Aligning Words and Actions in Internal Communications: Ensuring Consistency in Employer Branding

You’ve heard that actions speak louder than words. And that sentiment is true across the board—including the ways you communicate with your employees.

It’s easy to assume that employees learn the most about the company’s culture, values and expectations through what your organization says. In reality, what your organization does carries far more weight.

But this is an area where many employers struggle. While they tout certain beliefs and priorities as integral parts of their employer brand, their approaches, processes, and benefits don’t match up. Put simply, there’s a distinct misalignment between their words and their actions.

Let’s dig into this disconnect, why it matters, and how you can fix it within your organization.

What exactly do we mean by internal communications?

Internal communications is the process you use to share information, ideas, and resources within your company. It’s how you keep your employees informed, connected, and aligned with your organization’s goals.

Internal communications isn’t just about sending regular email updates or posting messages to your company’s intranet (although, those efforts are certainly part of it).

Effective internal communications is focused on more than mere messaging. It’s about fostering collaboration, building trust, and creating a culture where people feel in-the-know, valued, and engaged.

Misalignment breeds mistrust: What happens when words and actions
don’t match

Yes, your employees will learn a lot about your company’s mission, vision, strategy, and core values through more traditional communication channels—like email announcements or your company all-hands meeting.

But when it comes to truly understanding what makes your company tick, your workers aren’t just listening. They’re watching. And they need to see that your words and your actions line up.

For example, if your employer brand touts your workplace as innovative yet you white-knuckle your existing processes and refuse to listen to any employee suggestions, that shows that your employer brand is just lip service (and not a lived reality).

Unfortunately, that’s a common experience for many employees. According to research from Gallup, only 26% of U.S. employees strongly agree that their company always delivers on its promises.

So, why does this discrepancy between assertions and actions matter? When there’s a major gap between your company’s words and actions, you risk all of the following negative impacts.

Eroded trust

When employees notice a disconnect between what your company says and does, their trust in your leadership and your entire organization understandably takes a nosedive. That can cause a ripple effect, as trust is foundational for other important employee outcomes like productivity, engagement, and retention. 

Increased frustration

You know firsthand how disheartening it is when someone says one thing but does another—and your employees feel that same sense of disillusionment. As the misalignment continues, they feel increasingly confused, aggravated, and let down. 

Reduced engagement

Employee engagement is an ongoing priority for most companies, particularly when Gallup data shows that engagement is starting to dip again after experiencing an upward trend in recent years. It’s hard for employees to feel motivated, committed, and enthusiastic about their work when they lack trust in their organization.

Higher turnover

It makes sense that, when employees are increasingly frustrated, disengaged, and mistrusting in their employers, they’re more likely to leave. In contrast, when they feel aligned with your company’s values (and see those values lived out in the daily work), they want to stick around. As a bonus, they’re also more likely to promote your company as a great place to work. 

Weakened employer brand

Like it or not, employees talk. That means their negative experiences with your organization can spread quickly through informal conversations, social media, and employer review sites. When more than half of job candidates say they wouldn’t apply to a company with bad online reviews, misalignment (and the frustration it breeds) can significantly hurt your ability to attract top talent.

Chaotic or competing team efforts

When your company’s words and actions don’t align, workers quickly become unsure about your strategy, priorities, and processes. This not only adds to the frustration but can also lead to disjointed efforts and missed goals.

5 strategies to align your words and actions

Matching up your company’s words and actions is important. However, it’s an area where there’s still a lot of work to do. Just look at a few recent examples from well-known companies that faced significant backlash when their decisions seemed to directly contradict their guiding principles:

• Zoom, which essentially became synonymous with remote work during the pandemic, mandated that employees return to the office for in-person work at least two days per week 

• Google announced layoffs, despite publicly reporting record profits and significant cash reserves

• Starbucks markets itself as progressive and socially conscious (even going so far as to call the company’s employees “partners”), yet reportedly used union-busting tactics to prevent workers from organizing

Even if your company isn’t dealing with these sorts of public outcries, it’s still time for you to step up to the plate. As the Edelman Trust Barometer says, “Employers need to build the infrastructure for employees to see their values expressed in how business gets done.” Here are five strategies to set you on the right path.

1. Clearly define your values

There’s one straightforward reason your company might not be upholding its values: you haven’t clearly defined what they are. This is your starting point. Bring together company leaders to answer questions like:

• What does success look like for us?

• What traits do we admire in leaders and employees in our organization?

• If we could be known for one thing as a company, what would it be?

• What do we believe in that sets us apart from our competitors?

If you haven’t already, document your values and share them with employees—and continue to do so regularly.

2. Solicit employee feedback

Next, it’s time to uncover where your actions aren’t supporting or matching up with what you say and promote.

Don’t rely on leadership assumptions here. Solicit insights from your existing employees through surveys, focus groups, informal conversations, and more. This will highlight improvement areas that are rooted in reality (and not hunches).

3. Audit (and improve) your policies and practices

The insights your employees provide will call attention to the areas you need to take a closer look at. At that point, zoom in on your existing policies to better understand the disconnect.

For example, your organization might broadcast flexibility as a core belief. However, you don’t offer remote work options and continue to focus more on the hours employees work than on the results they achieve.

This step is when you’ll make real changes to your current ways of working so that your employees can see and experience alignment between your words and actions.

4. Turn your attention to leadership

According to the MIT Sloan Management Review, employees are fairly cynical about leadership’s abilities to live and execute the company values.

So, don’t overlook the importance of getting your company’s leaders onboard and ensuring they’re equipped to deliver on your company’s promises. This could include:

• Providing regular training on relevant topics

• Starting groups where leaders can trade strategies and insights

• Regularly collecting upward feedback from employees

Remember that an employee’s direct supervisor has the most meaningful impact on their experience with your organization. If leaders aren’t prepared and willing to live your messaging, none of your other efforts will matter.

5. Focus on maintaining consistency

You don’t just need to ensure consistency between your words and actions—you need to maintain that consistency. It’s an ongoing exercise instead of a one-time overhaul.

Put systems in place to keep close tabs on how your company is living out its promises. This could include regular employee surveys, keeping an eye on social media mentions and employer review sites, and monitoring relevant metrics like employee engagement and turnover.

Putting meaning behind your messaging

Sure, it’s easy to tell your employees all the things that make your organization great. But, when they don’t see any action related to those lofty claims, your words don’t just seem devoid of meeting—they feel downright deceitful.

That’s why it’s so important to unite your words and actions. After all, your employees shouldn’t have to refer to a stuffy internal document to understand your organization’s core values. They should see them being lived out day after day.

Ready to bring clarity and alignment to your organization? Let’s talk.