Investing In Your Human Capital

It should come as no surprise that many human resource professionals are struggling with the issue of declining employee morale in a time of increasing economic uncertainty.

When the good times roll, HR largely goes unnoticed. When economic fortunes change, profits drop, customers flee and the axe falls on employees. HR now finds itself in the harsh glare of management's spotlight. 

It's been well-documented that a type of survivor mentality takes hold in any organization undergoing rapid downsizing. Now is always the best time for HR pros and Corporate Communicators to work together to help soften the blow of bad news.

Open communications -- especially during tough times when the news is often negative -- goes a long way toward increasing associate understanding, maintaining morale and holding up productivity among remaining employees.

In the absence of open communications, speculation spreads, the rumor mill runs rampant, lousy morale increases, productivity dips and customer satisfaction drops.

Obviously, we're not the only ones thinking about this. Not too long ago, John Frank, Midwest Editor for PR Week, told a business group in Milwaukee that he sees "internal communications as one of the biggest opportunities for communicators in the coming years."