Doomscrolling detox: How to uplift your people through internal communications

Effective workplace communication is clear, consistent, and engaging. It produces the desired result, and it helps you avoid misunderstandings.

Organizations with a successful internal communication style are happier and more productive. But effective employee communication isn’t always easy, especially if you manage a frontline workforce.

There are practical challenges to overcome. Frontline employees don’t have a computer. They don’t always have an employee email address. They have changing shift times and locations.  And they often lack access to tools their office-based peers have as standard.  

Nevertheless, overcoming these barriers to communication is important. Fail to reach everyone with effective workplace communication and:  

• critical messages are missed
• you struggle to develop a strong company culture
• employees end up feeling disconnected, demotivated, and more likely to look for other jobs

Essentially, if communication doesn’t reach every member of your organization, we can’t call it effective.

So how do you close the gap between frontline and office-based staff? How do you improve workplace communication for every person in every team?

Here we explore the benefits of effective communication, and offer ideas on how to achieve it at your organization. 

Benefits of effective workplace communication

93% of business leaders say that workplace communication is the backbone of business. But 3 in 4 say their company underestimates the cost of poor communication.

Here are the things companies miss out on when their communication isn’t up to scratch.

Team collaboration

Collaborative teams are more productive and successful. But you can’t have collaboration without good communication.

When teams interact openly and inclusively, they develop a shared understanding of goals and processes. This makes it much easier for them to harness team strengths and work together.

Enhanced employee engagement

Employee engagement is how connected and committed your workers feel to their workplace.

It’s something the majority of business leaders plan to focus on in 2024. That’s because high levels of employee engagement are linked to better productivity and staff retention.

There’s a direct link between workplace communication and employee engagement. Improve the former and you improve the latter.

Conflict resolution

Workplace conflicts are natural and inevitable. But you can’t allow mountains to become molehills. You need to get team members in a room to talk it out.

When teams communicate effectively, you resolve conflicts quickly, collaboratively, and conclusively. Good employee communication also prevents conflicts from developing in the first place.

Improved productivity

What could you do with an extra 7.47 hours per team, per week? That’s the time business leaders say they lose because of poor communication.

Employees rely on the right information to complete tasks. When that information is readily available and easy to find, workers get the job done quicker. And employee productivity sees a considerable uptick.

Improved employee morale

According to a Forbes study, nearly 50% of workers say that ineffective communication harms job satisfaction. And 42% say it makes them more stressed.

When communication is poor, workers also feel less confident professionally. And they’re more likely to look for other jobs.

Ineffective communication damages team morale. But when you adopt good communication practices, you find it easier to motivate and retain staff.

Increased innovation

For the best shot at developing innovative new ideas, you need to enlist the help of as many people in your organization as possible.

People have to bounce ideas off of one another. And you need a way to communicate your culture of innovation to the company at large.

Innovation relies on good communication. So with effective communication strategies, your company will come up with bigger and better ideas.

‍

Better decision-making

When communication flows between all members of an organization, leaders make more effective decisions.

That’s because they don’t make decisions in a silo. They take into account the ideas, opinions, and perspectives of all employees. They base decisions on information, not instinct.

It’s the same for employees. An incredible 28% of workers say they don’t understand their company’s goals. So imagine how much more effective their day-to-day decision-making could be with clear communication from leadership.

Business results

According to Grammarly’s State of Business Communication report, US businesses are losing $1.2 trillion every year because of ineffective communication practices.

Poor communication can lead to increased costs, lower customer satisfaction, missed deadlines, and the erosion of brand credibility.

It’s clear. Effective employee communication isn’t just a nice-to-have. It’s a fundamental pillar, with the power to make or break your business.

Using technology for effective employee communication

Many organizations are having trouble hanging onto frontline staff. But we know that effective communication can make staff happier and encourage them to stay.

Traditionally, messages may have been passed to the frontline via word of mouth, a cluttered team noticeboard, or personal messaging apps.

These communication methods are inefficient and time-consuming. There’s also a big risk in terms of reliability. Employees may get the wrong message – or no message at all.

Technology offers an alternative solution. Today’s best communication tech is designed around the modern workplace. It offers:

• Top-down, bottom-up, and peer-to-peer communication: communication moves in all directions thanks to communication channels everyone can contribute to
  
  
• An intuitive user experience and integrations: it’s easy for employees to find information; tools work well with any other tech you use and don’t add to the noise
  
  
• Real-time communication: 61% of workers prefer real-time communication; moving beyond email, employees get access to instant messaging and video conferencing
  
  
• Access for every employee – whether they work in the office, on the shop floor, or on the road, all employees get the same access to communications and communication tools

In today’s workplace, communication tech is essential. But the right tech solution looks different for every business. 

For desk-based teams, modern company intranets are ticking most boxes. However, frontline teams need a tech tool that isn’t chained to a computer and doesn’t require a company email address for login. 

Enter the employee app. For organizations with large frontline teams, an employee app like Blink has all the features and functions you need for effective employee communication.

It’s a mobile-first app so all employees can access Blink from their smartphone. All communication is available in the same place so employees know exactly where to find it.

Blink supports surveys, recognition, and – crucially – allows leadership to communicate with the frontline workforce they’re so often disconnected from.

88% of business leaders want tools that make communication easier and more effective. Frontline workers are calling out for effective tech, too, with 52% saying they would quit their jobs over poor tech tools.

With leaders and the frontline seeing the value of good tech, implementing this type of tool is one of the primary ways you can improve workplace communication. 

7 ways to improve workplace communication

Getting the right tech on your team is central to improving workplace communication. But you can’t stop there. If communication at your workplace is subpar, there’s work to be done.

These tips provide the other pieces of the puzzle. Put them into place and you’ll develop a strong and successful internal communication strategy.   

1. Lead by example

Leaders set the tone of your organization. So if you want employees to communicate regularly, openly, and clearly, your leaders have to, too.

Encourage leaders to be active and visible on employee communication channels. And to engage with employees at all levels of the business.

Training may be necessary. There’s a presumption that good communication comes naturally. The truth is it doesn’t. But it can be taught.

By gaining new skills, your leaders can become clear communicators and active listeners. They’ll also find it easier to establish a culture of positive communication.

2. Establish clear communication channels

Lots of noise? Not much being heard?

Channel overload makes it hard for employees to find information that’s relevant to them. This impacts their productivity. It can also lead them to disengage with internal communications.  

So establish clear communication channels and consider streamlining, too. When there’s one source of knowledge and information, it’s easier for employees to use it.

Also, share guidelines on how you expect employees to use your chosen channels. Perhaps there’s one space for informal team chat and another for company-wide updates. Maybe some types of messages are only relevant to certain team members.

With clear guidance on where they can find information and how to contribute to the conversation, employees are more likely to get involved.

3. Prioritize two-way communication

Employee communication used to mean leadership speaking to the rest of the organization. But times have changed. And this type of one-way communication now feels outdated.

It’s also ineffective. Organizations with an open communication culture are more inclusive, productive, creative, and collaborative. That’s why the majority of today’s employers strive to give their employees a voice.

To develop a culture of two-way communication, you need: 

• communication channels that everyone can use easily and intuitively
• a company culture where everyone feels able to speak out

When you develop a culture of psychological safety, everyone feels comfortable speaking out. Employees are happy to admit mistakes, ask silly questions, and voice criticism. People say more of what they feel, which aids meaningful communication.  

4. Provide regular updates

While two-way communication is important, don’t neglect top-down communication. Regular updates from leadership are still important.

They help employees align their work with organizational goals. They support good decision-making. And they give employees the contextual info they need to do their best work.

In office-based organizations, leaders can share the latest company news in short, face-to-face standups.

But when you’re managing a frontline workforce, company standups aren’t always viable. When people are working different shifts in different locations, it’s nearly impossible to get everyone in the same place at the same time. 

This is where your chosen communication tech tool can help. Via a company newsfeed post or a video upload, you can share up-to-the-minute info with your whole workforce and keep everyone on the same page.

5. Establish a feedback loop

According to the Harvard Business Review, around 72% of workers believe their performance would improve if they had open, honest feedback.

But effective employee communication isn’t just about giving feedback. It’s also about encouraging employees to give you theirs. 

You can support employees to speak up and give their opinions – on processes, the employee experience, leadership, or anything else – in two key ways.

First, by promoting a culture of psychological safety. And second, by making it easy for employees to have their say.

You can use tech tools to launch surveys. Annual surveys that help you benchmark feedback year on year. And pulse surveys that give a real-time view of your company.

Regular one-to-one meetings also build supportive manager-employee relationships. They’re a safe space in which employees can share any concerns or questions.

However, to make this process truly effective, you need to establish a feedback loop that follows these four stages:

• Information gathering – asking your employees for feedback
• Analysis – making sense of the data you’ve collected
• Action – using the data to make a plan of action
• Notification – telling employees what their feedback revealed and what you now plan to do  

By creating a feedback loop you keep employees invested in the process. You ensure their participation in future surveys and one-to-ones.  

6. Celebrate success

90% of employees find recognition motivating. But celebrating employee success doesn’t just encourage better, harder working.

Peer-to-peer recognition strengthens co-worker relationships. 3 in 4 employees say that the act of giving recognition makes them want to stay at their current organization longer.

And according to Gallup research, employees who regularly get recognition are more engaged, more connected to their culture, and less likely to experience burnout than those who do not.

Gallup also handily outlines the five features of effective recognition. It is:  

• Fulfilling – appropriate to the accomplishment
• Authentic – genuine rather than forced
• Personalized – adapted to the preferences of the person being recognized
• Equitable – all employees have the chance for recognition
• Embedded – it’s part of the value and practices of your organization

For frontline teams, recognition has to be intentional. You can’t always highlight employee work in a company standup or pop by a frontline team member’s desk.

This is another way that a tech tool like Blink can help improve workplace communication. Blink’s recognition feature allows both managers and co-workers to celebrate fellow employees.

They can publish a recognition post in the company newsfeed or send a DM. And wherever an employee is working, they get recognition sent straight to their smartphone app.

7. Address conflict promptly

Workplace conflicts often arise because of miscommunication. So simply putting the other tips on this list into action should reduce the number of disagreements you have to deal with.

But some conflict is inevitable. And how you deal with it is crucial. Unresolved conflict can cause negative workplace relationships – and even a toxic workplace culture.

So it’s always best to recognize and tackle conflict promptly. When managers become aware that a conflict has arisen, they need to get both parties together and bring issues out into the open.  

This is another area where tech can make a difference. When you conduct company communication over a tech tool, you get access to lots of data.

This data can help you to visualize workplace relationships. You see where positive and negative relationships lie, who likes to chat and who doesn’t. You can then intervene early to support strained relationships and help everyone feel more connected.

Measuring the effectiveness of workplace communication

As with any initiative, when you want to improve workplace communication, you need a clear way to measure progress.

Start by looking at the qualitative data you gather through employee one-to-ones and surveys. Find out what employees think of workplace communication – and what ideas they have for improving it.

You may also like to track a selection of the following key performance indicators (KPIs):

• Content engagement: message open rates; survey response rates; number of post comments and shares 
  
  
• Content channel engagement: communication tool adoption rate; the number of tech tool logins; employee profile completion rate
  
  
• Employee engagement: absenteeism rates; employee turnover rates; employee net promoter score (eNPS); employee satisfaction rates
  
  
• Business impact: customer satisfaction rates; sales figures; the number of met and overdue milestones; costs saved

Viewed together, these KPIs will show whether new communication channels and strategies are working to improve workplace communication and overall business results. You can then use these findings to optimize your approach going forward.

How Blink can help your organization with effective employee communication

For frontline organizations, it can be hard to find communication tools and strategies that suit your version of the workforce.

That’s why we created Blink.

Blink is an employee super-app. It allows easy communication between frontline and office-based teams. 

With real-time messaging, a company newsfeed, and seamless integrations, Blink is a streamlined communication solution. 

Whether you want to ask for employee feedback, notify staff of available shifts, or simply recognize an employee’s hard work, you can do it all within the intuitive Blink interface.

Case study: Elara Caring

Let’s take a look at Elara Caring. They started using Blink because they had a huge communication problem. They were struggling to connect the 32,000 carers who worked for them.

Before Blink:

• morale was low
• there was no opportunity for peer-to-peer connection
• annual staff turnover stood at 65%
• managers had to call hundreds of personal phone numbers to book carers onto shifts

Now, 96% of employees say they would recommend Blink. Our app is Elara’s destination for everything – from paystubs to schedules, to the latest company news.

All employees can join the company conversation, receiving critical updates and shift information straight to their smartphones.

They also feel more included in company culture. Employees can connect, share their stories, and learn from each other. They also get regular recognition from peers and managers, plus in-app access to L&D resources. 

At Blink, we help companies to improve employee communication. We’re closing the gap between frontline and office-based teams. So organizations can create richer cultures and reach their business goals. 

Want to join Elara Caring and lots of frontline businesses like them? Book a personalized demo to see what Blink could do for you. 

‍

What makes her awesome? 

Dee has been with Arriva since Christmas 2016, working 3 days a week so she could care for her three children. When the 2019 Covid pandemic hit, Dee started to work 6 days per week and stepped up to become acting supervisor. During this time, the team was nominated for (and won bronze at!) the Made A Difference Awards for the initiative and depot leadership they showed. They were also recognized for having the fewest rates of drivers contracting the virus within the area.

After the pandemic, she continued to work 6 days each week — her children were getting older, and she  had a lot of ideas to improve the standards! She continued to invest in herself and in Arriva: In 2023, she passed the passenger-carrying vehicle test, and when the previous supervisor retired, she became the supervisor in April 2024.

She gives immense credit to her team. In her own words:

“The two ladies I work with, Abby and Megan, are not only colleagues but friends as well, and that makes a difference. The friendship and team spirit within the team is very high and we all work together brilliantly. The goals and cleaning standards are at a high standard and we all work together to achieve this — when drivers compliment the cleanliness and difference is what I love most about the work we do.”

Nominated by: Lee Coleman

‍

Internal communications can’t fix what it’s not part of

Internal communications (IC) has long been viewed as a support function — a team responsible for delivering messages, not forging strategy.

Gallagher recently surveyed 2,300 comms professionals. 27% said they lacked leadership buy-in and were left out of decision-making. They said that their business leaders were failing to recognize the value and importance of internal communications.

This approach is way out of date. Today’s workforce expects more from employers — more transparency, more connection, more purpose. And all of that stems from how you communicate internally.

A good internal comms plan goes beyond messaging. It’s all about employee experience, engagement, retention — the foundations upon which any successful business is built.

So, for those who still need convincing, here are all the reasons IC should be integrated into the strategic conversation from the very start.

Beyond messaging: The case for internal communications as a strategic partner

#1. Drive company-wide alignment

When internal communicators have a voice in strategy, you connect employees to the bigger picture. Your IC project team can get a clearer understanding of organizational goals and relay them to the everyday work of employees more effectively.

Without that link, strategy can feel abstract — or worse, irrelevant. Employees don’t understand the what, why, and how behind their work. There’s ambiguity. Expectations are unclear. So motivation and productivity suffer.

An informed and empowered internal comms team is your most effective tool to align the workforce behind business objectives. And by giving internal comms a seat at the table, you create synergy across the C-suite too.

Internal communications often share business KPIs with other teams. Think strategy awareness, employee advocacy, policy compliance, and talent attraction. By collaborating with leaders at the highest levels, internal comms have a much better chance of achieving those essential business goals.

{{mobile-main="/image"}}

#2. Create a unified voice across departments

If HR, IT, marketing, and operations are all pushing updates on different platforms, employees don’t know who to listen to. Siloed comms can lead to inconsistent messaging, so employees view internal updates as unreliable and tune out.

The internal communications team can fix that. But only if they’re looped in early enough to create a cohesive narrative across all departments.

They can guide leaders on the best timing, tone, and platform to use. They’re skilled at simplifying complex messages. And they can ensure that employees receive consistent and personalized communication across key topics — like benefits updates, policy changes, and leadership announcements.

This level of collaboration between departments benefits employees. And it helps your internal comms team achieve more: According to Gallagher’s 2025 Employee Communications Report, strong interdepartmental relationships improve the ability of internal comms to use data and meet KPIs.

{{mobile-onboarding="/image"}}

#3. Bring corporate culture and values to life

Imagine you’re a bus driver who spends your days on the road. A trip to the depot is sometimes factored into your schedule. But, on the whole, you have little time with coworkers or managers and only receive patchy communication from HQ.

Ask yourself: Do you feel part of company culture? How connected do you feel to your organization and your peers? What are the ties that keep you working for this company instead of another? 

Internal communications play a critical role in shaping and sharing company culture for your frontline employees, office-based staff, and remote teams. The messages employees receive — and the peer-to-peer connections they’re supported to make — help to build a sense of belonging that fosters engaged employees and boosts retention.

But this doesn’t happen by accident. You need consistent, engaging, and transparent communication strategies. You need inclusive internal communication tools. And you need to turn cultural buzzwords into a lived experience.

If IC isn’t involved in core strategy from the start, this is a tough ask. Your internal messaging can do a lot of the heavy lifting. But for messages to stick, they need to reflect a cohesive corporate culture. And, for that, you need buy-in from the entire organization. 

Managers, workers, and leaders have to understand and embody your values day to day. When IC gets a seat at the table, they can coach leaders on the importance of community, leadership visibility, and psychological safety. They can create the essential foundations on which a vibrant and engaging company culture is built.

{{human-internal-comms="/callouts"}}

#4. Play a crucial role in change management

Change is a constant challenge in today’s workplace. But just 32% of comms professionals say they’re treated as strategic advisers, deeply involved in how change is communicated.

Teams are having to play catch-up, crafting internal communication strategies after decisions are made. They sometimes struggle to control the narrative, with different departments launching their own change initiatives at the same time.

Employees receive confused communications, sometimes from multiple stakeholders, each introducing their own change agenda. Without centralized leadership, crisis comms can easily become overwhelming for your workforce.

This is a major problem. Good change communication is key to overcoming resistance, preventing change fatigue, and ensuring a smooth transition. It’s the difference between trust and turmoil. And IC is the best team for the job.

Your internal communications team is skilled at sharing information transparently, reassuring employees, and creating space for feedback. They’re pros at communicating clearly and empathetically. 

With a role in the strategic discussions and planning that lead up to a big change or announcement, internal communications can explain the why — not just the what — to employees more effectively. They can preserve trust, mitigate risk, and sustain employee engagement during challenging times.

{{mobile-live-stream-poll="/image"}}

#5. Connect the boardroom and the breakroom

In a medium- to large-sized organization, senior leaders don’t have daily contact with employees. So it’s up to internal communication to act as a bridge between boardroom and breakroom.

IC can launch surveys and polls, view data on sentiment, and gather employee feedback that leaders might otherwise miss. They can surface the issues that matter most to employees — and help the C-suite to act on them.

These formal channels of open communication, forged and maintained by IC, don’t just highlight employee problems. When employees feel empowered to share their thoughts, bright ideas can more easily make their way from the frontlines to the C-suite. This means your leadership team gets more valuable insight that can help to grow the business. 

It goes the other way, too. We know that the workforce is generally mistrustful of the boardroom team, with just half of employees saying they trust their organization’s most senior leader. Internal communications can change that perception by working in close collaboration with the C-suite. 

Internal comms can be a powerful tool to help leaders build visibility and trust. Prioritizing transparent communication, storytelling, and regular updates can help make leadership more human and accessible. 

When they have direct access to both parties, internal comms teams can facilitate a dialogue. They can create a culture of two-way communication that’s better for everyone than top-down communication. Employees feel listened to — and C-suite can make more informed business decisions.

{{mobile-survey="/image"}}

#6. Power an engaging employee experience

Employee experience is how employees feel about their work and workplace. It’s how they’re treated and the extent to which they feel valued. It’s their sense of purpose and community.

Internal communications play a central role in shaping employee experience. A good messaging strategy keeps employees informed and helps them feel connected to the wider organization. 

With a seat in the boardroom, IC can go further, championing initiatives that support a positive employee experience. They can highlight the value of recognition, belonging, transparency, and employee voice to leadership — then weave these values into company messaging. 

Internal comms can also take a birds-eye view of the company comms ecosystem. They can implement more effective communication channels so the entire workforce — including frontline, hybrid, and remote employees — gets an experience that is more equitable and enjoyable. 

Involving IC in conversations on corporate strategy helps them turn open and effective communication into a cornerstone of the employee experience. Which means happy employees, increased employee engagement rates, and improved loyalty. 

{{less-is-more="/callouts"}}

Internal communications are so much more than a megaphone

Internal communications isn’t just a messaging tool. It’s a critical component of employee experience, company culture, and operations.

With IC at the strategy table, organizations gain a clear understanding of worker needs. Good internal communications strategies help communicate change and build trust. They can create a workplace community that meets the expectations of today’s employees. 

This leads to improved employee engagement, productivity, and retention. Because internal communication is about so much more than sharing info about the next away day or your updated company policy. It’s about building a workforce that feels informed, connected, and valued. 

Ready to unlock the full potential of internal comms? It’s time to promote IC from messenger to strategic partner. Your people — and your business stakeholders — will thank you.

‍Blink. And discover why internal communicators will power the future of work.

AI isn’t exactly the new kid on the block, but 2024 was the year it truly hit its stride. Businesses that embraced it didn’t just dip their toes in — they’re already seeing big wins.

According to Boston Consulting Group, businesses that are leading the way with AI have achieved 1.5x the revenue growth than those that lag behind.  

So could 2025 be the year when AI becomes commonplace in internal communications and HR? HR leaders seem to think so. 3 in 4 say that failing to adopt and implement AI in the next 12 to 24 months will harm organizational success. 

AI is becoming a necessity rather than a nice-to-have — and the employee intranet is the perfect place to put it to use. AI has the power — not just to enhance intranets — but to reinvent them for the modern workforce.

Let's take a closer look at the essential features and benefits that an AI-powered intranet can bring to your employees and organization.

{{mobile-blink-assist="/image"}}

Why employee intranets are stuck in the past

Traditional employee intranets — we’re talking those clunky, desktop-based platforms — rarely meet the needs of today’s modern workforce.

Typically used as a content management hub on a private network, they serve up static documents that tend to quickly go out of date, like company policies. Interfaces are usually hard to navigate. There are few (if any) employee engagement features built into the system.

The result? Employees actively avoid your intranet solution. Adoption and usage rates drop. It gets even harder to streamline workflows and share important employee communications.

In recent years, modern intranets and employee apps have been rectifying some of the problems created by traditional intranets — and AI is taking the digital workplace to a whole new level.

How AI is turning corporate intranets into must-have tools

The talk about AI isn’t just hype. Incorporate this tech into your intranet software and you can finally create a social intranet that serves as a single source of truth for your employees.

Here’s a taste of what AI can do for your employee intranet:

Personalization

Imagine logging into your intranet and seeing everything you need in one central location — no digging, no guesswork. Thanks to AI, your intranet can serve up personalized internal communication, relevant content, and digital tools in a company news feed that’s designed to feel custom-built just for you.

{{mobile-desktop-main="/image"}}

Enhanced search capabilities

Natural language processing (NLP) means we can speak to AI as we would a person — and it understands what we’re saying. This enables intuitive and conversational intranet search functions. Also, AI may soon be able to answer employee questions using its knowledge of intranet resources, rather than simply serving a list of resource links.

Proactive assistance

AI can be integrated into your employee intranet as a chatbot. It can answer employee FAQs and guide onboarding for new hires. It can help employees find the intranet content and tools they need. This frees your HR, IT, and comms teams to focus on higher-level tasks.

Real-time recommendations

Your intranet could become your employees’ personal assistant, predicting what they need before they even realize it. Need a document? It’s already highlighted. Looking for a collaborator? AI’s got a suggestion. It’s like having an intranet that reads minds.

Voice and chat integration

Employees can enjoy seamless intranet interactions through virtual assistants and voice commands. Employees don’t even need to type. They can get answers to questions like, “What are my tasks for the day?” or “show me the latest HR policy,” without having to navigate the intranet interface. This is great for accessibility and for employees who want to access your intranet on the go. 

Task automation

AI can automate a wide range of routine tasks, including PTO requests, compliance training reminders, and IT support tickets. It can search for and flag outdated intranet content, automatically generate content tags, and launch pulse surveys as per your schedule. It can become the home for easy-to-find collaboration tools that help employees connect and work with one another. Managers and employees can also use AI to compose intranet content.

{{mobile-survey="/image"}}

‍

Easy analytics

AI can help you make the most of your intranet by analyzing data on usage patterns, features that aren’t used very often, and your most popular content. You can also use AI to analyze employee sentiment and identify employee engagement red flags. This gives you time to make changes before dissatisfaction impacts productivity and retention.

Why an AI-powered intranet is a win-win

AI transformation can feel daunting. But the benefits it brings for both employees and organizations can’t be ignored.

Benefits for employees

An AI intranet improves the employee experience. Automation and proactive AI support make work quicker and easier, so employees can focus on more meaningful and strategic tasks. AI can optimize the collaborative parts of a unified platform — like enabling an easy-to-navigate employee directory, or quick-to-use instant messaging — that make or break a great experience on a daily basis.

An AI-powered intranet also reduces friction and frustration because employees are presented with relevant information at every turn. Every employee — from the desk-based employee to the frontline worker — gets a user-friendly, personalized intranet experience that improves their engagement and motivation.

{{mobile-workday-feed="/image"}}

‍

Benefits for organizations

AI improves your intranet solution, driving higher employee adoption rates and ensuring you get the best possible ROI from your intranet investment.

Your new and improved intranet can also become a key part of the company culture, supporting employee engagement, productivity, collaboration, and retention. And with easy data analysis, it’s much easier to track success relating to all these business objectives.   

AI roadblocks — and how to power through them

An AI-powered intranet can transform your digital workplace, making it more engaging, efficient, and collaborative. But — as with any big change in the workplace — you need to give careful consideration to potential pitfalls.

Here are some of the challenges of incorporating AI into your intranet software and what you can do to overcome them.  

Data privacy concerns

AI systems process vast amounts of personal and organizational data. So preventing data breaches and the associated loss of employee trust is imperative. You should only use encrypted intranet platforms and work to establish clear data privacy policies.

Change management

Introducing AI to your traditional intranet is like rolling out the red carpet for innovation — but not everyone might feel like a VIP right away. Some employees may hesitate, wondering, “How do I even use this?” That’s where effective communication and training come in to save the day.

Balancing AI and a human touch

Use AI to augment, rather than replace, human connection. AI can handle repetitive tasks and help with data analysis. But when it comes to tasks that require decision-making, emotional intelligence, creative collaboration, and relationship-building, ensure that employees — not bots — take the lead.

How to make AI intranet adoption seamless

If, like us, you’re convinced that AI is going to be an intranet game-changer, here’s what you need to do next.  

#1. Conduct a needs assessment to determine what features matter most

To find an AI intranet that meets all your organizational needs, start with a needs assessment. Consult with stakeholders at all levels to find out which intranet and AI features they’d like to see. Then, put features in order of priority before you go vendor shopping.

#2. Partner with a tech vendor specializing in AI-powered intranets

There are lots of tech vendors out there — but not all of them specialize in AI-powered intranets. Work with an AI intranet specialist and your partner can guide you seamlessly through the intranet upgrade process. You can also count on platform reliability, time and cost efficiency, and access to the most advanced AI features. Check out our recommendations of top intranet software providers here.

#3. Prioritize mobile-first design to align with employee expectations

Like the rest of your modern employee intranet, any AI tools should be available to all employees across all devices. Employees — from your office-based knowledge workers to your remote workers and frontline workers in the field — should get the same great intranet experience. So prioritize user-friendly, mobile-first intranet software that meets employees’ high expectations.

{{mobile-desktop-main="/image"}}

#4. Roll out AI capabilities in phases to avoid overwhelming users

When rolling out any new intranet feature, it’s best to do so in stages, getting employees used to one new feature at a time. This reduces staff overwhelm and helps you sustain intranet engagement. A phased approach also takes the pressure off your IT team, who are less likely to be swamped with training and support requests.

Incorporate AI and take your employee intranet to the next level

Let’s face it: AI isn’t just the future — it’s here. And it’s reshaping the company intranet into something your workforce will actually want to use. With the help of AI, organizations are enhancing the digital employee experience, boosting workplace productivity, and fostering corporate culture — ultimately improving outcomes across the entire company.

The question is: Are you ready to make the leap?

By making the shift to a modern intranet solution now and preparing your platform, employees, and organization for the future, you can stay ahead of the curve — and start to reap AI’s benefits sooner rather than later.

Blink. And discover how an AI-powered intranet can reimagine your organization.

‍

The average person will work 35 hours per week. That adds up to 84,365 hours over their lifetime. Yet just over one-third of employees (34%) are engaged, and 16% are actively disengaged in their work and workplace.

If you’re reading this, the chances are you want to make sure your employees don’t feel like they are wasting a large portion of their life at work. We’ll do our best to help you do just that.

In this handy guide, we’ll break down the key steps you need to take when creating an employee engagement strategy.

From understanding why your organization truly needs an employee engagement strategy, to the actionable steps you can take to create your own strategy, we’ll cover everything you need to know right here.

Why you need an employee engagement strategy

Creating an employee engagement strategy can seem daunting, but it’s important for any business. Having a strategic approach to your employees’ happiness and engagement will help you retain top talent, keep them motivated and productive, and ultimately grow your business.

Effective employee engagement strategies will outline exactly how you are going to improve employee engagement within your organization, allowing all team members to stay on the same page when it comes to their roles and responsibilities.

In short: by creating an employee engagement strategy, you can strategically work to improve your employee engagement. And with improved levels of engagement, come a number of organizational benefits, including: 

• Higher Productivity: Employee engagement is closely linked with productivity. Engaged employees are more motivated to do their best work and achieve their goals. In fact, research has shown that engaged employees are up to 202% more productive than disengaged employees.
• Reduced Staff Turnover: Low employee retention is costly and disruptive for any business, and one of the most decisive factors for employee retention is employee engagement. Engaged employees are less likely to leave their job, which reduces the need for costly and disruptive staff turnover.
• Improved Morale: A happy workforce is a productive workforce. When employees feel engaged and valued, they are more likely to be happy at work and less likely to experience stress or burnout. As such, a staff engagement strategy can motivate employees and improve morale, job satisfaction and overall company culture.
• Greater Loyalty: An engaged employee is more likely to be loyal to their company, in fact 90% of workers said they are more likely to stay at a company that takes and acts on feedback: AKA one that engages them. They are less likely to look for jobs elsewhere and are more likely to recommend their company to others. Therefore, the right employee engagement strategies can drive your staff retention rates and encourage employees to stay with your company for longer.

Employee engagement strategies & business types

What your employee engagement strategy needs to consist of will change depending on your business type. For example, a software company will need to focus on ways to motivate and engage product designers and developers in order to compete for top talent in a competitive Silicon Valley environment. A healthcare organization, on the other hand, will need to come up with innovative ways to engage their nursing and medical staff to combat physician burnout and the growing nursing shortage.

What's important is that you provide your workforce with strategies that are designed for them specifically. Ultimately, your strategy will depend on the type of employees you have, the unique challenges facing those teams in your market, their day-to-day tasks, and how your organization operates as a whole.

Employee engagement for the frontline

Creating an employee engagement strategy can be especially important for frontline organizations. With 80% of the global workforce working on the frontline, it’s important to have strategies in place that will help keep these workers engaged, productive and motivated.

Additionally, employees in frontline positions often have more direct contact with customers and are more likely to represent the company to the public. As such, it is important for these employees to be engaged and motivated, so they can provide positive customer service experiences.

Frontline staff engagement strategies might involve providing employees with accessible digital tools for employee engagement, offering transparent and frequent communication, or emphasizing the importance of customer feedback.

Remember: whatever strategies you use, it’s important to tailor them specifically to your industry, business type and workforce.

How to create your employee engagement strategy

In order to have engaged employees, you need a plan in place, outcomes in mind, a clear outline of responsibilities and a culture that takes participation seriously. You also need a toolset available that is able to execute your plan, close distances, track results and simplify operations. 

To make this a little easier to understand, we've broken the process down into 7 simple steps.

1. Define - Your purpose, values & mission

Defining your own purpose, company core values, and mission statement is a crucial step in creating your employee engagement strategy. In fact, when teams know your goals and expectations of them, they are 2.8 times more likely to be engaged in their roles, according to research from Quantum Workplace.

By clearly articulating what you stand for as an organization, you can align your staff with these values and give them a reason to be invested in the success of your business in the long-term.

To ensure that all employees are on the same page here, you should provide an easy-to-access Hub containing all company policy and procedure documents, along with a thorough onboarding process for new hires.

2. Listen - Conversations and research

Direct, two-way conversations and further research into your employees’ needs and wants will help you to create a more personalized engagement strategy, making this a core step in the strategic process. One way to do this is through pulse surveys.

Pulse Surveys are short, regular surveys that ask employees about their engagement levels and how they feel about their work. This can help you to identify any areas where your employees may be struggling, and can help to ensure that your employee engagement strategy is constantly evolving.

Whether it’s through surveys, focus groups, one-on-one interviews or anonymous staff feedback tools, gathering data and hearing directly from your employees can give you valuable insights into what they need from an engagement strategy, and help you identify your organisation's key engagement drivers, in order for staff to stay engaged at work.

3. Review - Analyze and plan

Once you have gathered data from your employees, it’s time to analyze this information and determine what action needs to be taken. You may find that certain areas of your workplace are in need of improvement, or perhaps a company-wide change is necessary to boost employee engagement.

Whatever the results of your employee research, it’s crucial to identify specific targets and actions that will make your plan a success. What’s working, what's not? Are there specific issues that need to be addressed? What are your engagement goals as a business leader?

Key goals for your employee engagement strategy could include:

• Lower staff absenteeism
• Better employee retention rates and lower turnover
• Improved productivity
• Enhanced employee motivation and happiness 
• Increased customer satisfaction 
• More positive organizational culture.

By reviewing and analyzing the data you have gathered, you can gain a clear understanding of how to better engage employees in order to achieve these goals. This will help you to build a more effective employee engagement strategy that your employees want to respond positively to.

4. Commit - Actions speak louder than words

Strategy is important, but actions always speak louder than words. Employee engagement strategies that work, only work if you plan to back them up with core actions, processes and real change.

Below, we have outlined some key ways to commit to your employee engagement strategy. By truly committing to all of these actions, you can bring your employee engagement strategy to life and start seeing real results.

Tools & technology

Digital tools are essential for any organization looking to boost engagement. By providing your employees with the right tools, you can make it easier for them to connect with each other and with your company. This can help to improve communication and collaboration within your team, leading to higher job satisfaction, and a more engaged workforce.

There are a variety of different digital tools that you can use to engage your employees, including great employee engagement apps, online chat software and team collaboration tools.

It’s also important to consider using technology with frontline-specific features in deskless organizations. With 52% of frontline workers claiming they would leave their job over tech tools, better digital commitments are clearly needed here. By providing your employees with tools fit-for-purpose on the frontline, you can ensure that your employees feel supported and engaged no matter where they are in the organization.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uV1_4ZdjPQ4&ab_channel=Blink

Recruitment 

Assuming that you have already begun the process of gathering data and analyzing it, you should now begin to take actions across the board in order to improve employee engagement. One way to do this is through better recruitment practices.

People who match your ideals and company culture, who will add value, and who are onboarding engagement are more likely to be engaged employees. Therefore, it is important to take care in the recruitment process, and to ensure that you are hiring people who will be a good fit for your company. You can use interviews, personality tests and job simulations to get to know a candidate better, and to see how they would fit into your team.

It is also important to provide a thorough onboarding process for new hires in order to establish a culture of engagement from day one. This can help them to feel welcome and comfortable in their new role, and can help them to learn about your company policies and procedures.

Communication

Regular communication is key to keeping employees engaged. Employees need to feel like they are part of the bigger picture, and that their voice is heard. By establishing a regular communication schedule – whether it be through Secure Chats, email, newsletters, team meetings or other methods – you can ensure that your employees are kept in the loop.

It’s also important to have a clear internal communications strategy in place. This should outline who is responsible for communicating with whom, and what methods will be used. This will help to ensure that everyone is on the same page, and that important messages don’t get missed.

It’s important to tailor communications to the needs of your employees. For example, if most of your employees are frontline workers who don’t have access to a computer, you may need to adjust your communications methods so that they can be accessed on mobile devices – think mobile employee engagement apps. You may also need to consider using different methods for different departments or locations within your company.

Surveys

Although surveys are important when drafting your strategy, it’s also important to gather feedback from your employees on a more regular basis if you want to walk the walk of employee engagement. By conducting regular Employee Surveys, you can get a sense of how your employees are feeling at any given time – and if things need to change.

An employee engagement survey can help you to gather valuable data and feedback from your employees, which you can use to improve your strategy. You may want to consider including questions about work-life balance, employee engagement initiatives, training and development, and other areas.

Frequent surveys are a great way to get ongoing feedback from your employees and to see how they feel about various aspects of their job or the company as a whole. You can also use surveys to measure the success of your employee engagement strategies, obtaining valuable insight into what is working and what needs to be changed or improved.

Managers

“Leadership has an important role to play when it comes to employee engagement, and this is especially important given nearly half (45%) of workers say leadership is “minimally” or “not at all” committed to improving company culture. In fact, 78% of employees confirmed that any change to culture needs to be driven by the CEO.” — Jeff Cates, CEO of Achievers.

For business leaders, mid-level management is often the first step towards employee engagement. By ensuring managers are supported from the top level, given the budget, training, tools and support they need, you can set them up for success as well as help to create a culture of engagement across your entire organization.

Effective managers have many important roles when it comes to employee engagement. They are responsible for setting expectations, holding people accountable, and providing feedback. They are also responsible for coaching and mentoring their team members, as well as helping to resolve any issues or conflicts that may arise.

5. Measure - Analyze and report

To measure the impact and see if their employee engagement activities and strategy is working, businesses should use employee engagement analytics via the right tools, at the right time.

It’s important to use analytics at different points throughout your engagement strategy, as this will help you to gain valuable insight and data that can be used to adjust what is working and improve the areas that need improvement. For example, you may want to analyze employee satisfaction levels before implementing a new training program, or track engagement levels over time to see if your initiatives are working.

There are many different types of analytics tools that you can use to analyze and report this data, for example Blink's Frontline Intelligence tool. Our powerful analytics offer insight into the people and relationships that make your organization tick. 

By analyzing data from people, places, and things on a regular basis, you can gain real-time intelligence into your employee engagement strategy that you can use to better support and understand your workforce.

6. Reward - recognition & progression

When used effectively, recognition can be an extremely powerful tool for improving employee engagement. Employees need to feel appreciated for their efforts, and recognition is one of the best ways to show your most engaged employees that you appreciate them.

However, simply giving employees a pat on the back isn’t enough – recognition needs to be meaningful, memorable and measurable. By taking the time to recognize employees in a meaningful way, you can show them that you truly value their contributions, and make them want to engage and contribute more.

There are many different ways to recognize employees, and it’s important to find what works best for your organization. Some popular methods of recognition include offering Kudos or Employee Recognition, awards ceremonies, Feed shout-outs, gift cards or vouchers, and thank-you notes.

It's also crucial that you back up recognition with opportunities for growth and career development. This may include promotions, opportunities to learn new skills, a stronger compensation and benefits package, or simply more responsibility. By providing employees with opportunities for growth and progression within the organization, you are helping them feel valued and motivated to continue performing well.

7. Repeat - Regular check-ins and adjustments

To truly maximize the impact of your employee engagement strategy, it’s important to take a regular and systematic approach. This means that you should regularly check in on key metrics, analyze the data you gather, and make any necessary adjustments based on what you find.

Stay on top of your engagement. Track key metrics such as employee satisfaction and engagement levels, and conduct regular check-ins to analyze the data you gather. This will help you make any necessary adjustments to your strategy in a timely and effective manner, ensuring that your employees are engaged and motivated at all times.

Final Thoughts

At Blink, we provide the all-in-one solution to employee engagement. Designed for the frontline, our easy-to-access, intuitive employee engagement app delivers real-time data and communications, actionable insights and intelligent recommendations.

Inspiring engagement in your employees has never been easier. With our powerful analytics tools and customizable recognition programs, you can gain valuable insight into your workforce and take the steps needed to boost engagement levels across the board.

Whether you’re looking for a way to track employee performance, improve communication and feedback, or simply create a more positive work environment, Blink has everything you need.

Get started today

Hey! I'm Theo Booth, I am originally from the UK but I have spent the majority of my life trying to travel as much as possible and I have lived in 5 countries.

Before becoming a software engineer I was in the shipping industry, initially as a broker before becoming a trader.

I did a Software Engineering bootcamp during lockdown before joining the Solutions Engineering team at Blink as a Full Stack Developer in September of last year.

The responsibilities of the role are twofold: Firstly, to scope out and build custom integrations that can service our clients needs; and secondly, to work with customers to find solutions to/tailor bespoke apps for the pain points in their current ways of working.

The culture at Blink is second to none and the diverse team is a mix of weird and wonderful people all driving towards the same goal. It’s a lovely place to work!