With the ongoing financial uncertainty that stems from the COVID-19 pandemic, employees' retirement savings needs could fluctuate over the coming months and even years. The challenge for employers lies in their ability to deliver clear and approachable retirement planning communications that stay consistently aligned with their priorities. 

Even in times of economic ease, retirement planning can be an intimidating topic. But when employees are feeling the strains and stresses of financial uncertainty, they can become so overwhelmed with financial decisions, they fail to take action at all.

For retirement planning to really resonate with employees and motivate them to act, the onus is on employers to deliver targeted communications that are appealing and accessible to the audience, easy-to-understand, and personalized to reinforce empathy and ease.

Tags: Employee Communications, retirement plan, HR Communications, Employee Engagement, internal communications, communication strategy, Employee Marketing, retiree communication, 2021, financial wellness

Rolling out a well-received financial wellness program requires employee communications that engage employees and call them to action. These programs are best designed with increasing employee knowledge as their main priority—educating employees on every option to assist them in their overall decision-making process.  

Today’s workplaces typically feature a diverse mix of employee demographics and populations, each with their own unique financial goals, future interests and timelines in mind; from the Millennials paying down student loan debt to the older generations focusing on retirement. 

Tags: Employee Communications, HR Communications, Employee Engagement, internal communications, communication strategy, Employee Marketing, 2021, financial wellness

For many employers, the challenges and changes of 2020 are carrying a familiar sense of employee uncertainty into 2021. And while some have come a long way in effectively mitigating crises and helping remote employees feel connected, a significant number of today’s employees are still feeling worried—and it’s taking a toll on their overall health and well-being.

According to the October 2020 Leading Indicator Systems Workforce Listening Study, since May 2020, U.S. workforces have witnessed:

• A 38% increase in employees being worried about their own mental health.
• A 45% increase in employees being extremely worried about their ability to take care of family.
• A 140% increase in employees being extremely worried about their own vulnerability to addiction.
• 75% of employees find it challenging to work under their current conditions.

Tags: Employee Communications, HR Communications, Employee Engagement, internal communications, communication strategy, Employee Marketing, 2021

During this unprecedented time, technology is the crucial bridge between many employees and their workplaces. It is even more essential to communicate effectively as well as create opportunities to connect despite the distance. It can be challenging to get the message out to employees across varying locations without the right communication tools to keep them engaged. 

Video is an effective medium you can use to help cut through the noise and capture employees’ attention. Video communications allow you to connect in a clear, authentic way and motivate vividly and visually, capturing the kind of realism that an email or phone call simply cannot. 

Internal communications videos are popular, cost-friendly, easy-to-create tools you can use to increase employee engagement, spark team collaboration and ensure reusable, secure content to keep in your organizational archives.

Tags: What's Trending, Employee Communications, communication strategy, Marketing, Employee Marketing, 2020, video

The last time Ocean Spray was featured on our blog, we focused on their efforts (and success) in implementing an employee benefits website. Now that employees are comfortable with digital communications, how do we make more of an impact, gain insight and build toward the future? The organic next step was to create a strategy and management plan that would enable their communications to continually evolve and adapt to their employees’ needs. Read on to see how we helped.

Tags: What's Trending, Employee Communications, communication strategy, Marketing, Employee Marketing, 2020, momentum, COVID

There are certain employee communication plans you hope your organization never has to use. They stay tucked away in the shared drive for an unthinkable and unlikely day. But with the rapidly-evolving coronavirus pandemic blindsiding employers around the globe, the unfathomable is becoming the norm. Some are left to dig out their crisis communication plans while others are starting a draft from scratch.  

Tags: What's Trending, Employee Communications, communication strategy, Marketing, Employee Marketing, 2020, momentum, COVID

Welcome to the season of doing. In an organizational sense, this can mean anything from employee reviews to compensation evaluations, end-of-year loose ends and next year’s strategic vision. All of this builds up to a never-ending pileup of personal endeavors, events and expectations. Everything from shopping to hosting, volunteering, attending, giving, receiving and all-in-all juggling the many responsibilities (and subsequent side effects) of the holidays. 

Here are 7 Ways to help you maintain balance (both personal and professional) during the busiest time of year: 

Tags: What's Trending, Employee Communications, happy holidays, Marketing, Employee Marketing, culture, wellness, mental health

It’s never too soon to start thinking about what to include in your 2020 and 2021 employee benefits packages. How can your HR team stay flexible yet current with a series of compliance changes? Which benefits will be seen as non-negotiables in competitive job offers? Global HR firm Mercer recently unveiled its annual list of the top compliance issues employers should consider when compiling their benefits packages for 2020. 

Here Are The Top 5 Offerings Set to Become Staples in the Benefits Packages of 2020... and Beyond:

Tags: What's Trending, Employee Communications, Open Enrollment, communication strategy, Marketing Mindset, Marketing, Employee Marketing, benefit package

If you’re feeling a little bit frazzled at the thought of Open Enrollment, it might be time for you to take a different organizational approach.

To help you streamline your thoughts and create a successful battle plan, here is a list of five easy tips to fully prepare for the Open Enrollment rush and stay productive when things get hectic: 

Tags: Employee Communications, Open Enrollment, internal communications, communication strategy, Marketing Mindset, Marketing, Employee Marketing

Mobile apps have laid an irreversible groundwork for the way we digitize business, consumption, entertainment and unique user experiences all across the world. They bring convenience to our collective fingertips and knowledge at a moment’s notice. Apps can transform the way we create, play, perform, produce and learn. 

Slowly but surely, apps are also weaving their way into the workplace; starting to be seen as valuable strategic tools for employer-to-employee communication and enhancers of the entire employee experience. 

Are you wondering how you can (and why you should) use these digital game changers to your advantage? Look no further, People Managers. There’s an app for that. And you can even create it yourself. 

Here Are The Top 5 Reasons to Up Your Employee Communications Game With an Internal HR App: 

Tags: What's Trending, Employee Communications, communication strategy, Marketing Mindset, Marketing, Employee Marketing, technology