Tips for a Communications Strategy During a Pandemic

Times of uncertainty can leave employees feeling out of the loop and questioning what impact they might see affecting themselves and their families. Proper communication can alleviate some concerns through a thoughtful communication strategy. It is important to provide quick and frequent communication and have tools in place to track correspondence.

1. Quick Response and Communication

Getting in front of employees’ questions and concerns is vital in times of crisis. It can reinforce that their organization is actively responding and reacting to changing conditions affecting the workplace or people’s lives in general. To achieve these goals, it is important to have the tools in place to disseminate information at a moment’s notice. The proper tools can also help share current information, changing requirements and guidelines of concern to an organization.

2. Steady Stream of Information

Constant communication can help ensure that an organization’s employees know any updated expectations and guidelines as a situation evolves. As we are seeing, information is coming in from many sources. Compiling information, distributing consistent updates and providing a guideline of when the next update can be expected helps all involved. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), explaining honestly what is known and admitting what is uncertain in communications is essential as a situation continues to evolve.

3. Tracking Communications

Develop a target audience for these communications. Some communications should be shared company-wide while others may be shared to certain individuals or groups. A company may have separate messages by department or employee type to provide applicable information for each group. It is helpful to have an established method to track that the message was sent and received. Having a tracking method in place can assist organizations in ensuring messages reach the intended audience. In the case of an incident, the ability to determine if and where there was a breakdown in communication is key. The goal here is to focus on reaching all impacted parties with the proper communications and make sure they are receiving the current and accurate information directly from those in charge.

Let ISN Help
Throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, ISN has assisted our Hiring Client subscribers in sending communications and ensuring contractors receive pertinent information. ISN has sent more than 150 Hiring Client communications to contractors using the ISN Messages or Bulletin Board tools.

Our team is available to assist contractors with next steps in completing updated requirements that their Hiring Clients have implemented in ISNetworld as a response to the pandemic. The ISN Team has built more than 60 acknowledgement forms for their respecting Hiring Clients.

If you are a Hiring Client that would like to learn more about how ISNetworld’s communication tools can support your efforts, contact your account representative.

If you’re interested in learning how ISN can help you streamline your contractor management programs and provide communication tools, request a demo of our contractor management platform, ISNetworld.