Internal Communications

Overview

Internal communications are vital to all organisations.

They are its life blood. Even organisations that do not have a specialist department now recognise the need for the function, while those at the leading edge are making increasingly innovative and productive uses of internal communications.

The evidence is clear that the organisations that ‘get it right’ reap dividends in corporate energy and enhanced performance. In these organisations, internal communications have equal status with the external communications functions. This practical Report will show you how internal communications, taken in their widest sense, can improve the performance of organisations.

The benefits of this Report
This Report will help you:
1 Enhance the impact of your internal communications so that all staff are aware of the goals, aims and successes of the organisation
2 Develop the most effective way to inform employees of the latest initiatives by using our social nature to maximum effect
3. Benefit from the results of getting it right with enhanced corporate energy and improved performance

Who will benefit from this Report

• Internal communications executives
• Heads of corporate communications within corporates, local authorities and Government
• Company secretaries
• PR and marketing executives with the responsibility of the internal communications function
• PR and communications consultants and specialists
• PR agency executives

Content

Introduction

1. INTEGRATED INTERNAL COMMUNICATIONS – Mitchells & Butlers, a company with more than a decade’s worth of change – The internal communications structure and approach – Internal communications: an essential to employee motivation and satisfaction – Employee surveys – Communications channels – Innovation is a constant – Intranets have radically changed internal communications – Internal communication is the ‘eyes and ears’, and the conscience of the organization

2. THINKING ABOUT INTERNAL COMMUNICATIONS – The policy and the principles – Why we communicate within organizations and why we should do it better – How we communicate within organizations and the best ways of doing it – Other characteristics of good internal communications – What to communicate – Measuring success

3. MAKING A START – POLICIES AND AUDIT – Internal communications policies – The internal communications challenge at the Natural History Museum – Selling to the corporate sector – Bringing in external consultants to help with the communications audit – Promoting the communications audit – Publicizing the results – ‘Quick wins’ before a published policy – Measuring success – Writing down the internal communications policy – Involving everybody in the organization – Tips

4. CHANNELS OF COMMUNICATION – Face-to-face communication – Conferences – Notice-boards – E-mail – Intranets – Publications – Annual reports 37 – Web-sites – Video and audio – Employee surveys – Tips

5 LEADERSHIP: COMMUNICATING THE VISION – dmgworld media, a company in a hurry – An entrepreneurial strategy – Strategy first, vision second – Communicating company culture – The top team travel and communicate constantly – The value of conferences – Tips

6 FACE-TO-FACE COMMUNICATION – Everybody’s preferred form of communication – Skills in everyday face-to-face communication – Team briefing – The virtues of team briefing – How team briefing developed – Team briefing is not necessarily plain sailing – Team briefing feedback channels – Team briefing and virtual teams – Establishing team briefing – Team briefing means listening – Tips

7 ‘AND THEN…’ STORY-TELLING IN INTERNAL COMMUNICATIONS – The power of the story – Communicating a merger as an unfolding story – The internal communicator as witness and story teller – Telling the story through several media – ‘Rich, coherent and engaging’ stories – Measuring success – Story-telling in ‘steady state’ organisations – Tips

8 INTERNAL COMMUNICATIONS PARTNERSHIPS – Letting people have a say in organizational culture – Involving the management team – The first ‘temperature check’ – Further measurement – Identifing different feelings in different employee groups – New communications initiatives in response to employee attitudes – Responding to what employees say – Tips

9 INTRANETS IN INTERNAL COMMUNICATION – Bringing multiple intranets together – Driven from the center – Issues about opting for an Extranet – Editorial independence – Knowledge management – Tips

10 CONCLUSION

The author

James Farrant, Partner, The Farrant Partnership, was a producer, director and series editor in broadcast factual TV before setting up his own communications and video production company. The Farrant Partnership specialises in internal communications and training. James also chairs and facilitates public and in-company seminars and conferences.