BMW’s recent letter to Rolls Royce employees casts the whole EU debate in new light. What part do businesses play in a debate that will largely be decided by the British public? Should this part first be debated among employees to explore the pros and cons of any position assumed? And, if some kind of intra-poll should take place, how is it best facilitated? Far transcending the current debate, these in essence, are timeless questions that strike at the core of employee engagement, communication and relations.

How did BMW handle the debate?

After, no doubt, much deliberation, BMW arrived at the position (source: BBC) summarised below:

Dear colleagues,

As the debate around the referendum to decide the future of the UK's European Union membership increases, it is an appropriate time to outline the Rolls-Royce Motor Cars and BMW Group position.

… The BMW Group believes that the UK is better as a member of the EU than it would be outside it. You will see in the media this week an open letter supporting the campaign to stay in the EU, signed by around 200 business leaders, including Member of the AG Board, Ian Robertson.

… For BMW Group, more than half of Minis built and virtually all the engines and components made in the UK are exported to the EU, with over 150,000 new cars and many hundreds of thousands of parts imported from Europe each year.

… When it comes to regulation, whether the UK remains inside the EU or leaves it, with Europe as the UK's largest export market by far, we would have to abide by European rules and regulations in any case.

We believe it's much better to be sat at the table when regulations are set and have a hand in their creation, rather than simply having to accept them.

Making employees a part of the dialogue

BMW makes a compelling but very personal case for inclusion. Other businesses will no doubt hold different views, also, for personal reasons. The question of whether employees ought to be included in the dialogue is also one to take on a case by case basis.

In the event that dialogue, not only on Europe, but also on other key points, is called for, how should businesses facilitate this? With two thirds of the entire workforce being disengaged in one way or another, it’s hard to see how this conversation could take place within traditional structures. The old company communication structures simply cannot cope with the rate at which useful information (never mind the noise) is being generated. Is your business struggling to get the message across to all employees, desktop bound or non-desktop?

Surely, there’s an app for that…

Emerging employee app technology is increasingly being viewed by many as not just a ‘conversation enabler’, but an engagement and retention tool. With surveys, comments, likes (thank you Facebook), push notifications and so much more being promised by employee apps, it may be that business communication is slowly turning the corner. And while the employee app, alone, may not be the cure of all communication ills, it nevertheless is still worth examining.