Developing an Internal Communication Strategy to drive your organization past the competition

1. Developing an Internal Communication Strategyto drive your organization past the competition Rodney Gray, Director Employee Communication & Surveys Sydney, Australia

2. What is internal communication? • Not essentially to do with media, messages, senders and receivers, noise or interference • It’s really about the transfer of MEANING or understanding (not just moving information) • More than this, it’s to do with changing the behavior of the organization’s employees • It’s an investment to facilitate or support the achievement of the organization’s goals

3. “Turning all eyes outward” “The real purpose of effective communication within an organization is to achieve a common understanding and focus on what the organization is trying to achieve in the marketplace.” “The only argument powerful enough to encourage people to embrace change is one that is rooted in the marketplace.” Roger D’Aprix p.3

4. Exactly why does your organization communicate? • Do you have a communication strategy? • How is your communication linked to the organization’s vision, mission, objectives? • Do you simply pump out more information in the hope that employees will be better informed about the organization and thus perform better? • Take the test: assess your communication programs - what are you trying to achieve?

5. Just how well do you understand your organization’s requirements? • What are the Charter, Vision, Mission, Goals? • What are the key philosophies and values? • What do the short and long-range plans for each division or business unit tell you? • How do various stakeholders think you’re going? • What are the strengths and weaknesses? • Do you need to interview executives of various business units to find out communication needs?

6. HOW EMPLOYEE COMMUNICATION CAN HELP ACHIEVE ORGANIZATIONAL OBJECTIVES ORGANIZATIONAL PERFORMANCE Organizational performance depends on the behaviour of employees The organization must “perform” if objectives are to be achieved EMPLOYEE BEHAVIOUR ORGANIZATIONAL OBJECTIVES • Organization’s • policies, procedures • processes, systems • rules, guidelines • culture, norms • formal training • etc. • Employee’s • skills • competence • knowledge • beliefs • values, habits • motivations etc. • By assessing • organizational objectives • organizational performance • employee behaviour required • - you can decide how to communicate • to influence employee behaviour EMPLOYEE COMMUNICATION Employee behaviour is influenced by organizational and individual factors such as these © Rodney Gray, 1997

7. Context Vision/ Strategy Decision Moments Actions People Take Organiza-tional Performance Financial Performance Linkage Role Support James Shaffer’s model[Presentation to IABC Conference, June 1999] Leadership Infrastructure Infrastructure Media

8. What leaders do and don’t do • What they ask • Who they recognise Leadership • Rewards • Measurement • Structure • Programs, policies Infrastructure • Meetings/huddles • Scorecards • Financial statements • Memos, publications • Web-based technology Media

9. Context The big picture What we’ll look like and how we’ll get there Vision/ Strategy Linkage What’s in it for me Role How I influence results Support Resourcesincluding informationI need to influence results Leadership, infrastructure and media provide these things:

10. How and what to communicate to support the organization strategy? • How exactly does the organization have to perform, or improve, to achieve success? • What do employees have to do, not do, or do differently, for the organization to perform better? • What behaviours can you influence? How? • Can you change attitudes or understanding? • What decision moments can be influenced so that employees take the actions required?

11. What internal communication approaches will have impact? • Leadership: what leaders do or not do; what they ask about; who they recognize • Infrastructure: reward, measures, structure, policy, procedures etc. • Media: has a very limited support role to leaders, infrastructure Jim Shaffer

12. How to measure your success • Measure the extent your communications have caused employee behaviour change • Measure progress towards achievement of goals, or performance of various divisions • Measure how satisfied your various internal audiences are with communication overall, and with different aspects and tools (but this is clearly not as good as the first above)

13. Employees usually know what they have to do to perform well • It is not appropriate to specify the behaviour of knowledge workers as with some others • They need a degree of freedom as to how to achieve their objectives and perform well • They know what information and relationships they need to do their jobs well • So measuring employees’ opinion of the quality of communication with them is very useful

14. As a minimum you must satisfy employees’ information needs • Ideally you need to satisfy both organizational and employees’ communication needs • In Australia no research findings exist as yet as to how well organizational needs are met • But there is plenty of research as to how well employees’ communication needs are being met • Our research overseas indicates Australian findings are typical of those in Western countries

15. Australian employees are not at all satisfied with communication • Overall, only 38% of Australian employees surveyed are satisfied with communication with them • More than 1 in 4 are not satisfied with communication with them

16. Aspects which correlate strongly with overall satisfaction are poor • With senior 38% management • Upward 41% communication • Consultation 40% & involvement • About change 36% • Across the 30% organisation Correlations 0.7 - 0.55

17. Moderate correlates with overall satisfaction are a bit better • Strategic 51% direction • Performance 53% feedback • Immediate 61% supervisor • Job 71% information Correlations around 0.5

18. Tools are okay, but have a very low correlation with satisfaction • Executive 57% roadshows • Intranet 56% • Results 52% presentations • Company 48% publication • Email 44% Correlations 0.3 or less

19. Most Australian employees say internal communication is lousy • 24% positive - leading regional bank • 25% positive - financial services company • 24% positive - state government department • 25% positive - national insurance company • 34% positive - another insurance company • 47% positive - same company a year later • 42% positive - leading transport company • 47% positive - leading global merchant bank • 55% positive - national food manufacturer

20. ORGANIZATIONAL CHANGE COMMUNICATION MODEL Communication Strategy Communication Objectives Vision Mission Objectives Goals Strategies Direction Charter Values Philosophies Guiding principles Credo Long-term plan Five-year plan Annual report Organizational change objectives Stakeholders or audiences - apprentices - shopfloor - team leaders - supervisors - trades people - professionals - clerical staff - managers - executives - various locations - various languages - illiterate Consider: - employees’ mindsets - what employees know - what you want them to know and understand - what they want to know - desired behaviours - two-way dialogue - employee feedback - effective listening - upward communications - involvement - recognition Content Strategy Consider employees’ preferred content: - impact on self - workplace future - business unit plans - personal goals - individual feedback - customer feedback - what’s happening - change initiatives - career opportunities - training and development - “where do I fit in” - “how can I help” Organisational outcomes Media Strategy Demonstrated - behaviour, skills - understanding - knowledge Consider employees’ preferred media: - face-to-face - immediate supervisor - local work group - one to one - small groups Primary strategy: to communicate to and support supervisors or immediate managers Secondary: news by e-mail or voicemail Evaluation Process c Rodney Gray 1997

21. ORGANIZATIONAL CHANGE COMMUNICATION MODEL Communication Strategy Stakeholders or audiences Communication Objectives Content Strategy Media Strategy Organizational outcomes Evaluation Process Evaluation Process c Rodney Gray 1997

22. Meaning v. information Support organization’s objectives not entertain Understand goals etc. Ensure communication changes behaviour Regularly assess your communications Leaders, infrastructure more critical than media As a minimum satisfy employees’ info needs - or they can’t perform well Chances are employees are not satisfied with internal communication Communication plan to cover strategy, content, media and evaluation Measure impact on your organization’s objectives Finally, please remember

23. Take the test yourself - when was the last time you....? • ...reviewed the operating plans for all divisions • ...interviewed executives about what they need • ...measured impact of programs on behaviour • ...asked employee audiences how well internal communication helps them do their jobs well • ...worked with HR to measure and upgrade the leadership/communication skills of all managers • ...assessed the communication impact of the infrastructure thoughout the organisation