Ways to Improve Employee Communication with a Log Book

Communication Log Book March 21, 2022

Mary Kate Morrow

Writer

Introduction

A communication log book is a great tool for increasing productivity in the workplace. A communication record can help avoid a wide range of issues, ranging from a disengaged employee to understaffing.

What is a Communication Log Book?

A communication log book is a tool used to facilitate and record interactions between two or more employees. A communication log book is a supplement to a traditional log book and is the responsibility of higher management employees to create and maintain.

Various information that should be contained in a communication log include the-
- Date of communication
- Name of the original message recipient
- Names of any people included in the conversation
- A clear description of the information discussed
Initial of the employee who created the entry

Communication log books can include communications from team members, work contacts, or even relatives. However, if the information is about an individual program, it should be recorded in the log book instead of the communication log in order to keep information organized and accessible.

A communication record can be very beneficial to a business as it allows employees to reference specific interactions at a future date. Whenever an employee clocks in, they should reference the communication log so they can be up to date about communications that occurred when they were not onsite.

A best practice for completing log books is to always use clear and concise language. Additionally, employees should always be respectful and considerate of others in the language and descriptions they input. Remember, the log is accessible by all employees, so messages should be written in a way that everyone understands.

Improve Employee Communication with a Log Book

A manager log book is a great resource for helping managers to communicate with their employees. Unfortunately, many managers will keep their log book private and not allow employees to access the information that they record.

In actuality, log books can serve as a communication tool that provides swift and seamless communications with staff members on a wide variety of topics. A managerial log book can be used to track-

1. Upcoming events- If a server knows about an upcoming event, say a big game or fight on television that will bring in a huge dinner rush, they can create a note in the log book. This note can help the night shift staff to make sure their inventory is stocked up and they have enough people scheduled to cover the unforeseen increase in business.

2. Employee engagement- A log book is a great place to record patterns you observe in employee engagement levels. A manager can easily annotate when they notice an employee coming in late or calling out frequently.

If employee performance levels are decreasing, a log book provides a clear communication record to reference when talking to your employee more formally. Shift communication is optimized when general managers can leave notes for whoever they swap out with.

Log books can also be used to recognize great employee performance and engagement. For example, your log book could include an entry for the employee of the day for the general manager on shift to fill out.

At the end of the month, review each employee of the day entry and tally up the results. This tally can help you designate an employee of the month who you can recognize with financial incentives and public praising.

Employees who feel recognized and valued for their great work will have higher employee satisfaction levels and your business will more likely retain top talent employees long term. Low morale or disengaged employees can also be addressed earlier.

Not only will this decrease the likelihood of your company culture and work environment being brought down, but it gives you the opportunity to remedy a low engagement employee before the situation worsens.

3. Customer service- Shift communication decreases customer service errors. For example, a communication log could reflect an interaction with a dissatisfied customer who came by your storefront during the morning shift. The night shift would then be aware of this customer and not caught off guard if the customer comes back later in the evening to continue their complaint.

On the other hand, great customer service interaction can be recorded to make sure the team members involved are recognized and rewarded.

An extra step could be reaching out to the customer involved personally to thank them for their business and expressing how happy you were to hear about their great experience at your establishment.

4. Discounts and compensations- A log book can help keep your accounting clear and pick up on employee theft earlier. If an employee provides discounts or comps to their friends and family inappropriately, it is important that you can see that occurring immediately and confront the situation.

If a discount or compensation occurred because of bad service or low customer satisfaction, your communication log book can help you to find a solution. Perhaps your employees need more training or there is not enough staff coverage for a specific shift.

In the unfortunate circumstance that there is employee theft occurring, your log books will reflect the initials of who signed off on any voids. Not only will this increase accountability, but it will allow employers to feel secure about their profits and the people they have employed.