EFFECTIVE INTERNAL COMMUNICATIONS

Any growing organization is bound to face employee goal alignment problems, especially in the IT industry, as communication is mostly not face-to-face.

The success of an organisation depends on making sure all the brains under the umbrella are working with a similar understanding, approach, belief, knowledge and strengths. Most corporate companies forget that an effective corporate communication strategy is as important (if not more) as their customer engagement strategies!

Why Internal Communication Matters

From an employee's perspective, effective internal communication plays a significant role in creating a positive and productive workplace.

Following are a few reasons why internal communications are important from an employee’s perspective

• Every employee wants to be informed
• Information is required to build trust
• Every employee wants to understand growth
• Every employee feels involved
• Every employee wants to contribute
• Makes the employees feel good
• Makes the employees learn

Common Internal Communication Challenges

As organisations grow, it becomes easy to lose focus on the importance of effective internal communication. In many companies, communication becomes a mandatory process rather than a meaningful engagement tool once the organisation reaches a certain size.

Another common challenge is that communication is often created from the management's perspective rather than the employee's perspective.

This leads to two fundamental questions:

1. Will people read what is sent?
2. Will it satisfy the employee's need and intent?

‍Will people read what is sent?

Based on the internal communications we have observed over the past three years, a few fundamentals can help overcome this challenge.

Write an Interesting Subject Line

Forty to fifty percent of recipients either ignore or delete an email if the subject line is uninteresting, obvious, or irrelevant.

An engaging subject line significantly increases the chances of your message being opened.

Build Curiosity

Whenever possible, tease the recipient before delivering the actual message.

Creating curiosity encourages employees to open the communication and continue reading.

Reward and Engage

Rather than simply broadcasting information, encourage participation.

Whether through teasers, quizzes, or simple questions, giving employees something to do increases engagement and makes communication more memorable.

Measure and Improve

Collect data regularly and analyse employee engagement patterns.

What seems like the right communication strategy today may not remain effective tomorrow. There is no one-size-fits-all solution, so organisations should continuously adapt their communication approach based on employee behaviour and feedback.

Coming Up Next

In the next part of this article, we will explore the second major challenge of internal communication—ensuring that communication satisfies the employee's needs and intent—and discuss practical ways to overcome it.

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