Speak to employees in their own language

Joanne Doyle-Went

Engaged workers were defined as employees who willingly went the extra mile, worked with passion, and felt a profound connection to their company. They were the people who were considered more likely to drive innovation and move forward the organisations they worked for.

Not surprisingly, workforce engagement has become a major part of boosting organisational performance, and companies are investing in newer and better ways of engaging their employees.

Deloitte's Human Capital Trends report found that in South Africa, organisations are aware of their own inadequacies in engaging their workers, but aren't always certain of how to fix the problem.

The 2015 report found that only 7% of the surveyed organisations felt that they were good at providing feedback via a performance management process. 39% had managed to implement systems that were sophisticated enough to manage all aspects of their workforce (including hourly and contract workers), and 48% felt that they had the culture and processes necessary for workforce engagement and retention.

Proper communication becomes paramount

When dealing with large and disparate workforces in industries such as mining, manufacturing and retail, proper communication becomes paramount, and it can seem impossible for management to implement effectively. The Human Capital Trends report also found that only 18% of the organisations surveyed thought that they adequately understood the complexity of their own organisations, which would severely compound the problems of bad communication.

For example, a large number of employees in the mining industry can't read in English, or do so very poorly. If vital information (such as a safety warning) is delivered in a language they struggle with, they aren't going to find it useful. Managers in these industries have observed that siloed communication structures lead to mistrust and significant revenue losses.

Mother tongue communication with workforces may seem like an insurmountable task in a country where people in the same organisation can speak up to 11 languages. This is especially true for companies who employ people from different social strata and geographical regions, as mines do.

When presented with this challenge, Deloitte Digital developed a solution that was easily implementable and cost-effective: we made it work on any mobile device. The solution could deliver pertinent, useful information to each individual in the language of their choosing. It also enabled workers to give feedback and be in contact with their managers and relevant business units in their own language.

Voices that are heard, considered and responded to can improve operational efficiency through a more engaged workforce. The result of implementing a digital solution is the accurate, real-time insights into workforce behaviour and sentiment. Organisations are then able to mitigate business risks and improve the work environment, which results in increased productivity.