Every week, Chuck Gose and Rachel Miller spin the wheel on internal communications. Here are eight takeaways from episode 5 on the topic of company feedback and anonymity.

1. takeaways on company
feedback and anonymity8

2. If the fear of asking questions, and if the fear
of putting your name to a question stops you
from having your voice heard, then that's
where mechanisms for anonymity can be
really helpful.
And the mindset for me often it's not who
said what, but what's being said. So when I'm
auditing internal comms, I want to hear
what's being said inside the organization.
Rachel Miller
All Things IC

3. I like it when there's an option for anonymity
if only because there are some things that
people - whether it be in their personal lives,
social lives or professional lives - want to
share but are fearful of retribution or blow
back on them.
And I think the more sensitive the topic, that
fear exists even more. And also the more
sensitive the topic, probably the more
important that topic is.
Chuck Gose
SocialChorus

4. Very often the culture of asking
questions isn't there.
And it's so frustrating as a communicator
because you know your people have got
questions, because they're asking them
all the time, often through the comms
team, and you sit there and it's just
tumbleweed and nobody's asking
questions.
Rachel Miller
All Things IC

5. People like to talk about the importance of
having difficult conversations or crucial
conversations, but those are easy to have
when you're the person in power. Those are
very easy to have because you've got the
power over top of other people.
When you're that person underneath, those
conversations have a much different feel.
Chuck Gose
SocialChorus

6. You need to have a mix of mechanisms to
ask for feedback, whether it's through line
managers or a works council or whatever
mechanism, you need to amplify employees
voices.
And then do something about it. There is no
point if you get feedback, anonymous or not,
and you take it in and sort of nod and go,
that's really interesting, great. And then do
nothing with it. You need to commit to
listen and then take action.
Rachel Miller
All Things IC

7. Some employees would prefer to share
named feedback electronically, but they
would never stand up in a live town hall with
a microphone and ask that question in front
of peers.
But other employees would prefer to ask a live
question because they don't trust a process
that failed them in the past.
It's crucial to provide a variety of ways
employees can be heard.
Chuck Gose
SocialChorus

8. So definition of culture I use - and I know many
people use - is the way things are done around
here. So when you join an organization,
particularly if the way things are done around
here is that we don't ask questions, then that's
what's seeded throughout the organization.
The way to change a culture is to redefine the
way things are done around here, and if your
feedback is built into it, this is now the way we
do things around here.
Rachel Miller
All Things IC

9. I see that culture is a big part of how it feels, and I
think how that feels is also when people get that
feeling of, "Do I give feedback? Are they going to
care about this? Am I going to be criticized,
ridiculed, have the spotlight put on me for it?"
There are difficult items and difficult
conversations. Employees should be protected
around it versus feeling like they're going to be
outed around it. I think oftentimes that's when
trust comes into play.
Chuck Gose
SocialChorus