RBC ties RTO to boosting culture; Business Insider CEO says layoffs are due to AI, search

Plus, a report on the secretive use of AI at work.

Greetings, comms pros! Let’s take a look at a few news stories from the last week and see what we can learn from them.

1. Royal Bank of Canada orders employees back to their desks four days per week

Royal Bank of Canada is the latest institution to move closer to a full-time return to work. According to a report in The Globe and Mail, the bank will transition from a three-day-a-week in-person schedule to four days later this year.

The report cited a memo from the bank emphasizing the importance of employee relationships.

“RBC is a relationship-driven bank and in person, human connection is core to our winning culture,” RBC spokesperson Gillian McArdle said in an e-mail statement. “We set the expectation in 2023 that we’d come together in the office for the majority of the time, with the flexibility to work remotely one to two days a week.”

The decision for more in-office days at RBC aligns with statements CEO Dave McKay has made in the past relating remote work to a drop in productivity and innovation.

Return-to-office memos are nothing new at this point, especially in the financial space. Royal Bank of Canada’s communication of the RTO process pins the motivation for the move on a tie-back to the company’s culture. If you’re going to do an RTO process, that’s the way to talk about it. Focus on how it aligns with the established organizational culture, feature people prominently in messaging about the move and root it all back in what makes the company unique.

2. Business Insider is laying off 21% of staff, CEO says 

Business Insider CEO Barbara Peng announced that the publication is cutting 21% of it its roles. In an internal memo obtained by Axios and published on X, Peng said that affected employees would receive an email with next steps within 15 minutes of the memo’s release and would be walked through next steps individually.

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“While today’s changes are what we must do to build the most enduring Business Insider, it doesn’t make them any easier,” the memo read. “We are fortunate to have built a company with thoughtful, kind and creative people around the world, and we are are deeply appreciative of the positive impact they have made within the company and on our readers, clients and partners.”

The memo ascribed the job cuts to a rethink in strategy that’s placing more emphasis on events and AI.

When layoffs announcements do come down, they’re best done when they’re thorough and affected employees hear from leadership. Peng’s message is thorough, provides reasoning for the layoffs and acknowledges the affected employees with a sense of gratitude. Empathy and compassion should lead any layoff notification. In addition, employees shouldn’t be left twisting in the wind; giving them a swift breakdown of the process and having structures in place to answer questions is a must.

Layoff comms aren’t easy and no communicator wants to create messaging for them. But when you do them the right way, you can more easily preserve goodwill and employer reputation.

3. Report: Workers are keeping on-the-job AI use a secret

A report by security software company Ivanti revealed that 42% of workers are using generative AI tools at work — but a third of them are keeping it a secret from their colleagues. The top reasons for doing so included that employees liked having a secret advantage (36%), fear of job cuts (30%) and the fact that their employers had no AI usage policies in place (30%).

This report emphasizes the need for open and honest conversations about AI in the workplace. That’s a role internal communicators should be spearheading. If your company has AI policy in place, comms should be sure to create robust messaging so it’s readily apparent to all employees. If there isn’t one, communicators can work with leadership to draft guidelines.

The best workplace cultures are ones that thrive on transparency. AI usage is here to stay — but if we are more open and honest about it as employees and communicators, we can create policies that help both spur innovation and strengthen workplace cultures.

4. How about some good news?

• Japan is set to begin trials on artificial human blood later this year.
• Archaeologists in Egypt discovered a set of three tombs that date back nearly 3,000 years.
• The world’s tallest 3D-printed building is taking shape in Switzerland.
• Ragan Training is great for communications pros to find inspiration and resources.
• You should be rewarded for your work. Find out how to earn an award here!

Have a great weekend comms all-stars!

Sean Devlin is an editor at Ragan Communications. In his spare time he enjoys Philly sports and trivia.

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