- Nov 25, 2024
The Chatter - Issue #6 21Nov2024
- Liz Marion
- 0 comments
Hi there Communicators,
In this season of gratitude, I want to thank each of you for your support of Liby Works and for reading this newsletter each and every month. If there is something that I can do to support you, please let me know - I sincerely mean it.
For our teams, it is critical how we communicate gratitude and appreciation not just in this season, but all year long. Effective communication goes hand-in-hand with appreciation—when employees feel recognized and valued, they’re more engaged and motivated to do their best work. But appreciation doesn’t stop at a “thank you.” It’s about listening, responding, and ensuring that communication is clear and intentional.
Are we making sure employees know that their contributions are seen and valued? Are we addressing their needs and removing barriers to better communication? Gratitude, when communicated well, becomes a powerful driver of engagement and productivity.
As we think about annual planning (anyone else behind?), here are a couple of questions to ask your employees before the end of the year:
How often does information sharing get in the way of your best work?
What can we improve in how we communicate goals, priorities, or feedback to you?
By asking these questions, you’re opening up a dialogue that allows your team to feel heard and supported. It’s an essential part of building trust and setting your organization up for success in 2025 (back to October's newsletter on building trust and delegation).
Clear, effective communication isn’t just about sharing information—it’s about ensuring our teams feel confident, informed, and empowered to take action towards the organization's biggest goals.
In gratitude,
Liz Marion
Owner & Principal, Liby Works
Key Insights: facts and more
Data
76% of employees say they are more likely to stay at a company that offers continuous training
Source: SHRM Reports, Intellum article linked below
More Than That
One BIG way to show real appreciation and gratitude to our employees is by giving them the skills they’ll need to succeed as our organizations grow and change. Continuous training isn’t just a perk—it’s a commitment to our people and the future of our business.
I often ask leaders: How’s the leadership pipeline in your organization? Are your future leaders ready for what’s coming their way in 12 months? 18 months? 3 years?
Two things hold true in every organization: Employees perform better when they know what’s expected of them, and they’re more likely to stay when they believe the company is genuinely invested in them.
With the rise of AI, rapid tech advancements, new delivery methods, and a constantly evolving consumer landscape, the need for upskilling and reskilling has never been more urgent. A recent SHRM survey found that employees overwhelmingly expressed the need for both hard (88%) and soft (84%) skills training to keep up with their roles.
And no surprise here: leadership training tops the list of soft skills employees want. Middle managers, in particular, are the linchpins of our organizations. They’re balancing the challenging role of communicating up, down, and across the organization. For our organizations to thrive, these managers need to be exceptional communicators who can move our mission forward and keep teams aligned and motivated.
Effective communication is more than just knowing what to say—it’s having a toolbox of styles and approaches for different stakeholders and audiences (internal and external). Asking for feedback from your teams could reveal what these middle managers truly need to thrive, not only tomorrow but for the long term.
Try asking these questions to uncover the priority upskilling needs in your org for 2025:
What’s the number one skill you want to develop in 2025?
Are you getting the kind of feedback that helps you improve?
Where do you feel a skills gap could hold you back in the coming year?
Empowering employees with training today is the best way to set them—and your organization—up for success tomorrow.
The Communications Corral: A round up of recent communications news, reports and content.
Organization Training: Just the Stats
This Intellum article, Employee Training Statistics: The Value of Good Training, provides a quick and easy way to see the stats of investing in upskilling your team.
Sometimes we just need a quick run down of the stats and this is it.
Quips, Quotes and Jokes: We have to have a little fun with communications.
