Internal communication – aimed at aligning the internal audience’s interests and motivations with an organization’s corporate purpose and objectives – has become a vital facet of corporate communication. It has evolved from being a “nice to have” for organizations seeking to be recognized as good employers to a strategic asset that supports various areas and departments.
The recent Internal Communication Measurement Study published by the Internal Communication Observatory (OCI) discloses that 69% of Internal Communication professionals align their objectives with strategic ones. However, a mere 10.5% report having the necessary tools and information to assess the impact of internal communication on strategic aspects like engagement, cultural activation, or strategy assimilation.
This disconnect between the aspiration of Internal Communication and its capacity to measure its impact and results somewhat hampers the growth of this function. It presents a remarkable challenge for professionals in this field.
Why is it crucial to bridge this gap?
- Accurately gauging the impact of internal communication projects is particularly significant to:
- Comprehend our target audience better and make meaningful segmentations beyond the superficial ones.
- Solidify the position of internal communication within the organization, facilitating new alliances and synergies with other departments where this function can add value.
- Evaluate the impact of communication on strategic matters, enabling efficient planning and resource management.
- Predict the reactions or behaviors of our audience across various corporate and even socio-economic contexts.
- Refine a mix of channels, ensuring effective reach across the entire organization in desired timelines.
In implementing these changes, several key factors warrant consideration. The corporate culture, as often, will guide the starting point and pace.
A shift is required from a strategy prioritizing tools to a person-centered communication approach. This shift influences strategy formation, action execution, and of course, measurement. It means transitioning from counting intranet visits to creating an indicator that ranks topics with the highest visits, segmented by realities. This process helps assess which issues matter most to each collective. Because it’s not about the efficacy of the tool, but about the impact our communication efforts yield.
In addition, we must foster the integration of Internal Communication throughout the organization. Those in charge need to define agile and flexible governance structures, with defined roles and responsibilities that can be temporarily delegated to different people, depending on the project at hand. It is equally vital to involve personnel from business development, technology, innovation, and HR in decision-making processes to enrich the overall organizational perspective.
Embracing the existing digitalization and automation processes prevalent in most organizations is also fundamental. Internal Communication should pioneer these processes as a visible reference for all internal audiences, aiming for heightened efficiency and personalization.
These three avenues lead to a new level of Internal Communication, offering various collaboration and impact opportunities. This function is increasingly recognized and aspires to contribute tangible value to organizations.
