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Section
2 — Guiding Principles for Internal Communication
The bedrock of internal communication is the way we
share information with each other every day, especially
on an interpersonal and team level. Here are some guiding
principles for promoting open, honest internal communication
and advancing best practices.
Timely, targeted
messages
Especially when you’re sharing sensitive information,
such as direct job impacts or major business changes,
the most affected employees should be told first, and
with enough time to process that information, ask questions
and receive answers.
Whenever possible, employees should receive information
from Ovations before they hear it in the media or through
other, less direct communication channels. When cascading
information through the organization, label your message
as “urgent,”
“important”
or “informational”
and provide the context and timing for sharing the information.
The right information at the right time in the right
format
In any communication, you should clearly state your
purpose, rationale, next steps and resources for additional
information. Especially with communication that is complex
or a significant change of strategy or structure, you
should build in additional time to communicate in both
“broadband” and personal ways.
For
example, a major restructuring might first be shared
as:
-
a memo from the CEO
- followed
immediately by team meetings of managers and their
employees to discuss the change
- wrapping
up at the end of the day with an intranet posting
of employee questions answered by senior management.
- If
the announcement draws any outside media coverage,
it would be appropriate to send an email to managers
and supervisors noting the story and providing any
additional context.
This integration of formal and informal communication
methods provides consistent information simultaneously
to all employees. It also creates opportunities for
feedback and answering “what
it means to me.”
Innovative methods
to break down barriers
Emails and memos are terrific ways to quickly send a
consistent message to many people, but it’s equally
important to use other communication methods to help
engage people in the process. Innovative methods of
sharing information can be low- or high-tech:
Low
Tech
“Doughnut
discussions” regular times to discuss business
issues over doughnuts and coffee |
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High
Tech
Online
chats and Q&A forums, using the intranet to
host real-time conversations about business and
workplace topics.
Cross-functional
brainstorming sessions can be terrific forums
to identify new opportunities for collaboration,
revenue generation and process improvement. |
Sharing and using best
practices
If you see a communication practice that seems particularly
effective, use it! Sit down with other groups to learn
what’s made them successful communicators. If
you’ve already made great progress in communications,
share your best practices with others and provide informal
mentoring to help support communication overall.
Supporting managers
and supervisors as communicators
Especially when you’re cascading information through
Ovations, make sure that you’ve clearly explained
the communication plan and timing for delivering the
message to the appropriate audience. Also, give managers
and supervisors additional context or talking points
to help them answer questions and support employees.
Leadership in
communication
While managers have particular accountabilities for
internal communication, we can all demonstrate leadership
when it comes to sharing information. That means:
-
Raising questions, suggestions and concerns.
-
Proactively identifying issues.
-
Taking ownership for issues by identifying solutions.
-
Supporting and representing company decisions and
positions.
-
Reinforcing the Ovations mission and values internally
and externally.
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