Communicating Stock Options

From Chapter 3, "The Role of the Stock Plan Administrator in Communicating Stock Options"

Effective employee communication of stock plan benefits is essential to achieve maximum value for both the employee and the company. Public and private companies all compete for the same talent so it is important that the promotional and marketing materials used to attract key employees is clear and easily understandable. Effective communication is especially crucial for those corporations that have adopted broad-based stock option and stock purchase plans. Because of the complex nature of these plans, effective communication is essential for all employees to appreciate their benefit. Employees need an understanding of the potential of these plans to enable them to act and feel like "shareholders" of the company.

The primary key to effective communication is to make certain all employees at all levels understand their stock plan benefits and are able to gain access to the information quickly and easily. There are many methods of communication that can be used to achieve these results including email, Internet access, Web sites, voice mail, faxes, marketing pamphlets, formal or informal information meetings. How do you get the attention of busy employees? Make it fun. Use graphics, comic strips, colored paper. Make it easy. Give them the right tools and instructions to access information. Keep it simple. Speak in clear concise terms so they understand. Remember-employees talk to teach other and you want them to communicate accurate information.

New employee orientation meetings serve as a good forum to initially discuss the stock benefit plans available. The stock administrator should be introduced here with name(s), location(s), telephone and fax numbers, and email addresses. You have the attention of the new employees who are gathered together for the purpose of finding out everything they need to know about their new job, new company, new benefits, and what is expected of them. The stock administrator can alert the employees to direct future questions to them so they will know exactly where to go for answers.

This, of course, could raise issues if not all employees receive option grants. If all employees are eligible to participate in a stock option plan, information about the grants can be discussed at orientation meetings. If options are only given to specific levels, then informational meetings can be scheduled solely for recipients of stock options.