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Communicating Internally – Achieving Your Balance

by Rebecca Voss

“. . .Information is the meaning that human beings assign to. . . facts. Individual elements of data, by themselves, have little meaning; it’s only when these facts are in some way put together or processed that the meaning begins to become clear.”—William S. Davis and Allison McCormack, “The Information Age”

Defining Internal Communication

Ultimately, all that a company owns or employs is intellectual capital. Internal communications are the inter-relating channels through which employees communicate formally and informally to be effective contributors to and beneficiaries of their organization’s intellectual capital. While complex and based on many variables, there are three main components to keeping an internal communication system on track: assessment, management and evaluation.

Assessment – Auditing/Building the System
Assessment is the quantitative/qualitative inventory of all the communication investments a company has made—information, tools and processes—and how they work together. A company’s structure will likely include some combination of the following:

• Formalized vehicles (e.g., events, newsletters, staff meetings)
• Processes/policies
• Technological infrastructures
• Employee performance evaluation
• Employee behavioral assessments (e.g., Meyers-Briggs)
• Learning and development
• Company financials
• Informal communications – task forces, volunteer/community initiatives
• Crisis plan
• Benefit/incentives information
• How departments function and interrelate
• Internal messaging among departments
• Quality/timeliness/coordination of information/messages
• Employee feedback channels.

Management – Driving the System
There are three considerations integral to driving this “inventory” effectively: structure/accountability, leveraging information and support.

Structure/Accountability – A formal communication plan, with clear tactical ownership and accountability, will help ensure that initiatives are addressed and executed in an appropriate manner. This plan creates the formalized channel through which to

• Demonstrate the action and investment a company is taking to streamline information
• Bring awareness to various communications
• Filter key information/messages from a company’s overarching business plan
• Manage data and change
• Streamline cooperation among departments.

Leveraging Information – The true value of internal communication is reflected in how well employees understand their company’s mission, and then use and apply information and tools, in standard and creative ways, to be effective. While formal channels like staff meetings must exist, one of the most productive forms of internal communication is the informal sharing and application of information.

Example – The CEO of a meetings/events firm shares an article with company VPs regarding vast improvements, new services and spending increases in the financial/banking industry. The senior sales VP might take that article and leverage it as a business development tool to target key financial firms for training/development and financial product launch events; the finance VP may take that article and use it to renegotiate financial investments for the company. While derived externally, internal audiences have now shared and “recycled” a simple communication in ways relevant to their roles and responsibilities.

Support – While key individuals will own a communication plan, every employee has an opportunity and obligation to support the communication process, from filing systems and process task forces to planning a company event. Their collective ideas and efforts are critical to feed and drive the system.

Evaluation – Inviting Feedback
Since employees have a responsibility to the communication process, they should have the periodic opportunity to evaluate a company’s various communication systems. This can be as complex as a formal audit or as simple as critiquing a new tool or newsletter. Using collective feedback to make improvements in communication performance gives employees a voice and an opportunity to make productive changes to their environment. It also keeps utilization of company resources in line with demand.

The Integrated Live Experience
As quoted above from “The Information Age,” it’s mission-critical that information, processes and tools be connected in a consistent, memorable manner so that they tie into the overall business goals and inspire employees to act and think differently. Events are a critical component in any communication plan because they have a unique way to manage information:

• Events gather masses of information to create an environment with key messages, reinforced before/during/after the event to leave attendees with clear, actionable goals and altered mindsets.
• Events provide an environment that removes competing information and messages (i.e., events are often held at a remote location to purposefully bring that focus).
• Face-to-face interaction builds deeper rapport among colleagues, with a unique dynamic of formal/informal activity.
• A company demonstrates investment and empowerment of its most important communication asset—people.
  

For every company, internal communication is a relative and scalable system, but a system that is absolutely critical to helping an organization function smoothly and effectively. Achieving the right balance is a tricky proposition, but a strong process and periodic gap/overlap analysis helps ensure you’re continually en route to achieving your balance.

Rebecca Voss is a business communications specialist for ProActive, Inc., www.proactiveinc.com, a Chicago-based firm delivering integrated event communication solutions. She can be reached at rvoss@proactiveinc.com.