{"id":2211,"date":"2019-07-03T20:09:34","date_gmt":"2019-07-03T20:09:34","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/openhwy.com\/?p=2211"},"modified":"2019-07-03T20:09:34","modified_gmt":"2019-07-03T20:09:34","slug":"do-you-have-an-internal-communications-plan","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/openhwy.com\/internal-communication\/do-you-have-an-internal-communications-plan\/","title":{"rendered":"Do you have an Internal Communications Plan?"},"content":{"rendered":"

Do you have an Internal Communications Plan?
\nWhy Does It Matter?<\/h1>\n

It doesn\u2019t matter if you\u2019re the founder of a startup, Director of Culture for a mid-sized organization, or a manager for a Fortune 500 company, you should care deeply how you and your team communicate.\u00a0 The study and practice of communication within companies is called internal communications<\/strong> and it plays a critical role in boosting employee engagement.\u00a0 The guidelines in this article can help you to create an effective internal communications plan.<\/p>\n

One study we looked at concluded that effective internal communications can elevate employee productivity by 25% or more, unlocking millions in value[i]<\/a>.\u00a0 What would that mean for your organization?<\/p>\n

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Still on the fence over how much communication matters?\u00a0 We looked over the far-reaching effects of positive internal communications and put together these
\n7 Powerful Stats<\/a>.<\/p>\n

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What\u2019s important to keep in mind when creating your
\nInternal Communications Plan?<\/h2>\n

An internal communications plan simply put is a playbook your team can use to organize strategies, objectives and metrics.<\/p>\n

The internal communications landscape is changing quickly in response to two significant trends:<\/p>\n

    \n
  1. The Employee\u2019s relationship with their work and workplace<\/strong>. There has already been significant industry conversation around trends like working from home, co-working spaces, creative and open office concepts and unlimited time off. While these ideas remain largely contested, they reflect a shift in how employees relate to their employer. Companies are outsourcing specialization more frequently, while employees are more mobile, adaptive and productive[ii]<\/a>.<\/li>\n
  2. Changing technology means people connect in new ways<\/strong>. From Facebook to Salesforce, Periscope to Slack, employees are in near-constant digital communication with each other. Some of the most effective communication plans include the platforms that are already natural for their employees. Interesting and a bit obvious, the rise of internal social media usage (now over 50%[iii]<\/a>) parallels the rise of social media use as a whole.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

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    Managers should look for new channels to meet their communications objectives. \u00a0This is an ever-changing and saturated landscape, but it doesn\u2019t need to be complicated. Your team already knows the answers; you just need to ask the questions.<\/p>\n

    Here is our free Internal Communications Planning Template<\/a> which you can use to structure your organization\u2019s internal communication plan.<\/p>\n

    \n

    Internal Communications Channels by Popularity<\/h2>\n

    No doubt, one of the biggest challenges when creating an internal communications plan is the evolving landscape of channels and platforms through which organizations and individuals can communicate.\u00a0 Here is a high-level overview of some of the primary channels and their respective usage percentages[iv]<\/a>.<\/p>\n