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Hilary Lee, partner and director at Centric Consulting, shared how HR teams can cut through information overload and make critical messages land.
The WorldatWork article “How Can HR Amplify Its Message Amid All the Noise?” examines a growing problem: as internal communication volume rises, impact drops, and critical HR messages around benefits, policy changes, and performance management get buried.
Lee offered a reframe for how organizations should think about the challenge.
“HR communications should not be treated as a standalone capability,” she said. “At their best, they are deeply connected to change management, organizational psychology and business strategy.”
The Limits of Personalization
Lee also addressed personalization, a common prescription for the overload problem. While targeted messaging can help the right information reach the right people, she cautioned that it requires real investment to do so responsibly.
“It introduces the risk of bias when assumptions are made about preferences,” she said. “And when taken too far, it can feel intrusive or unsettling to employees.”
Her advice is to communicate transparently, give employees a choice of channels, and respect their stated preferences rather than assuming them.
Managers Are the Missing Link
Lee pointed to managers as a frequently overlooked factor in whether internal communications land.
“HR owns the programs, but meaning is created locally,” she said. “Employees take their cues from their immediate leaders. When managers aren’t equipped to explain programs consistently, or don’t feel confident doing so, messages get diluted, reinterpreted or quietly dismissed.”
In a companion piece available to WorldatWork members, “Pause Before Clicking ‘Send’: Filtering HR Messages for Greater Impact,” Lee offers specific examples for how to route different types of messages appropriately and reduce the volume competing for employee attention. Read the full article.
