Internal Communication

1. What is Internal Communication?

Internal communication is a form of information exchange between two or more individuals, consciously and unconsciously, by verbal and non-verbal methods, directly and indirectly, depending on the purpose of each individual and organization.

Internal communication is a group of processes that are responsible for effective information circulation and collaboration between the participants in an organization. Modern understanding of internal communications is a field of its own and draws on the theory and practice of related professions, not least journalism, knowledge management, public relations (e.g., media relations), marketing and human resources, as well as wider organizational studies, communication theory, social psychology, sociology and political science.

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2. How many sources of internal communication?

There are five main sources of internal communication:

Management – who dispense information such as strategies, company results, internal and external information, and other important general information.
Team – between colleagues who work together to achieve the same end goal.
Face-to-face – briefing individuals on tasks and situations.
Peer – informal chats between colleagues to share information.
Resources – the intranet, email, social media, messaging, video calls, telephone.

Each of these types uses a specific channel to achieve its internal communication goal:

Verbal – the passing of information by word-of-mouth.
Electronic – how most information in writing is shared.
Paper – a way of communicating using posters and graphics.

3. Employees to create Internal Communication:

Having your employees share your content on their social media networks is the perfect way to increase your organic reach. But what type of content are your employees likely to share?

3.1. Content About Them

People like to share content about them or content that shows them in a good light. Software company MuleSoft does this well by regularly publishing profiles of their employees, like this profile of one of their services engineers.

In addition to being the type of content employees like to share, this type of content also helps to humanize your brand, making you more relatable and likable.

3.2. Content They Helped Create

People enjoy feeling they are part of a community, and your employees are no different. When you ask employees to get involved in the creation of your content, it gives them ownership and a sense of pride over the finished product.

3.3. Content That Makes Them Feel Proud

Employees share content on their social media account because they like how it reflects upon them. Content that makes them feel proud of their company, or even makes their friends a little jealous, is far more likely to get shared.

Take for example, Finnish company DNA wrote about an award they were given to by The Federation of Families for being the most family-friendly company.

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4. Why good internal communications is important:

4.1. Boosts employee engagement and productivity:

Employees should be encouraged to submit their ideas and opinions. This makes them feel valued and listened to, which leads to engagement. When employees are actively engaged, they are motivated to work harder and do better quality work on the job.

Internal communications creates a channel for feedback, debate, and discussion to promote open communication at your company. These types of conversations can be set up easily through internal communication platforms. There’s no need for long time-wasting meetings.

4.2. Promotes the supply of information

Another of the benefits of internal communication is that it delivers the right message to the relevant people.

Effective internal communication also ensures employees don’t suffer from information overload. It avoids the need to spend hours sending and reading emails, messages, and comments.

4.3. Improves employee experience

Organizations can use internal communication to improve the employee experience. Employees who feel that their voice matters, that their ideas are worth listening to, are more likely to go above and beyond when your organization needs them. This helps maintain employee retention, as working for a company that cares about its people sends out a positive message. Internal communication can be used to advertise:

+ Company events

+ Sports club membership

+ Free healthy drinks and snacks

+ Free cab service for employees that work late

+ The introduction of a chill-out area

4.4. Sharing goals and objectives

One of the best ways to communicate the roadmap of your business is by leveraging your internal communication platform. Giving an overview and explaining your goals through a consistent information flow helps employees feel well-informed and capable of taking actions.

A clear roadmap also emphasizes company strategy so everyone in a team or department has a defined view of where the organization is heading.

4.5. Drives action

Internal communication promotes both internal and external action. For example, it can authorize people to go ahead with a task, ask them to communicate with suppliers or collect opinions via the number of likes for a new product on an intranet page. It can take seconds to communicate a piece of information clearly and effectively.

4.6. Brings people together in difficult situations

In times of crisis, internal communication is a valuable tool. Being able to communicate fast and easily with the right people in the organization can reduce stress and get things done. Things don’t always go swimmingly, business sometimes suffers. This is when people need internal communications most.

Another of the advantages of internal communication in a crisis is that it can alleviate rumors. Nothing spreads faster than office gossip, and accurate communication from management can prevent negative situations. This can also feed through to external communication, as an organization’s reputation can easily be damaged by rumors that aren’t true.

4.7. Allows for change

Technology is fast-moving. Competition is fierce and companies have to stay ahead of the competition to be successful. Why is internal communication important in this respect? Because it allows businesses to respond fast to climatic, environmental, and unexpected situations.

4.8. Crosses borders

The importance of communication in international business can be seen in global organizations. Employees may be working in different time zones and only have a limited window to hold video meetings or telephone calls. Effective internal communication assists understanding, particularly if people speak different languages.

4.9. Promotes the brand

Positive external communication is the key to strengthening an organization’s reputation. When employees talk about the company and share information through social media they become advocates. This form of brand-building can impact an organization’s success and results from clear internal communication that encourages employees to share information.

5. How to effectively communicate internally:

5.1. Always take responsibility in building relationships:

Everyone needs to be responsible for their own communication. Because when you feel responsible for effective communication, you have become more open, ready to change old behaviors and habits when communicating to be more in harmony with those around you.

5.2. “Find” to “understand”:

American author and inspiration Stephen Covey once said: “Seek first to understand”. In all circumstances, you must listen and learn about others, so that you can truly understand that person. Many people jump to conclusions of their co-worker’s motives, often in a negative way, when they don’t really mean anything bad.

5.3. Get rid of the excuses:

It’s quite common to react defensively when a colleague of yours has some criticism or disagreement with you. Of course, to do this is not simple and requires the performer to take full responsibility for his or her communication behavior. A perfect way to practice this skill is to learn how to ask questions before responding.

5.4. Actively participate in collective activities in the company

Businesses often organize events and activities to create conditions for their employees to connect and strengthen the collective spirit. Seize these opportunities to get to know and get to know the people you work with, in a different setting where you might know more or even a different person from them, that develops new relationships.

5.5. Sincere and not roundabout:

Avoiding, circling, or worse, talking behind your back can wreak more havoc on relationships than you think. Promise yourself that you’ll always be upfront, honest, and honest with your co-workers even if it leaves you scratching your head and feeling overwhelmed.

5.6. Learn foreign language:

Equipping yourself with one or more foreign languages is a smart choice in this era of globalization. You can start by improving your English. English is a common language in the workplace and is also an easy language to learn and use. It doesn’t matter whether you use fancy words, sublime grammar or not, but what matters are that you know how to use what you have to convey your ideas. Having a foreign language at hand helps you to be more confident when communicating, and if your boss needs an employee who can be trusted and assigned the task of working with foreign partners, surely a person who is good at foreign languages will have a lot of skills more advantage.

*Applied to leadership:

5.7. Start with You:

Your role as a leader is to establish a culture of open internal communication and set a standard for the way people communicate within your company. You should always remember that great communication starts with you, so evaluating your communication skills will make your colleagues follow your lead.

5.8. Check-In with Your Employees:

Getting in touch with your employees on a regular basis is essential to improve internal communications. Encourage your employees to share their thoughts and opinions. Scheduling a time to talk with your employees encourages them to feel comfortable bringing issues to your attention whenever necessary.

5.9. Take a Look at Your Current Internal Communications Plan:

Improving your internal communications is impossible if you don’t know the root cause of your problems. As a start, you should ask yourself how many channels your organization uses. Methods like email, team chats, video conferencing platforms, and even the telephone all have their particular pros and cons.

5.10. Use Social Media:

Encourage your employees to like, comment, and share interesting posts that relate to your organization. In addition, you can use social tools within your intranet to reap the benefits of social media in the daily activity of your business. Allow your employees to share their thoughts and interests to create meaningful, work-related conversations. It’s a great way to match up relationship-building to your business objectives.

5.11. Reorganize Your Departments

If finding information in your departments is hard and messy, you can’t expect to have effective internal communication. Use your intranet to organize your teams and the people and information within those teams. You can turn it into the go-to place for finding and accessing data. Heads of departments can also instantly communicate with members by sharing documents and sending updates through an internal notification system. As a result, management can easily contact members, and members can access documents and information on-demand.

5.12. Openly Reward Your Employees:

You should recognize your employees’ efforts when they go above and beyond on a task and ensure that recognition is made public. There are two reasons to do that:

+ Firstly, it acknowledges and rewards good behavior.

+ Secondly, it sets an example for your entire organization.

5.13. Use the Outdoor activities:

Spending hours in the same office can have negative effects on everyone, especially during the summer. Implementing regular outdoor activities within your internal communications plan goes a long way to improving employee engagement.

6. Final Thoughts

Your internal communication has a great impact on employee productivity, the employee experience you deliver, employee engagement and ultimately your employee advocacy strategy.

The key is to build an internal communication strategy that involves everyone within the organization: top management, managers and employees.

Remember, your informed and engaged employees are your best brand ambassadors!

Collection & Edit by Marketing Dept from Team Happy Leader Community – Shasu Group
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