Poppulo Webinar: The coronavirus, Covid-19 – How to prepare your workforce now for what’s ahead
By
— March 13th, 2020
The unprecedented challenges companies face are not going to improve anytime soon, as the fall-out of the pandemic worsens. In this new reality, employee communication has not only assumed business-critical status but is very much key to business survival.
To help companies like yours in these difficult times we're hosting a special webinar on how to prepare your workforce now for what's ahead, which will be moderated by our Head of US Marketing, Neil Lieberman. The free webinar is on Wednesday, March 18th, at 11 AM ET / 3 PM UK.
Poppulo's VP, Customer Success, Peter Lyon, will focus on the wide range of issues and challenges our global customers have faced during the escalation of the Covid-19 outbreak.
"I will be discussing the real-life, real-time, feedback we've been getting from our highly diverse customer base over the past couple of weeks in particular.
Issues like companies trying to cope with the speed of misinformation and disinformation before they had a chance to set up 'source of truth' sites in their own organizations for the dissemination of authentic information.
"This is the new reality we're living in, where rumor and fake information spreads faster than the truth, which frequently has to go through a fact-checking process that can slow down getting it out there. So this challenge is a very real one for organizations everywhere," said Mr. Lyon.
"Other really interesting issues that we've seen customers prioritizing, and that's what they did to make important CEO messages relating to the crisis stand out for employees than routine communications.
"And then, of course, there's the question of how companies have been using the various comms channels available to them, and how effective their comms strategies have been," he said.
Jamie Baffa, Managing Director of CRA Inc. will focus on the fundamental principles that should inform communications during the crisis.
“Everything we do says a message, and this truth is even more important in times of crisis,” he said.
“When members of an organization are anxious and uncertain, there are fundamental principles that should influence our communications efforts. Over the coming weeks and months, leaders and communicators will need to make critical decisions about how to reach members of their organizations.
“With these principles at the forefront, leaders and communicators can make better decisions when it matters most, '' he said.
In his role as Managing Director of CRA Inc. Mr. Baffa works closely with leaders and communicators to help address leaders and organizations navigate significant organizational change, design strategic messages, narratives, and communicate strategy.
Web panelist and HR expert Precillia Redmond, Founder and Principal at Maeve Consulting, will address that critical 'source of truth' issue that Peter Lyon has found prominent in Poppulo customer feedback this week.
"Employers have an obligation to be the source of truth by delivering accurate, timely, and actionable information in a targeted way on the current Coronavirus outbreak," she said.
"As the number of cases and fatalities increase worldwide, HR professionals are actively working with their business partners to make fast, informed decisions that impact their organization and working with Communications to deploy information to workforces.
"In the near term, organizations are weighing a number of factors, including the safety and health of their employees against their ability to deliver products and services to suppliers, customers, and partners. Organizational policies are being written or revised to account for circumstances that even in the best-laid plans did not contemplate for a global pandemic. From travel, to third party visitors, to teleworking, there is no shortage of important matters to consider.
"And, to make things even more challenging, the amount of information on COVID-19 is overwhelming, sometimes conflicting, evolving, and is getting pushed out by many different sources including the media, community groups, and employers," she said.