Imagine that an employee has been put in a highly compromised situation. Unfortunately, the employee doesn’t feel comfortable surfacing their issue with the communication options available to them:
Signing into their system at work and reporting a case: Here, the employee doesn't feel comfortable because they do not understand how they remain anonymous in a system they have to sign in to access.
Calling a hotline. While seemingly innocuous, requiring a person to pick up the phone and speak with someone else directly creates barriers such as, I'm concerned they will recognize my voice. Plus, they will certainly know my gender.
Speaking with an HR representative in person.This is clearly not anonymous.
Millennials have now reached a peak age of 38. The above options are intimidating and represent the view of an older workforce. These systems were likely purchased by someone not representative of their current employee demographic.
Would any company be comfortable knowing that serious issues weren’t being surfaced because their communication systems were outdated and unknowingly deterring employees from using them? Ideally, a system should be present to effectively serve the company AND meet the employee in the channel of their choice. Options are awesome!
At VoiceSifter, we get it. Companies have to protect their brand and employees are one of the most important extensions of the company. The goal is to get serious concerns surfaced and solved in as efficient a way as possible. The big challenge isn’t in getting them solved, it is in getting them surfaced.
Below are a few items to consider when acquiring or adding on to your existing communication system.
Anonymity:
Most companies dislike the idea of systems that provide anonymity. Deep down, we think that companies find the loss of control scary, and the prospect of erroneous, unsubstantiated claims unpalatable. A common system that we find companies presenting to their employees is one where they have to log in, onsite, and then post their “Anonymous” claim. While we have no reason to believe that these submissions aren’t anonymous, employees are likely to be suspicious.
Response Capability:
Additionally, most systems that provide anonymity have an Achilles heel because management isn’t able to respond! We recently spoke with a prospect and asked them what they do in these scenarios. They said, “Nothing.” That there isn’t anything they can do. When we surveyed HR professionals, 100% said that they would have a follow-up question of some kind to an anonymous submission and yet, in most systems, they aren’t able to respond.
Case Management:
In speaking with HR professionals, they want a system that is secure, responsive, and robust enough to meet their desired case management needs. They don’t want to have to go through a bunch of training. If a system offers anonymity, they want to be able to respond and they ultimately want the conversation to result in demonstrable closure.
After thinking about these points, we’ll leave you with a question.
Can all of this be done with the system that you are currently using or considering?
