As internal communicators, we often wear multiple hats: masterful storyteller, skillful strategist, reliable agent of change and steadfast business partner. But first and foremost, we’re human beings, and that means we tend to default to what we know — or think we know — from experience.
This includes what has (or has not) worked in the past, what we believe will (or won’t) be approved by leadership, and what will enable us to check the box and move on to the next item on our to-do list. This is all useful information, but it’s only the beginning. When we restrict ourselves to what we already know, we limit our ability to make a larger impact.
To positively influence the employee experience and demonstrate our intrinsic value to the organization, we need to pivot to a more agile mindset. As communicators, we must remain open to continuously learning what we don’t know and, perhaps more importantly, to unlearning any ideas, assumptions or methods that have proven to be no longer true or effective.
The Art of Listening
The process of learning is fluid and often driven by the ever-changing landscape of how we communicate. But it is also heavily influenced by the dynamic evolutions of employee opinion. That is why we must always be listening. The right course of action can be informed by what was done in the past, but it depends on clearly hearing and understanding what’s being said right now.
Fortunately, employees provide feedback every day, and if we’re willing to listen attentively and without preconceptions, we put ourselves in a powerful and influential position. However, with great power comes great responsibility. Playing this role requires us as communicators to take accountability for transmitting information in both directions: from leadership down through the organization, and then from employees back to leadership, in the form of feedback.
Uncovering the Stories Leaders Need
One common challenge that communicators and HR professionals regularly face is resistance from leadership to take decisive action based on employee survey results. Often this is because the information leaders are given is unclear. It can be difficult for them to discern what employees are really saying and why they’re saying it. It’s our job to uncover this critical layer of context and nuance.
According to McLean & Company’s Employee Engagement Trends Report 2025, executive leadership continues to score low relative to other organizational drivers, representing a risk for organizations facing significant change and uncertainty in 2025 and beyond. This makes it more urgent than ever for senior leaders to invest in building trust by acting on employee feedback where possible and communicating the rationale for the decisions they make to drive engagement.
As critical strategic partners to the C-suite, communicators must dig deeper to figure out what the real issues are so leadership can act on the feedback employees are giving. For example, imagine a company’s employees say they don’t understand the company mission. What does this mean? It could be one of several possibilities:
- The mission is unclear or inconsistent.
- The mission is not communicated often enough or through the right channels.
- Employees understand the mission, but they see it as unattainable or simply don’t agree with it.
In this case, communicators need to ask the right questions to make it clear to leadership where and why these disconnects are occurring. Only when leaders understand exactly why employees don’t understand the mission can they take steps to fix it.
The Right Method for the Right Message
Whether it’s a global benchmark survey, a national state-of-the-workplace report or an internal all-employee survey, these macro-level insights can provide powerful guidance on where to start digging. Once we know where to start, we can leverage our communicators’ toolbox to get at the heart of what employees are really saying and why they’re saying it.
It’s true that deploying our tools takes time, budget and resources. But the information gleaned from focus groups, leadership listening sessions, stakeholder interviews and targeted pulse surveys will uncover the context and nuance to answer those second-level questions from leadership and give them the confidence they need to greenlight action.
These tools will also arm us with the insights we need to architect and execute an effective strategy to act on employees’ feedback. Ultimately, communicators and leadership want the same thing: to drive the culture, align employees toward company goals and inspire them to be champions for our organizations. By listening clearly and thinking beyond past precedent, communicators can help enable that outcome for both parties and, in the process, add another hat to our roster: employee advocate.
Contributors
Liz Hutchison Taff
Vice President, Account Manager
With over a decade of experience managing communications within the hospitality and media industries, Liz is an expert at helping clients design communications that engage and inspire employees. She serves as the strategy and development lead for ROI’s Digital Employee Experience team.
