In an article this month in People Managment, Nita Clarke, CIPD vice president, deputy Chair of the Employee Engagement Taskforce and a Director of the IPA , points out that during a recession it is even more important to engage with staff.

“If you look at every public enquiry into something that has gone seriously wrong in an organisation, somebody always knew. And so what was going wrong that meant people felt unable to express their view, were too scared to or didn’t think anyone would take notice? Listening as well as communicating is absolutely critical for a healthy organisation.”

http://www.peoplemanagement.co.uk/pm/articles/2012/02/focus-on-employee-engagement-could-reduce-tribunal-claim