How to write an internal communications plan and sell it through senior management
Executives don't dispute the need for improved employee communications, and an increase in the establishment of dedicated internal communications managers is proof of their goodintent. Whether they are situated within Human Resources (HR) or as an extension of marketing, managers find themselves with an exciting remit, an important audience and a significant role to fill.
On the face of it, the investment in internal communications is real. But, dig a bit deeper, and one critical element is often missing: a dedicated budget.
Without adequate funding (and, in some cases, any funding), internal communications enters a no man's land of "responsibility, with very little control". Without a budget, managers can orchestrate correct email protocols or consolidated presentation templates, but little else. Internal communications requires more than traffic-direction of emails, and delivering what employees – and the business – need requires establishing a plan executives can support, with a budget that allows it to become a reality. To begin with, internal communications plans need to speak in a language that can be understood across the different audiences of executive management, external marketing, human resources and finance. Successful strategic internal communications depends upon aligning your plans with organisational goals and mission statements. Most internal communication strategies are developed in a reactive mode, when companies are faced with a crisis or a major upheaval, such as acquisition, layoffs or downsizing. However, once this kind of event has been eliminated, communication tends to go back to a confused and disjointed process. As with a marketing plan, the integrated communications to employees need to be consistent, proactive and methodical. Key messages need to be defined and adhered to, regardless of times of crisis.…
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