Plan sponsors have had to make some tough decisions about their pension and benefit plans in recent years. As a result, many of them have invested considerable time and effort figuring out how best to communicate bad news to members. But they haven’t always given the same consideration to communicating good news—and missed a valuable opportunity.
You’re probably thinking how you can go wrong communicating good news. But the reality is not everyone interprets information the same way. What might seem like positive news to you may not be received as positive by others. How we interpret information is shaped by our relationship with the person delivering it, the context in which it is given, and how it affects us personally.