Member Community Event insights – Connecting and engaging with front-line colleagues

In April, we held Inclusive Employers Member Community Event: Connecting and engaging with frontline colleagues.  This event brought together inclusion professionals from a range of organisations to explore effective strategies for connecting with front-line and offline colleagues.

Our Member Community Events are spaces for members to connect with each other, to share their thinking on particular topical issues, explore challenges and solutions together to broaden our collective knowledge and understanding and leverage opportunities for positive change.

The discussions were rich with practical examples, innovative approaches and honest reflections about both successes and challenges. Whether you attended the event or are catching up now, this summary captures the collective wisdom of our member community and provides actionable ideas you can implement in your own organisation.

The engagement challenge

For many organisations, engaging front-line colleagues effectively remains a significant hurdle. With dispersed workforces spanning multiple locations, varying shift patterns, and limited access to digital communications, traditional engagement approaches often fall short. Our member discussions highlighted that even well-crafted email communications might only reach 50-60% of colleagues who work ‘on the road’ or ‘out and about’.

Geography presents another challenge, with London-centric initiatives sometimes leaving regional offices feeling disconnected. Added to this the financial and time constraints of travelling between multiple office locations, and the balancing act between in-person, virtual and self-directed engagement becomes increasingly complex.

Successful engagement strategies

Despite these challenges, our member community has developed innovative approaches that deliver impressive results. As an Inclusive Employers member, you benefit from these tried-and-tested strategies that can be implemented in your own organisation:

Charitable initiatives and community building

Involvement in charity movements like ‘Movember’ has proven particularly effective. These initiatives provide a fun, accessible way for colleagues to engage over an extended period, creating natural opportunities for connection while supporting worthwhile causes.

Peer support groups and Employee Resource Groups (ERGs) create valuable spaces for connection. Members reported success with organising days out, volunteer activities, and social events that bring people together around shared interests or identities. These groups function as ‘social glue’, strengthening relationships that enhance workplace culture and support inclusion objectives.

Strategic gatherings and inspirational voices

Events that bring together senior leaders and colleagues for strategy updates and inclusion activities have demonstrated significant impact. These events combine formal presentations with interactive elements, creating spaces for genuine dialogue across organisational hierarchies.

External speakers, particularly those with compelling personal stories such as former Paralympians, create memorable engagement opportunities. These events often resonate deeply with front-line colleagues, making abstract inclusion concepts tangible through personal narratives.

Wellbeing touchpoints and accessible resources

Regular wellbeing initiatives and perks provide practical benefits and signal organisational care while facilitating informal connections.

Placing dialogue tools in casual spaces like break rooms encourages organic conversations about important topics such as mental health. This approach meets colleagues where they are, rather than requiring them to seek out opportunities for engagement.

Expanding your engagement toolkit

Our member community identified additional innovative strategies for connecting with colleagues who may not have regular digital access:

Protected learning time

Some organisations allocate 45 minutes daily for all employees, including offline staff, to access e-learning or training. This formalised allowance signals that development is a priority and gives colleagues protected time to build their skills without needing to justify it or squeeze it into breaks.

Interactive training approaches

Theatre-based learning has proven effective with teams less engaged in traditional training. Sessions on neurodiversity and ADHD that encourage empathy and lived experience sharing have been particularly impactful, helping to build emotional connection and long-term retention.

Small, informal sessions tailored to hybrid teams help ensure those splitting their time between sites stay connected. Some members noted that where certain groups have become disengaged with EDI conversational-style learning can improve outcomes.

Champion networks

Appointing trained ambassadors for sensitive topics like domestic abuse awareness creates a culture of trust and care. These roles often act as a bridge between HR and staff who may not feel comfortable coming forward through formal channels.

Diversity and inclusion advocates embedded across different teams offer peer support, promote inclusivity, and challenge inappropriate behaviours in real time. They also play a key role in feedback loops, feeding insights into EDI teams.

Inclusive communications

Monthly or quarterly inclusion newsletters work well, especially when coupled with printed versions in communal spaces like break rooms and noticeboards, reaching those without regular digital access.

Some organisations are reconsidering terminology like “frontline workers,” which can feel militaristic or hierarchical. Alternatives like “customer-facing teams”, “essential workers”, or “offline colleagues” are more inclusive and reflect these teams’ vital roles.

Engaging content formats

Bitesize content with powerful storytelling shared via posters, emails, or brief huddle meetings help bring EDI to life. Using lived experience makes inclusion feel more relevant and impactful.

Gamification through quizzes on key inclusion topics with small prizes encourages participation. At Inclusive Employers, we offer our members resources like Ramadan and neurodiversity quizzes that serve as gateways to deeper learning.

Many members are transitioning to platforms like Viva Engage (Microsoft’s social network) to create community-like spaces for sharing updates, celebrating achievements, and connecting ERGs with wider staff.

Digital screens in staff areas showing rotating EDI content provide a visually engaging way to raise awareness, sometimes linked to QR codes for additional information.

Audio-first options

For physically active workers, offering audio training options (recordings of webinars or podcasts) provides a flexible learning route that doesn’t require screen time.

Internal podcasts featuring staff stories let colleagues hear from peers in a real, human way. They can include interviews with ERG members, spotlight inclusion work, and guide staff to available support – all while building connection.