In: Operations Management
Business Communication lesson homework.
You are working at a multinational company. How should you communicate with your internal and external audience during the Covid-19 coronavirus? Consider nonverbal and verbal communication strategies and plan your business messages. I should come up with a case . I should use my imagination. how I present my stance to our employees and customers.
The Covid-19 coronavirus managed to impact economies within days of its outbreak. A human crisis with an equally severe impact on business: both demand and supply are hard hit. Answers seem elusive and rumours seem to spread faster than the virus itself. Businesses need to develop an efficient management plan in response to the situation.
Communication is the Lifeline - This is a time when communications are more important than ever because, aside from ensuring the safety of your employees and suppliers, the way your company handles the crisis can be a decisive factor in its revival. During such a crisis electronic communication plays a huge role in supporting the economic activity which is now rapidly shifting online as more and more people stay home. At its core, every crisis communication must be built on four pillars: honesty, consistency, transparency and accountability.
A Leadership voice is important. In video, live or in print, most people look for an authoritative voice to tell them about the situation, its impact, the measured steps being taken to tackle the crisis and providing hope that it will subside. It is the role of the leader to keep his team and customers together.
Internal Communication (employees and stakeholders)
Employees are a company's most important constituency and they function as ambassadors to the community. It is imperative to communicate to them, the risks and challenges that the company is facing amidst the crisis. This includes layoffs and other cutbacks, and how such decisions were made and the future plans. The communication has to be clear, concise and sympathetic. If they aren't informed and dont understand what is going on, communications outside the organization will be more difficult.
The epidemic has created intense volatility in the financial markets almost turning it into a recession. Publicly listed companies have a special responsibility to communicate the impact of the virus to its shareholders. It is necessary to be transparent in its communication and use the crisis as an opportunity to reinforce the corporation's long-term fundamentals.
External Communication
Many loyal customers might decide to place faith in the company even during such a crisis. In such situations, customers want to hear from the company. Communicating the company's response measures to handle the crisis will help diffuse its impact at the community level. The key focus being empathy rather than trying to create selling oppurtunities. Being silent is not an option. Sharing facts in real time will go a long way towards ecouraging trust.
The message should be communicated using all social media channels at a company's disposal. Further, community building activities such public service sessions, live sessions with experts in the field etc. will build loyalty if these activities align with the company's corporate values.
Finally, a company must be careful in its approach and not make things worse by communicating where it doesnt belong such as grandstanding donations that the company must have made to alleviate the crisis. Such applause or acknowledgements must come from the media or the customers and not from the company itself. The company must also keep in mind that the crisis will likely be a game-changer in terms of what the employees and customers want and expect from the companies that they work for and patronize. In the meanwhile, it is important to keep the communication flowing in as direct, timely and honest a manner as possible.