A government company that is very conservative, has already built its internal communication through flag ceremonies such as independence day, mothers day, education day, ect. for decades. Suddenly, management has been changed, new CEO has come and new policies has been enacted. Hence, they replace the internal communication through the flag ceremonies with something new that is more modern and sophisticated. They've just said it as a breaktrough.
They argue that flag ceremony is such an uncomfortable programme to be choosen. Ceremony participants will feel heat and they will not seriously pay attention and listening to the speech of the coach of ceremony. It means that they will not get the message loud and clear.
Then, the CEO holds tea morning that is arranged as a monthly event to replace the flag ceremonies program. Tea morning programme has been followed by dozens participants, less than hundreed and far from the whole employee that totaling thousands of people. Tea morning program is held at the hall or meeting room with air conditioning and served by tea, coffee and snacks.
So, everything has gone well, at the beginning. The employees share and complaint their problems and the CEO listening. The good things of this programme are, the CEO will find out the up to date situation of the company, its production's progress, even their employees condition. But the problem is, listening without solution after the meeting that is a big mistake !
Finally, the employees only be able to share and hope but without significant solution. However, one employee could be share more than one problem. Moreover, one problem could be difficult to be solved within a day, even a week, even a month, even a year by the CEO ! Nowadays, CEO has already decided to held a flag ceremonies again. Hm ....
In this case, CEO has made a policy without learning and observe their internal public's characteristic and needs correctly. On the contrary, while the CEO hold a new program that is not suitable enough with the characteristic of their internal public, hence they only create their own problems. Unfortunetaly, the problem will be getting worse while the management system itself has not been able to be counted on yet.
FLAG CEREMONY vs TEA MORNING
Although both of the flag ceremony and tea morning as same as a face to face programme, but they have different impact. Flag ceremony is a such as a one-way communication programme and tea morning is such as a two-way communication programme.
As a one way communication programme, flag ceremony is effective to share the company's policy. The CEO speaking and the employees listening the CEO's speech. On the other hand, as a two way communication programme, tea morning event is effective to explore or to get the ideas of public's desire. Tea morning programme gives opportunity to the whole participants to chat or discuss each other in appropriate way. But, it requires an appropriate response and solutions too.
CONCLUSION
- Identifying what the company's need. It is very important to know what the company's aim within the organiszation. Do they want to share, to convince or to change something, value, behaviour or anything else that requires different medium or tools;
- Observe the characteristic of the audience. Find out the audience's profile is the key to choose the best medium to be used during the communication proccess;
- Frequence & Repetition. How often company's need to communicate its message to the audience is depend on the quality and intensity of the aim of message;
Modern is okay, sophisticated is good, but it doesn't mean that everything that is modern and sophisticated is suitable to be done. Learning the company's culture and its climate is important. Find out the demography's profile of the employee will help PR to design the best strategy to communicate to the employee.
