Developing effective voices
To give your workers an ‘effective voice’, you must have a safe and open way for them to communicate with management. This allows them to:
- problem solve together
- input into business decisions
- develop new ideas
- work collaboratively
How effective voice benefits your organisation
Research indicates that productivity is higher in businesses with stronger employee voice and representation.
Giving your workers opportunities to voice their opinions can help them feel like a valuable part of your organisation. This also helps workers to:
- raise concerns and feel heard
- reduce workplace conflict
- increase productivity, as they can raise and resolve issues more efficiently
Find out more about the benefits of employee voice through the CIPD.
Example
British Airways Maintenance Glasgow (BAMG) used Fair Work principles to improve communication across their company.
“Good relationships between workers and management help productivity and job satisfaction. When communication is good, everyone is happy and knows what direction we are heading in. It’s better for the workplace and better for the company.” David Eden, BAMG
Effective voice in your organisation
You can encourage workers to communicate openly by:
- planning informal discussions with their manager
- providing ways for your teams to engage and collaborate in work
- talking to your team – to find out what methods they’d find most useful in your organisation
This could be through many ways, such as:
- one-to-one meetings
- team meetings
- staff surveys
- a trade union
- employee representation on boards
Employer resources for effective voice
Find out about the purpose of employee voice and its use through the CIPD.
Get advice on work and employment law through ACAS.
Find out how trade union recognition might benefit your organisation.