Learning Log 3 - Part 3

Evaluation of valuable learning lesson

Managing external and internal communication is vital for an organization. the organization can view communication as an integrated concept and find areas for improvement within the organization. When developing an effective communication strategy, HR professionals need to demonstrate the connection between business problems and employee contributions on all levels. The right communication audit leads to success and not failure. Communication is not an easy task but finding the right vehicle will bring value to the company. HR must insure the right communication technique is used to have results so that they can be analyzed and bring on change to the organization.  

Tie-in to Manager’s work with HR

As a manager, working with HR would be critical for the overall success of finding the right communication vehicle. From past experiences, using survey monkey is an effective way to send out to the team in getting feedback from the team on what is working and what should be worked on to better improve the flow of work. Surveys can be in the form of multiple choice or free form. With collaboration with HR, the right communication audit shape the communications. When results are all in, as a manger working with HR is very important to analyze the results and what kind of change can be performed. For example, if everyone on the team mentions increase of pay is what they would like to see to better be happy in the workplace, then as a manager that is a conversation to have with HR if it is within the budget to increase everyone’s pay and how will that happen if approved. The communication through the survey help the manager identify what percentage of the team is not happy and what is something they would like to see. Without HR, it is hard to make the change happen. The proper communication gets the right message out of the door and on the way to bigger and better outcomes. 

Learning Log 3 - Part 2

SHRM Connect

Attached is a link to the SHRM Discussion Board:

https://community.shrm.org/communities/community-home/digestviewer/viewthread?MessageKey=9690ddcc-2743-41da-9df5-b74922386a2e&CommunityKey=85f521fc-ba03-4926-932f-3e17d3b3827e&tab=digestviewer#bm9690ddcc-2743-41da-9df5-b74922386a2e

The following are screenshots of the discussion:

SHRM Connect Feedback

The class did a great job in discussing a communication audit. The discussion was focused on communication audits and the tools that are used to perform an audit. From the several posts, surveys and focus group were indicated to not be so effective. The reason behind this is that not all employees participate in surveys and they don't represent a good cross-section of the employee population. When surveys are sent many of them are not taken seriously and employees just want to finish with them so they can get back to their everyday work. Focus groups on the other hand tends to turn employees into venting issues they are having with the organization rather then what the organization can do to become better. To be successful in a communication audit, it is important for senior leadership to encourage full participation of employee engagement. For employees to take part in the audit, there needs to be trust with leadership and to have a relationship with them. It is important to listen to employees on what techniques would be the most beneficial to communicate with the organization.

Learning Log 3 - Part 1

Communications Audits 

This week we researched the importance of communication audits. Just like a capability audit, a communication audit is important for an organization. The purpose of this audit is to ensure everything is aligned to your communication strategy. As a business is getting bigger, external and internal audiences increase. In order to satisfy both external and internal audience, a communication audit needs to be performed to assess your communications practices. This determines which of your communications tools are working well and points out the areas in which your organization can still strengthen its communications performance (Dianova, 2015). HR professionals can conduct communication audits through interviews, surveys, critical incident review, network analysis, observation, document review, and focus groups (Ulrich, 2012). A communication audit should help answer questions like what’s working well, what employees think, whether messages are clear and what has been effective. It will also help spot opportunities for future improvements and know what to stop doing.

In order to conduct a communication audit, there are steps that HR needs to perform. The first step is to identify and set the scope and framework. This means to find out the issues the audit should investigate and understand what you are trying to achieve. For example, if retention is an issue ask a question like “what is the percentage of staying here next year” and “what is the reason for leaving” This is a good way to know why turn over has been so high. The second step is the discovery process. This step is focused on research. What tool of communication will be used, is it interviews, focus groups, surveys, etc.? The third step is the distillation process. The distillation process involves assessing the collected data. At this point, it’s important to identify patterns in your research and draw out key insights (Cornell, 2015). The last step in the audit is interpretation. Identify the communication gaps and opportunities. Review areas like message quality and delivery, the quality of relationships with audiences, and audience communication overall. Once you’ve analyzed your findings, focus on strengths, consider opportunities, minimize weaknesses and eliminate threats (Dianova, 2015). A communications audit should be completed every couple of years in order for your communications plan to be up to date and satisfy your external and internal audiences’ communications needs.

References:

Cornell, C. (2015, October 6). The 4 key steps of a communication audit. Retrieved January 25, 2017, from https://www.iabc.com/the-4-key-steps-of-a-communication-audit/

This an article that describes the four steps an organization should take to perform a successful communications audit. It talks about how a communication audit can add value and it can help spot areas for improvement.

Dianova, Y. (2015, August 17). Your communications audit in 5 easy steps. Retrieved January 25, 2017, from http://www.axiapr.com/blog/your-communications-audit-in-5-easy-steps

This is a guide that helps point out how a communication audit can identify which strategies are working well and points out the areas in which the organization can still strengthen its communications performance. 

Ulrich, D., W., Younger, J., Brockbank, & Ulrich,M . (2012). HR from the outside in: Six competencies for the future of human resources.

This textbook discusses the six paradoxes of HR. It explains how HR should be run to deliver the best business outcome.

Learning Log 2 - Part 3

Evaluation of valuable learning lesson

Through this week’s assignments, discussions, readings, and research I have identified the importance of capability audits, how they are performed and the advantages behind them. By performing such audit, HR can build a very successful organization and trigger what are the most important factors that the company should be focused on. HR will play a big role for the success of the business by getting the management team to agree to where the business is today and where it is headed in the future (Ulrich, 2012). The capability audit helps executives assess company strengths and weaknesses, assists senior leaders in defining strategy, supports midlevel managers in executing strategy, and enables frontline leaders to make things happen (Smallwood & Ulrich, 2004). It also helps customers, investors, and employees alike recognize the organization’s intangible value. Every organization should perform this audit to better improve its employees to make the best out the workplace.

References:

Ulrich, D., W., Younger, J., Brockbank, & Ulrich,M . (2012). HR from the outside in: Six competencies for the future of human resources.

Smallwood, N., & Ulrich, D. (2004, June). Capitalizing on capabilities. Retrieved January 18, 2017, from https://hbr.org/2004/06/capitalizing-on-capabilities

Tie-in to Manager’s work with HR

As a manager, working with HR would be critical for the overall success of my team and the organization. Managers need to have a vision and future for its employees and the company. A capability audit will help decide how my team is performing and what capability needs to be worked on the most. If collaboration is the most capability on our team, as a manger this will be a pinpoint where I can do a presentation on the importance of communication. For example, if an email is sent out to the team to handle a rush case, the explanation on why to reply to the email on who is taking care of the task is important so it reduces the amount of duplicate work. Also as a hiring manager these capabilities are important to look for in a potential candidate. Does the individual have well communication skills and if so ask for an example to be provided. Capability audits will help improve the team’s performance and a better outcome for the organization will be presented. 

Learning Log 2 - Part 2

SHRM Connect

Attached is a link to the SHRM Discussion Board:

https://community.shrm.org/communities/community-home/digestviewer/viewthread?MessageKey=cead2ae9-a8fd-4da7-832f-013e9aaad58a&CommunityKey=85f521fc-ba03-4926-932f-3e17d3b3827e&tab=digestviewer&SuccessMsg=Thank+you+for+submitting+your+message.

The following are screenshots of the discussion:

SHRM Connect Feedback:

This week we had a very successful and production discussion on SHRM about capability audits. I was very happy to see many of my classmates on the same discussion thread along with some HR professionals. In the discussion, there were several topics addressed. We talked about how we address the most critical capabilities and what happens when leadership fails at performing the audit. It has been agreed that the capabilities selected for focus should be the capabilities directly tied to execution of strategic goals. Just because a capability rates low does not mean it is the one that needs the focus. The capability that is the most critical for the improvement of the organization is the one to be most focused on for improvement. For an audit to be effective we agreed that an action plan should be put into placed and monitored to make sure it is progressing. So if the speed capability is rated low and is the most critical, the organization needs to re-evaluate how it handles the efficiency of new product roll in and train more employees to make sure enhancements are put into place quicker.