Trends Shaping the Future of Internal Comms for Frontline Employees

Today, there is a gap in internal communication efficiency and effectiveness when communicating with frontline employees.

• According to a survey , 40% of frontline employees feel their managers are out of touch. 42% believe communication from their managers is often irrelevant. 30% also think that internal communication gets in the way of their work.

• 53 % of global frontline workers confirm using messaging apps like Facebook Messenger, WhatsApp, and GroupMe for work-related communications up to six times daily.
• 16% say their HR departments are unaware of such usage for work purposes.
• 30% of frontline workers confirm that the 24/7 nature of messaging apps and social media sites is making it difficult to maintain a work/personal life balance.
• 12% are also concerned that sensitive data could be left exposed and become susceptible to data breaches
• Interestingly, 68 % of frontline workers in the same study also go on to suggest they're keen to stop using these currently popular mechanisms if their companies provided an alternate, dedicated internal communications platform.

Takeaway: A standard cookie-cutter approach to internal communications is the largely prevalent scenario. As leaders and internal communicators, it is time to realize the need for changing that. Frontline employees work in a deskless environment.?

They may operate in the field or travel frequently to carry out their roles. Hence, internal communications such as emails that otherwise work in a typical corporate structure are not the ideal fit for them due to their nature of work. At the same time, ensuring smoother two-way communication with them is vital to organizational success - after all, they’re closest to end customers.

Moreover, there’s also a need to restructure the internal communication process and toolkit for frontline workers. Though widespread, their reliance on social media for work communications isn't ideal. It can compromise digital well-being, data security, and regulatory compliance. It may also lead to companies in regulated industries failing audits, even without breaches. Additionally, it impacts work-life balance, reducing overall output and job satisfaction. For these reasons, it’s clear there is widespread disillusionment with the current frontline internal communication processes and a willingness to embrace a more intelligent alternative.

With these facts about the status quo, let's dive into the emerging trends and best practices to elevate frontline internal communication outcomes.

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Trends that are shaping the future of internal communications for frontline employees

Trend 1: A preference for an asynchronous style of communication

Of course many frontline workers consume information asynchronously given the 24/7 nature of their work.? But we also know that frontline teams in particular still have regular stand ups with their teams ahead of a shift.? For many, this is the only interaction they have with their leaders or to discuss items that don’t necessarily impact their immediate to-dos.? There is a challenge here of course with messaging becoming diluted over time – it’s like taking a copy of a copy of a copy.? Eventually the content begins to degrade.

We also know about the Curve of Forgetting, which is well established research from academia which describes the alarming rate at which we forget information in a short amount of time.? Within 24 hours of hearing new information, if we don’t review it or think about it again, we lose 50% - 80%.? Within a month, we’re lucky to remember 2% of the information.??

So a lot of companies are embracing asynchronous communication to reinforce key points from things like standups or company all-hands.? Using Journeys within Speakap as an example, companies can send a specific Journey to team members an hour or two after the meeting and have them review, in step by step, digestible chunks, the key points.? This is great for change management and general knowledge retention, but respects the fact that our frontline employees have other responsibilities and can take the time to review this information when it’s most suitable for them.

Trend 2: AI, AI and once again AI

72% of decision-makers agree that AI can enable humans to focus on more meaningful work.

83% of companies consider using AI in their strategy to be a high priority.

More than 80% of employees say AI improves their productivity.

Artificial Intelligence (AI) has become a buzzword in recent years, and for good reason. It has the potential to revolutionize the way we create and communicate. With a focus on faster and more efficient creation of communications, AI can streamline the process and save valuable time and resources. Whether it's writing emails, drafting reports, or crafting social media posts, AI tools can generate content with remarkable speed and accuracy. This allows individuals and businesses to tackle more tasks in less time, ultimately increasing productivity and effectiveness.

Another benefit of AI in internal communication is personalized messaging. AI-powered platforms can analyze data and provide personalized messages to frontline workers based on their specific roles, responsibilities, and preferences. This not only helps in delivering targeted information but also creates a sense of belonging and importance among frontline employees.

In addition to text-based communications, AI can also play a role in enhancing visual content through the use of AI-generated images. These images can be created based on specific criteria or styles, allowing one to have access to a wide range of visuals without the need for extensive photo shoots or graphic design work. This not only saves time and resources but also opens up new creative possibilities by providing a vast library of AI-generated images that can be customized to suit specific communication needs.

While AI offers numerous benefits in the realm of communications, there are also ethical and compliance concerns that need to be considered. As AI algorithms become more sophisticated, there is a risk that they may inadvertently produce biased or discriminatory content. It is crucial for developers and users of AI tools to ensure that these systems are trained on diverse datasets and regularly monitored to minimize any unintended biases. Additionally, privacy concerns must be addressed when using AI for communication purposes, as personal data may be collected or shared without proper consent.

P.S. Have you already registered for our upcoming webinar on the topic of AI?

Trend 3: Rise of the FRONTLINE Employee Experience (EX) and Employee Experience Platforms?

It is clear that the approach to employee experience especially for frontline employees demands urgent attention. ? Thus, the emergence of a new, more modern model of frontline employee experience at the core of which are three principles: autonomy, flexibility, and a sense of belonging.

Read more: The Rise of Employee Experience for Frontline Employees: Why & What's Next

Solution? Employee Experience Platforms

It’s important to remember the history of all the internal communications tools and employee engagement initiatives that really started picking up steam in the last 10-15 years. ? The benefits of having an informed and engaged workforce are so well documented that it’s hardly worth mentioning any longer. But neither companies themselves nor the employee engagement industry – talking about software vendors and consultants here – have really managed to truly focus on moving the engagement needle at scale.??

Sure you hear about success stories here and there but the reality is that having an engaged workforce takes a lot of work, and yes, money.? And if you consider the landscape of tech startups since the 2000s and 2010s, it was so easy for founders to create companies and get funding for them that did just one thing well (or good enough).? This era is the age of “best in breed” software.? Best in breed chat tool, best in breed recognition tool, best in breed communications tool, best in breed survey tool and so on.

While this wasn’t a bad thing - at least to start - it never was able to fully address the issue of employee engagement because best in breed meant that companies had to buy lots of software.? That’s lots of vendors to assess, set up accounts? payable systems, just generally manage the relationship.? And that’s not saying anything about the change management required to introduce yet another tool with the ostensible goal of improving the experience for employees.

So the fundamental failure of all these best in breed solutions is that no single solution (or very small group) could realistically address the holistic nature of actually engaging one’s workforce.? Companies didn’t have the time or budget to get all the tools in place, employees couldn’t possibly be expected to use 12, 15, 20 tools, and software itself isn’t a panacea – it just can’t solve this problem without true partnership by the people who purchased it in the first place.? Which is why we haven’t seen a dramatic improvement in engagement numbers since it started being tracked by Gallup and others. Employee Experience Platforms is the industry’s response to this dilemma.

They’re looking for a solution that has end-to-end support for their employees’ experience from hiring, onboarding, daily communications, operational work like managing tasks and shifts, supporting transition on things like career growth and organizational change, supporting learning & development, pulse metrics and surveys, and even offboarding.??

Trend 4: Emphasis on employee self-service

Internal communicators are increasingly championing a shift towards greater self-service technology adoption among frontline employees, recognizing the potential for efficiency gains in various communication needs. This includes leveraging tools rich in information to enable workers to swiftly access necessary information with minimal time and effort.?

This trend finds meaningful applications in streamlining and expediting processes such as leave applications, updating/changing employee information, viewing pay stubs, and granting permissions/approvals for on-the-job tasks. The integration of automated chat for addressing commonly asked employee queries not only accelerates communication but also provides valuable insights into the challenges faced by frontline workers.

However..?

Within the context of EXP, while the notion of a single, all-encompassing solution remains the ultimate goal, it's essential to acknowledge the current reality — the journey toward this nirvana is ongoing and may prove elusive. Realistically, achieving a one-size-fits-all solution is improbable (if not entirely impossible), making integrations a crucial component of any organizational communication strategy for the foreseeable future, ensuring adaptability and efficiency in the evolving landscape of communication technologies.

Ensuring effective frontline internal communication is a success strategy

Effective internal communication for frontline workers introduces not just convenience but also unfolds overall organizational success. A well-connected and engaged frontline workforce improves productivity, satisfaction, and better customer experiences. Some trending ways to ensure this in an organizational setup include:

• Enabling a mobile-first approach for communication.
• Encouraging employee self-service wherever applicable.
• Being open to asynchronous communication for non-urgent correspondences.
• Prioritizing frontline employee experience.

These interventions help to build a community with more robust engagement and improved productivity among frontline workers. Using a dedicated mobile app for employee communications can simplify embracing these trends and elevating frontline worker productivity and experience.