May to October 2026: what ran, what it means, and where to go next.
The short version
Operational efficiency
34
Always-on automations support consistent communications. Send occasions held flat at 3,296 vs 3,293 in Nov to Apr.
Next: Extend the foundation into date-triggered manager and onboarding journeys.
Employee attention
87.4%
Email open rate across May to September. Surveys and DR compliance emails sit 7 to 17 points below average.
Next: Focus improvements on the topic and audience, rather than changing every message.
Employee participation
4,040
Slack channel clicks, up 13% vs the previous six months. Vote, raffle and swag posts lead.
Next: Keep one clear ask per Slack post.
Strategic opportunity
637
Employees reached per month, up from 592 in Nov to Apr. Becoming a manager or changing roles has no journey yet.
Next: Prioritize relevant lifecycle moments before adding more broad sends.
Follow-through
Manager toolkits for review cycles
Mid-Year manager email opened at 90.6%, plus office hours and year-end guidance.
Role-based content
Compliance Season split by region and role: US, Canada, DR, and managers.
Promotion and role-change journeys
A Glassdoor ask runs after a role change. No congratulations or setup yet. Carried into 'Celebrate role changes'.
Monthly benefits comm
Quarterly Benepass reminders plus launch emails. Not monthly yet.
Templatize Palooza and OE
Palooza 2027 program is set up, not filled yet.
Snapshot
Where Forward is strong, and where there's room to grow.
What it means
No drop-off across 16 emails. Clear, timely logistics get read, so reuse this playbook for big rollouts.
Next: The Palooza 2027 program is set up but empty. Copy the July series in as the starting template.
What it means
Managers read HR emails about their people. Use that past week three with 30/60/90 nudges.
Next: Add manager check-ins at 30, 60 and 90 days. A Glassdoor ask already runs at day 90, so keep them separate.
What it means
Wins draw 5 to 7x the reactions of an average post. Recognition already has a home, so attach one referral ask.
Average Slack post: 78 reactions.
Next: Repeat April's Referral Spotlight: pair the next big win with one referral ask.
What it means
Beat the 23.4% average click-to-open. Reuse this format for the next rollout phase.
Average email click-to-open: 23.4%.
Next: Reuse the Claude rollout format for the next phase.
What it means
OE is well covered. New hires are the gap: no reminder about their 30-day enrollment window.
OE kickoff: 84.6% open. May to September average: 87.4%.
Next: OE already runs as a full sequence with targeted reminders. The gap is new hires: nothing about their enrollment window.
What it means
30x the clicks of an average post. Put the ask in Slack and the details in email.
Average Slack post: 18 clicks.
Next: Keep the direct participation ask in Slack and provide supporting details in email.
What it means
DR team senders open at 93%. The compliance launch went out in English from Legal. Test Spanish, from the DR team, deadline first.
Next: Send the DR launch in Spanish from DR People & Culture, deadline first. Reminders and manager updates are already in place. The Safety report is already in Spanish from the local committee, so leave it.
What it means
Managers and a leader already promote it. The launch email has no survey link and no word on what changed.
Onboarding survey: 91% open.
Next: Managers and a leader already promote each survey. Fix the launch email: add the link and one change from last time.
Analytics
What it means
Take out the Q3 survey launch and September looks like every other month (about 89%).
Next: surveys get their own fix (priority 01).
All times Eastern (ET).
What it means
Local-time sends beat a fixed hour by 3.7 points. The weak slots are mostly survey and DR sends, so timing isn't what holds those back.
Next: send discretionary emails in local time, Monday or Friday. Launch the Q4 survey on a Monday morning.
Email only, automated sends excluded. Times as scheduled, in Eastern. Monday 11am and Wednesday 5pm hit 100% on only two sends each, so they're left out.
| Sender | Adjusted open rate | Send occasions |
|---|---|---|
| jplummer@forwardfinancing.com | 97.4% | 541 |
| lperry@forwardfinancing.com | 97.2% | 22 |
| jmullins@forwardfinancing.com | 96.6% | 108 |
What it means
Emails from named people lead. All three top senders are individuals, not a shared inbox.
Next: sign broad sends from a named leader or PBP.
Email only, predominantly automated senders excluded. The adjusted rate weights each send occasion equally and moves toward the email average when a sender has fewer occasions. Automated sends are still included for these senders. Not a measure of individual performance.
What it means
Top milestone posts draw 5 to 7x an average post's 78 reactions.
Next: pair the next big win with one referral ask.
17,666 reactions
across 227 Slack channel posts
What it means
570 clicks on one vote post, vs 18 for an average post. Slack is for the ask.
Next: one direct link per post.
Slack doesn't track opens, so clicks are the signal.
Open rate / click-to-open
Open rate
What it means
Top emails change something for the reader: pay, policy, tools, travel. All five of the lowest are surveys or DR-only sends, and the DR opens pay emails at 93%, so it's the message, not the audience.
Next: priorities 01 and 04 below.
Strategy
Four priorities, each checked against what Forward already runs.
Next step
Rework the Q4 launch email, add the follow-up, and send it on a Monday morning in local time.
For discussion
Our estimate, to discuss together.
Broader impact · Lower effort
Broader impact · Higher effort
Focused impact · Lower effort
Focused impact · Higher effort
16 emails with no drop-off: the last logistics emails opened as well as the first.
Next move
The Palooza 2027 program is set up but empty. Copy the July series in. Then split the OE kickoff (three steps, two platforms, two sessions in one email) into shorter emails the same way.
OE has a full sequence with targeted reminders, but new hires get nothing about their 30-day window.
Today a role change triggers only a Glassdoor review ask, two weeks later. Manager Coaching and Career Development have no comms yet.
There are no offboarding comms in ChangeEngine today.
Channel strategy
Email for context. Slack for the ask. Journeys for the right moment.
In progress
We're building a recognition portal for Forward: nominate in a few clicks, see each month's winners, and celebrate across the US, Canada and the DR.
Preview uses demo data. Names and stories are placeholders.
Preview the portalJourneys · proposed examples
A launch email that is the action, a one-click Slack post, a reminder to non-responders and a 'you said, we did'.
Explore proposed journey →Welcome, first-week expectations and 30/60/90 support.
Explore proposed journey →Pair a company win with one referral ask, then thank the people who refer.
Explore proposed journey →What's next
A 6 to 12 month plan. Owners are suggestions to confirm together.
Rework the Q4 launch email, add the follow-up, and send it on a Monday morning in local time.
Now: Q4 2026 · Suggested owner: People & Culture
Draft the next DR compliance launch in Spanish with Edna.
Now: Q4 2026 · Suggested owner: DR People & Culture with Legal
Review the preview together, then plan the launch email and Slack post.
Now: Q4 2026 · Suggested owner: ChangeEngine with People & Culture
Confirm the date fields and review the New Manager and 30/60/90 examples.
Next: Q1 2027 · Suggested owner: People & Culture with the PBPs
Turn on the existing new hire referral ask and pick the next win to pair with a referral post.
Next: Q1 2027 · Suggested owner: Talent Acquisition
Keep working through the rebrand tracker.
Ongoing · Suggested owner: ChangeEngine with People & Culture
Add a 15-minute review to the monthly sync.
Ongoing · Suggested owner: ChangeEngine