I had pre natal depression for the first few months of both my pregnancies.
The low-key little sister of better-known post – natal depression, one of the main differences between the two (apart from the obvious, with the latter coming after a baby is born) is that pre natal depression will hit whilst you’re still at work, and not when you’re on maternity leave.
I was a middle management employee of a large, high profile organisation. Yet I kept my rampaging hormones a secret. Even when the symptoms were exacerbated second time around by a lovely dose of bullying from a senior colleague.
This was many years ago.
There were no workplace communications being sent out that I can remember about anything that might be remotely perceived as personal or sensitive. Which led to a sense that talking about these issues would be detrimental to your career and professional persona.
Today things are changing rapidly. Mental health. Menopause. Bereavement. For progressive organisations, it’s no longer about if you communicate to employees around sensitive issues – but how.
Difficult and sensitive issues are best communicated through lower-key, informal channels, right?
Perhaps not.
By their very nature there should be elements of control. So downwards communications within a more formal structure can effectively demonstrate how the organisation is fully on board with these topics, whilst also keeping a handle on the messaging.
Introducing high-level campaigns, and guidance for support on issues such as mental health, for example, is a great way to reach everybody and normalise conversations. Direct communication from senior leadership levels can also make a huge difference.
One major bank only changed its attitude to mental health after its Managing Director became unwell himself – and then shared his story.
But these formal workplace communications can only go so far. Utilising the power of informal comms gives spaces for employees to exchange ideas and be proactive in starting discussions.
Single strand or cluster comms can really give ground-level support. The challenge is to ensure everything is safe and moderated. You should avoid topics that could stress employees and erode trust within a more informal comms setting, whilst not pressurising sharing.
Choosing the right channels for workplace communication is especially important. Having a plan and structure in place will clarify expectations and minimise inappropriate responses.
So whether it’s a regular newsletter talking more generally around issues and workplace initiatives, or small group sharing on specific topics for those who want to contribute, the most important thing is to be bold in the subjects covered, whilst protecting individuals and reassuring team around broader initiatives with genuine empathy.
Choosing the right channels to encourage a culture of trust and transparency around sensitive issue communications hinges around the need to show empathy, listen and be attentive.
Structured team leadership meetings provide that all important two way conversation model, but even here, it’s important that internal protocols are set in place, with ground rules for engagement and a clear intent. Providing solutions within that structure will take communications beyond discussion to positive outcomes that can be taken forwards.
Social media channels can also work well, with that all important moderation and ability to enable anonymity. It can also work well to leave the door open to individuals but not force engagement. Combine with surveys, idea boxes, workshops and one to one meetings for a range of comms options.
Other channels are also useful for top line messaging and promotion of your culture and campaigns – from posters to video, these can get the message out and set a tone. Video can also emotionally engage. But needs that two way follow up plan to prevent it becoming inauthentic and lacking real action.
Intranets rely on individual searching, whilst e mails don’t promote discussion and can get a little ‘lost’. Whatever your comms structure and plans, ground them in your brand purpose and company values, and use these as a north star to guide the way you communicate and support staff. If they aren’t adding value to you on these most sensitive of topics to communicate in the workplace, they may not be adding enough value to the business at all.
No other comms are more important in terms of accessibility than those which tackle these difficult topics. Think about how individuals can access and engage, both for wide ranging discussions, and those on specific issues of concern, and how people affected by them may need additional help to get involved within the best environment for them.
Most importantly, ensure that what you’re offering becomes more than lip service. Actively seek out solutions empathetically, both to individual issues and more broad-ranging ones that may span your workplace. By making a difference, you are ultimately going beyond the act of communication itself to positive, proactive action.
Every workplace is different, but many of the sensitive issues are universal and part of the human condition. In that sense they differ from more targeted internal comms campaigns that may be related more directly to the kind of workplace you operate in, the sector or environment you provide. That doesn’t mean opening up conversations about every issue all at once. It’s still OK to prioritise the issues that you think matter most to your workplace, here and now.
Better to tackle some issues effectively, than have a scattergun approach to the admittedly broad range of topics that can ideally be supportive to colleagues. You may make these decisions on priorities based on known issues that are more prevalent where you work, or perhaps a tent-pegged approach.
This Timeto campaign, called ‘Where Do you Draw the Line?’ is relevant for the festive season (in non covid times!), and has a simple but powerful message and device to communicate the issue of sexual harassment.
Thinking about a whole range of topics within a comms plan, and prioritising key campaigns keeps you in control, ensures you can be thoughtful and authentic in the comms you do produce – and can follow it up with real affirmative action.
You can use external resources to support your comms, or to provide information in areas you can’t yet devote to more targeted internal comms campaign work. Organisations such as Marie Curie have links to many resources, such as this on how to support a grieving colleague.
Giving consideration to those issues that can strike individuals at any time, accepting the impact they can have on work and being willing to engage with support will go a huge way to acceptance that anything from miscarriage to menopause; childcare to chronic illness are issues to be discussed and not hidden away and coped with alone at work. Yet there are also broader, more cultural issues that are specifically workplace related, and which also need to be addressed.
Being willing to talk about workplace harassment, bullying and burnout may be even more difficult to communicate, because they risk directly impacting other employees, leadership models and work cultures that exist.
Yet, the more confidently and authentically you can build in a line of communications around these issues too, the more you are able to become leaders in tackling them, regardless of whether or not they currently exist in the place where you operate.
Talking about these issues isn’t an admission of guilt.
It’s a sign of openness and a recognition that they can happen anyway. By being pre emptive and proactive and having comms in place that are truly inclusive, you are setting the tone for a workplace that can truly thrive.
Ultimately the time we are in now is giving us an opportunity for workplace communication to mean more than it ever has before – and to make even more of a difference. It’s an opportunity to be brave, set the right protocols and put structures in place to have conversations on sensitive topics we’ve never had before in the workplace.
To kickstart a campaign on a sensitive issue that matters in your workplace, check out our Purpose Sprint™. It’s an agile way to launch purposeful initiatives and activity in as little as five days.
