in their global markets, but the challenges are significant. Language and social norms change across the globe and employees need targeted training to successfully communicate across cultures.

Companies with a global footprint can gain a competitive edge if they are able to harness and leverage the international diversity inherent in their global markets, but the challenges are significant.

Cross-Cultural Training

Before Seddon relocated to China, she had a two-day intercultural awareness training that included topics such as “stepping out of your cultural bubble,” which focused on how behaviors are value driven, and how values are derived from our cultural background. She said the training also discussed potential barriers to intercultural communication and culture shock, both from a business and personal perspective. Other cultural training programs do the same thing, though they vary.

Berlitz Corp. is a global leadership training and language education company that aims to help individuals within an organization understand how cultural values drive behavior in other countries.

“We’re trying to help them to become better communicators, better observers,” said Diana Anderson, director of cultural training solutions at Berlitz. “Once they understand more about the values that drive behaviors, they are then able to modify their personal styles, their interaction styles, their communication styles, to work more successfully with those individuals in other countries.”

Anderson defines cultural competence as the ability to navigate, communicate and interact effectively when encountering cultural differences. “The goal is to make sure people get the kind of information they need, have the practice in these different cultures and then once they have this ability to recognize differences, to then react in a way that mitigates those differences,” she said. “Then organizations can take that individual and put them in any culture around the world.”

Berlitz offers group-oriented programs that focus on global cultural competence and cultural diversity and inclusion. For example, there is an intercultural business skills program that focuses on developing cross-cultural business communication skills that are practiced by building relationships, teamwork and exercising leadership across cultures. The diversity and inclusion programs focus on how bias shows up in or outside of the workplace and the dynamics of unconscious bias, Anderson said.

Anderson said understanding one’s own national culture and how one sees themselves is vital to being culturally competent. “Culture is central to how we make sense of what we see and how we express ourselves,” she said. “When we embark on a cultural journey toward cultural competence, it’s incredibly important that people understand how they’re showing up in the world — how the national culture, how the corporate culture they’ve been working in, how all of that influences who they are and how their personal preferences really drive behavior.”

She said the first step in all the programs is self-awareness and helping people understand themselves. If someone knows they are a hierarchical person, for example, they will look at the way people answer emails in a certain way, or they may be more likely to look to a manager to make more decisions than someone who is more equality-oriented within their corporate culture, Anderson said. “It’s identifying where you show up and then where there might be some potential obstacles,” she said.

In China, Seddon said being aware of her natural style and how her behaviors may be interpreted by others has been critical in working with people of a different culture. “When developing a learning solution, my preference would be to seek input from a range of stakeholders in line with my preference toward collaboration,” she said. “In the U.K., I may pull together a mixed-grade focus group. However, in China I’ve learned that the lower-grade employees won’t offer any feedback if higher-grade managers are in the room, as this would open them up to the risk of losing face or being humiliated, if for example the manager disagreed with them.” Instead, Seddon said having one-on-one offline conversations provides a safe environment and is more productive.

Communication Culture Clashes

Anderson said a lot of challenges arise between direct communicators and indirect communicators. “Your direct communication or your way of speaking might seem like you’re yelling at an individual or that you are being overly emotional or rude when you are giving direction or having a conversation,” Anderson said. “We focus on helping you understand what you’re bringing to the table and how you’re being perceived by others and finding ways you can modify your behavior to communicate in a more successful way.”

Another challenge, especially for managers, is communicating in a face-saving culture. For example, Anderson said there are certain things an American managing someone in Japan wouldn’t want to do in front of others. “In a meeting you wouldn’t want to give feedback that’s negative, but you also might not want to give feedback that’s positive because Japan is a more collectivistic society,” Anderson said. “You would want to give that negative or constructive feedback to that individual in a private setting.”

Anderson said meetings in many Asian cultures are not for brainstorming as they often are in America; rather the meeting is to give a message, then the conversation or clarification of what happened in the meeting happens outside the formal meeting. “Getting information about the norms of other cultures, identifying how other people communicate and show up is going to help you modify your style in order to fit better into that environment and keep your integrity and dignity,” Anderson said.

“ Culture is central to how we make sense of what we see and how we express ourselves.”

— Diana Anderson, director of cultural training solutions at Berlitz

Cultural clashes can also happen when one person is used to taking initiative and the other is used to asking a manager to make the decisions, Anderson said. “The person who wants to take initiative is assuming that person is going to jump right in and begin the work. And that person is assuming that the other person understands that they need to go to their manager to get a sign off which might take longer,” Anderson said. “All these little nuances create cross-cultural clashes that those who are not as culturally competent look at as a front against them. But in the cultural field, you need to ask questions, analyze specific situations and assume good intent.”

Coaching Multicultural Employees

“The communication challenges are what typically hold back progress for multicultural employees,” said Nadia Nassif, founder and CEO of Springboards Consulting, which offers career development and leadership coaching programs for native and nonnative English speakers.

Springboards Consulting has a team of cross-cultural and professional communication coaches who helpa multicultural workers develop and advance their careers. Nassif began Springboards in 2008 after working in Tokyo for almost two years. During her time in Tokyo, a few people mentored and supported her and helped her practice language skills, gain a cultural understanding and receive feedback. “For that reason, I had a better experience and ended up staying longer in Japan in my role,” she said. She kept her experiences in mind as she came back and saw multiculturl employees experiencing similar challenges in the U.S.

Nassif said an important part of Springboards’ coaching is peer feedback, as multicultural employees often do not get constructive feedback at work. She said the feedback they receive from peer reviews or annual performance reviews is often limited and lacks clarity. That feedback often comes from upper management and is missing more information and context from a specialist who can dig deep around the cultural issues, she said. “Our peer review process uses a careful collection of peer input before, during and after the coaching, which helps to create a target for the learning and keeps it fresh,” Nassif said. “It gives multicultural individuals the advocacy they need for an equal playing field.”

Feedback is especially important for people who come from cultures where it isn’t appropriate to ask for feedback, said Debora Bloom, an independent organization development consultant and a Springboards coach. Bloom said having a mentor is helpful for multicultural employees to feel comfortable in the American business context. “When learning a new language, it’s hard to always know the best way to put things,” she said. “It’s helpful to have someone to ask, ‘Can I use this phrase? What’s the best way to say this or that?’ ” She added that reading biographies and novels is a great way to gain a cultural understanding.

In additional to verbal communication, physical communication can also be different across cultures. “In our American culture, we really evaluate the firm handshake,” she said. “When people are coming from Asian countries or some African countries, they are not used to that kind of handshake and have to learn it.”

Multicultural employee Nicolle Campa is the director of human resources for Fox News bureaus. In her view, the best way to learn how to successfully communicate across cultures is simply to communicate and interact with others.

“I don’t think there’s some actual training you can go to. I don’t think that this is the situation where you can just go to a training and an hour and a half later, you come out saying, ‘Alright, I got it,’ ” Campa said. “There may be some cultural awareness training that one can go through that can start sparking that level of attention and awareness, but I think interacting with people that are different from you is a better way to be able to get that — for lack of a better term — training.”

A Twofold Approach

Springboards’ Nassif emphasized that addressing communication challenges is a twofold approach: helping individual employees be successful and helping management communicate. “Not everything is an accent or a speech communication issue. Not everything is a remedial developmental issue,” Nassif said.

Nassif said even if there is a great coach, if there is not support, infrastructure and validation from a manager, it’s hard for a multicultural employee to know they are doing well. “If they’re not getting routine validation or feedback throughout the process, then it doesn’t stick,” Nassif said. “It doesn’t help them validate and understand where there’s career growth.”

Campa, who is originally from Puerto Rico, said the best managers she has encountered in her career are the ones who take the time to ask her questions. For example, “if I were interacting with somebody with your background, with your culture, what would be an ideal way that I could communicate better?” Campa said. “Those type of questions that are coming from a good place — that are curious but at the same time respectful — I think that makes a difference.”

Nassif said developing cultural awareness and understanding in management is vital to creating an inclusive environment that is supportive and moralizing for multicultural individuals, who are becoming a much larger part of the workforce. She said diversity and inclusion efforts and awareness around unintentional bias can help managers become more globally and inclusively minded for a stronger workforce.

Employee experiences are still largely shaped by managers. Nassif said if management lacks the cultural awareness or sensitivity, and developmental needs are viewed as remedial, it’s not going to be a motivating environment that’s conducive to growth. “Their whole developmental journey is often set on course by a manager who would advocate for their growth or invest in them,” Nassif said. “For multicultural individuals often unfamiliar with all the rules of the game, or the internal politics, it’s really critical to have the right infrastructure.”

April 2, 2019June 29, 2023

Keep on Top of Your Employees’ Eye Health

The importance of good eye health is often underappreciated in the working environment. Many conditions or diseases of the eye — such as cataracts, disorders affecting the retina, dry eyes and uncorrected refractive conditions — can have a substantial impact on employee productivity and well-being. Fortunately, there is much that employers can do to maintain an eye-friendly working environment and promote eye health among their employees.

Most problems with the eyes occur gradually over time — so gradually, in fact, that people may not even attribute their problems to failing vision. Cataracts are a good example of this. The leading cause of vision loss for people over the age of 40, cataracts occur when the lens of the eye, normally clear, very gradually starts to become cloudy. Another condition associated with aging is presbyopia, which also develops slowly as the lens of the eye becomes thicker and less flexible, losing its ability to focus light onto the retina. The retina itself can break down over time, such as with a condition known as age-related macular degeneration, or AMD. AMD is another leading cause of blindness in older people.

Dry eye disease can also affect work performance. This occurs when there are not enough quality tears to properly lubricate the eye. As a result, eyes can become itchy, painful and irritated. Vision may become blurry or eyes may water excessively. Left untreated, dry eye disease can lead to damage of the cornea.

The effect of conditions such as these on work performance can be subtle at first. Employees may experience difficulty seeing and reading in reduced lighting. Driving in poorly lit areas can become increasingly challenging. They may find themselves unable to look at computer screens, read documents or do close work for as long as they used to without experiencing problems such as headaches or eyestrain. Glare from sunlight, overhead lighting or headlights may bother them more than before. The added effort and strain can make them feel sleepy or irritable.

Also read: Vision is the Must-Have Benefit for 2019

Certain work environments can contribute to the development of eye disease. For instance, exposure to blue light from the screens of electronic devices or from prolonged exposure to sunlight from working outdoors without proper eye protection can contribute to the development of cataracts or AMD. Environments with diminished ambient humidity or prolonged computer use can contribute to symptoms of dry eyes. Overhead lighting or indirect sunlight shining on the work surface can also cause symptoms of dry eyes or eyestrain.

When doing their jobs, or simply being on the job site, causes increasing discomfort, employees may avoid work, or take more and longer breaks. They may not even realize their discomfort is due to eye issues. Many may attribute these changes to other health problems, such as depression or poor sleep, or they may chalk it up to losing interest in their work or simply getting older. If these issues are left unchecked for long enough, failing vision can lead to serious workplace accidents and permanent damage to the eyes may occur.

Addressing environmental contributors to eye disease and discomfort can help minimize the eye problems that affect work performance. Ensure that indoor air is clean and properly humidified. Evaluate lighting and determine what changes can be made to minimize glare on surfaces. Computers and other light-emitting screens can be fitted with filters that block blue light. Employees who work outdoors should be provided with proper eye protection, such as sunglasses that effectively block UV radiation.

But the most effective way of maintaining good eye health is by encouraging employees to undergo a comprehensive annual eye exam. This will identify problems early so that employees maintain a high level of job performance, the risk of accidents due to vision impairment is reduced, and eye conditions are treated promptly, possibly staving off permanent vision loss. An annual comprehensive eye examination may also catch conditions such as diabetic retinopathy, hypertension and vascular problems that can impact both eye and overall health long before the condition causes a vision symptom. People are three times more likely to get an annual eye exam than an annual physical, making the eye exam an even more important touchpoint between employees and preventive health care.

To encourage employees to undergo an annual eye exam, make sure that vision care coverage is included in their health benefits package. It can also be helpful to hold eye health awareness seminars or other events to teach employees about the importance of taking care of their eyes.

March 28, 2019June 29, 2023

Sector Report: Wellness Valuable as a Recruiting Tool

Wellness benefits have officially changed teams. These health-inspired programs and resources are no longer viewed as health care initiatives, but rather as a “new talent value proposition,” said Mike Maniccia, specialist leader for Deloitte in Los Angeles.

“The origins of wellness programs were about saving money by creating a healthier workforce,” he says. But the financial returns on wellness investments have been notoriously difficult to measure, which diminished their value and caused them to lose the backing by cost-conscious execs.

However, in a low unemployment economy where millennials dominate the talent pool, wellness has gained new life as a powerful recruiting tool. Offering on-site yoga classes, healthy food options in the cafeteria, and a suite of physical and emotional wellness apps can help win over hard-to-land new hires. “Appealing to millennials is dominating the wellness conversation,” he said.

Companies like Google, Apple and Patagonia win constant accolades for their innovative wellness efforts, which often include over-the-top offerings like on-site massage therapy, weekly cooking classes, and free outdoor-inspired daycare centers. Maniccia worries a bit that the hype generated by a handful of mission-driven and well-funded wellness programs will make it impossible for others to keep up. “It’s difficult to replicate that kind of culture in manufacturing, retail or a small business,” he said.

However, in reality, companies don’t have to spend a lot of money on wellness to impress talent, as long as they are creative and offer programs that employees actually want. Deloitte’s 2018 “Human Capital Trends” report found that the top two wellness benefits desired by employees are flexible schedules and the option to telecommute, both of which require no real financial investment and can actually cut overhead costs.

Also read the 2018 Sector Report: Is Wellness Just an Employee Perk?

Also read the 2017 Sector Report: Workplace Wellness Programs Continue Healthy Ascent

Benefits Come From Within

Beyond flex time, employees are seeking wellness tools that fit their unique needs and interest. That’s has caused an evolution in the types of programs offered and how employees are encouraged to take part, said Linda Natansohn, head of corporate development, meQuilibrium, a resiliency training company in Boston. Most companies have evolved past things like incentives for biometric screenings, in part because of negative publicity that saw incentives as a form of coercion, but also because they didn’t generate the desired results.

“No amount of extrinsic rewards will drive people to change their behavior,” she said. “Employers have to figure out what is meaningful to their people.”

To connect with these personal drivers, companies have begun curating an assortment of offerings to address employees’ physical, social, emotional and fiscal needs. Many of them come in the form of apps and wearables that encourage healthy behavior and offer intrinsic motivators, like leader boards and positive messages when users hit daily goals.

Though not everyone is motivated by an app, said Steven Noeldner, head of total health management for Mercer. Some employees like self-directed programs, but others will prefer real-time workshops, consulting, or small group classes. “The idea is to have a broad array of services designed for different segments of the population.”

That includes social and emotional wellness programs, which are gaining popularity as companies realize the value of having a happy and well-adjusted workforce, noted Natansohn. These offerings can range from on-site therapists, to meditation apps to “kindness clubs,” where employees work together to create a better and more inclusive culture, she says. “It’s a more holistic approach to well-being.”

Regardless of the scope of offerings, managers and executives have to show their support for using these programs if employees are going to get on board, according to Noeldner. “Organizations with strong leadership support have higher participation and better health outcomes,” he said.

He recently completed work on a joint study between Health Enhancement Research Organization and Mercer that found organizations whose leaders actively participate in health and well-being initiatives reported higher median rates of both employee satisfaction with health and well-being programs (83 percent) and employee perception of organizational support (85 percent) compared to organizations whose leaders did not actively participate (66 percent and 67 percent, respectively).

“The C-suite and management create the climate around wellness,” he said. No matter how carefully companies select their wellness offerings and vendors, leadership support for the program will be critical to their success.

March 27, 2019June 29, 2023

Vision: The Must-Have Benefit for 2019

Vision care benefits have become a mainstay of the employer benefits package.

“Virtually all companies now offer vision,” said Peter DeBellis, head of the total rewards practice for Bersin by Deloitte in Washington, D.C. “It is table stakes, especially for companies of a certain scale.”

Vision care is listed as one of the 10 essential benefits included in the Affordable Care Act, and employees have come to expect it as part of the core employee benefits package. “Health, dental and vision are the benefits triad,” DeBellis said. These programs have a very high rate of participation, which further reinforces the value they bring to employees.

This category of benefits has evolved in recent years in the care options offered and the way these treatments are accessed and paid for. Telemedicine, for example, is a new trend in the vision benefits space, noted Paul Piechnik, senior vice president of group benefits for MetLife. A growing number of organizations now offer basic examinations to check visual acuity and the need for eyewear via do-it-yourself applications or through a physician-led online virtual exam.

“Some are even offering virtual walk-in exams with an optometrist to mirror the same comprehensive examination steps one would encounter at a standard brick-and-mortar optometrist’s office,” he said. The interest in telemedicine is being driven by the digital generation, who prefer self-service for everything, as well as addressing the needs of remote workers. “Telemedicine is just emerging for routine vision care, though it’s too soon to say whether this will become a vision care standard in the future.”

Preventive care

Companies are also offering a broader array of treatment options, including laser surgery, blue light protection on lenses to reduce the impact of light emitted from digital devices, and proactive vision exams to identify risks for glaucoma, hypertension, diabetes and high cholesterol. This last benefit is viewed as a useful preventive care intervention, particularly in an aging workforce. “Vision has a role to play in a lot of chronic health conditions,” DeBellis said. Encouraging employees to have vision exams can help them identify bigger health care risks so they can get prompt treatment.

Piechnik suggested that companies offer sunglasses coverage as part of their vision plan as a way to get more employees to take advantage of these wellness visits. MetLife, for example, has a SunCare rider as part of its vision care benefits that allows members who don’t need corrective eyewear to use their frame allowance for non-prescription eyewear. “This encourages them to get their routine ‘wellness’ vision examination and spot those early issues that can become costly medical expenses for the member and employer alike.”

Also read the 2018 Sector Report: The Bright Shine of Dental Benefits

Also read the 2017 Sector Report: Rising Health Care Costs

Vision Comes at a Price

The other steady trend in vision care is who’s footing the bill. The rising cost of offering any health care benefits has pushed employers away from supporting fully employer-paid vision care to cost-sharing programs, or providing vision as a fully employee-paid/voluntary benefit. Piechnik said this hasn’t caused outrage among cost conscious workers.

“Employees for the most part see the value in nonmedical benefits such as vision care, so are willing to pick up some or all of the cost of these benefits.”

Regardless of the payment structure, benefits administrators should look for a comprehensive plan that provides annual vision examinations and eyewear benefit levels that employees value.

“With many employers offering vision on a voluntary basis there is no reason not to offer this benefit,” Piechnik said. “It’s a key product for creating a benefits package that truly increases employee satisfaction and loyalty.”

Once the program is in place, benefits administrators should educate employees about what the program covers, and the value of getting annual exams and keeping their glasses up to date. “It’s not just about getting a new pair of readers,” DeBellis added. When employees take care of their vision they are healthier and more productive, which benefits everyone.

March 22, 2019June 29, 2023

Rage Rooms Offer a Chance to Vent … and Smash Stuff

The woman from an IT firm frustrated by challenges in both life and work glided through the warehouse swinging a baseball bat, a golf club and alternately a sledgehammer attempting to destroy office equipment and glass bottles sitting on a table.

In most any other scenario, an HR professional may have called security or referred Jane Gardner to counseling.

Instead, an HR practitioner applauded the effort. Kathy Barrios, a human resources business partner for Polyconcept North America, and Massiel Reyes, a recruiter with staffing firm Westaff, offered Gardner water and a smile after she was done “raging.”

Barrios and Reyes own Smash the Rage, a 1,500-square-foot facility in a Miami area industrial complex. It’s one of the nation’s newest so-called “rage rooms” in which patrons are encouraged to funnel their anger through what they believe is a more appropriate and enjoyable outlet.

Workplace frustrations account for the reason most patrons visit the facility. Some are repeat customers; others are referrals.

“A lot of retail employees come in and complain about their customers. People are frustrated with their workloads; their bosses and their colleagues are a major issue,” said Barrios.

Other Smash the Rage events center a theme on parenting stress, divorce parties and holiday blues. People also celebrate victories like conquering cancer.

“Kathy came into my office upset one day and wanted to smash things,” said Reyes of Smash the Rage’s genesis. “Of course, when people talk like that, you give them a pat on the back and say, ‘You know what, champ? It’s OK. There will be better days.’ ”

Barrios instead researched rage rooms and suggested to Reyes they open one. They still maintain their day jobs and manage the rage room at nights and on weekends.

The woman letting out her frustrations works as an accountant at an IT company and discovered that in order to advance she needed to become a licensed CPA. She found studying for and taking the CPA exam intensive and difficult.

Exasperated, she took out her annoyances during a Smash the Rage visit.

“Each time, it’s like a workout,” she said. “It gives you an exhilarating feeling.”

On the low end, patrons pay $30 to bring in their own box of items to smash during a 15-minute session. An “office smash” costs $100 for one person for 25 minutes. Additional people pay $30.

Patrons must sign a waiver and wear closed-toe shoes. Protective gear includes a safety suit, a helmet with a face shield, goggles for extra precaution and gloves with phone-friendly fingertips for those wanting to photograph their sessions.

Patrons use a number of weapons for raging, including bats, sledgehammers, golf clubs, legs of tables, wrenches, metal poles and shovels.

Barrios and Reyes source most of the materials for destruction through conducting free bulk pick-ups from people seeking to get rid of items. After the rage session, the broken items, including glass, metal and aluminum, are sorted for recycling or disposal.

The Smash the Rage website makes it clear the facility is for entertainment and not therapy.

Even so, “we try to make it a therapeutic experience in the way we welcome them,” said Reyes of patrons. “We tell them they’re in a safe space to let it out and let it go. They’re doing something unconventional they’re not raised to do.”

Reyes and Barrios are aware that some psychologists believe rage rooms are not a healthy way to manage anger, instead believing they encourage and promote it.

“We are in a world where sometimes the physical outlet — what we call raging — is sometimes more cathartic in dealing with a high level of emotions than sitting in a small space in the quiet with your eyes closed trying to take a deep breath,” Reyes said.

Also read: Senior Living Facility Employees Benefit from Art Therapy

Customers who arrive with pent-up anger leave the facility “sweaty, red and relaxed,” Reyes said.

“We give them a cold bottle of water, a pat on the back and say, ‘All right, have a good day and take a deep breath for tomorrow,’ ” she added.

As an HR professional, Barrios said she believes rage rooms could be a useful employee benefit.

“We’ve had customers whose companies just had major layoffs and they were affected and frustrated by the system,” she said. “They go through many emotions and come here and tell me they felt completely different afterward.”

Raging crosses a line people normally are afraid to cross, Reyes said. “We definitely don’t want to promote violence. We tell them we want them to let it out here so they don’t carry it out with them.”

March 20, 2019June 29, 2023

Sabbaticals Help Fight Employee Burnout

When executive recruiter Beata Zagona, a self-described city girl, decided to take a fully paid sabbatical from her job, her choice of destination came as a surprise to some. Last summer, she spent a month scooping rhinoceros poop, among other chores, at a rhino sanctuary in South Africa.

“I had worked for the firm for two weeks in South Africa and fell in love with the country,” said Zagona, a manager at PwC in New York. “I had gone on safari in Kenya and became more aware of wildlife poaching and saw the atrocities being committed against these animals. I thought the sabbatical was a great opportunity to do something adventurous and meaningful.”

Many employers would agree that a rested and recharged employee is more engaged and productive and that sabbaticals are a good idea, but PwC requires it for all newly promoted senior managers. The firm offers four weeks off — it pays for three — to give employees a chance to pursue a lifelong goal, volunteer or do nothing at all.

“They can sit and read movie star magazines for all we care, but we do require that they take time off,” said Anne Donovan, U.S. people experience leader at PwC. “We’re adamant. It’s not just a wink and a nod.”

The firm has always allowed individual employees to request a sabbatical but few employees did, according to Donovan. So in 2011, PwC established a formal program that requires senior managers with five years or more of service to take some time off.

About 17 percent of companies offered a sabbatical — either paid or unpaid — in 2017, according to a report from the Society for Human Resource Management. But the need for time off among senior level employees is supported by a number of recent studies showing that job burnout is a costly problem for both workers and employers.

Job burnout accounts for an estimated $125 billion to $190 billion in health care spending each year and has been attributed to type 2 diabetes, coronary heart disease, gastrointestinal issues, high cholesterol and even death for those under the age of 45, according to 2017 article in the Harvard Business Review.

And the number of employees reporting burnout is on the rise, according to a recent Gallup study of nearly 7,500 full-time employees. The study found that 23 percent reported feeling burned out at work very often or always, while an additional 44 percent reported feeling burned out sometimes.

For Zagona, spending weeks waking up at dawn to feed rhinos, clean their enclosures and dig ditches made her feel more resilient. She said that she came back to work more focused.

“The attitude and innovation that comes back to us and to our clients is huge,” said Donovan. “You get an employee that has an appreciation for life and for the firm that’s unmatched.”

Summary

Employees across various industries report poor communication as one of the leading challenges they face during the workday.

A mix of face-to-face meetings, training, and using communication software helps mitigate the effects of poor communication.