Technology continues to change almost every aspect of the business world, including companies’ internal communication systems and processes. With so many obligations and responsibilities, it’s important that businesses carefully consider what they’re saying and how they’re saying it to their internal workforce.
Far too often, companies push the value of integrating effective communication into their company culture to the bottom of their priority list. However, smart communication executives who recognize the value of their employees in the success of their business know that this is a huge mistake.
Your internal communications create the standard for how you want your employees to interact with each other and the customers they serve. They shape your workplace culture, which becomes reflected in your brand. And they play a key part in the nurturing and retention of top talent.
Handing out weekly newsletters and e-mails to employees informing them of the latest happenings and changes in the company isn’t enough. In today’s increasingly digital marketing world where everything is changing and customer experience is paramount, it’s important to ensure your employees are aligned with the company’s values and vision.
Internal communications is vital in ensuring an organization is functioning properly and driving business performance. How strong is your internal communications team?
Consider these evolving methods to enhance your company’s internal communications. And if your company isn’t able to approach these trends successfully, you may need to kick off a communications executive search today.
1. Start with an Audit of Leadership and Strategy
With a heavy set of corporate responsibilities and duties that focus on growing measurable outputs like ROI and revenue growth, it’s easy for business leaders to lose focus on the importance of internal communications. You can have all of the latest technology and tools but without a strong internal force to support them, they’re essentially worthless.
The foundation of good internal communication lies within the capabilities of an organization’s management to cultivate an environment where seamless communication is key in driving business growth. That’s why we as communications headhunters put such a focus on culture fit in a communications executive search. Culture will determine the success of your business and is important is all hires. It is vital with your top internal communications executive.
It’s crucial employees work together as seamlessly as possible to meet consumers’ increasing demands. No other member of an organization can encourage effective collaboration and understanding between employees like a top internal communications executive. Hiring strong and effective leaders that properly exemplify and build a culture of good communication is important in paving the way for the whole company to follow.
2. Enterprise Social Networks
Source: Facebook
As organizations look to cultivate collaboration and communication in a seamless manner, enterprise social networks (ESNs) are becoming increasingly popular. McKinsey Global predicts that about 70% of businesses will adopt ESNs by the end of this year.
Facebook recognizes the importance of this trend, with the launch of their Workplace platform. Facebook’s overall goal is to “connect your whole organization with familiar tools, helping everyone in your business turn ideas into action” with Workplace.
Tools like Workplace and other ESNs like Slack can be leveraged to foster effective internal communications within an organization. Along with good management and talent, the resources companies have at their fingertips can allow these types of tools to facilitate communication and collaboration more effectively.
3. The New Face of Employee Engagement
Fostering a workspace where employee engagement and feedback is encouraged allows employees to learn from each other and only benefit them and the company as a whole.
Employees more likely trust their peers more than senior leaders, seeing that 82% of people don’t trust their boss to tell the truth. However, the best way to combat this distrust is by placing a heavy focus on a thorough communications executive search and recruiting only the best leaders.
Little gestures like hosting company parties and events to breed an environment where employees look out for each other by providing constructive criticism is important in ensuring everyone is committed to the well-being of the company.
Encourage employee feedback to share their opinions on a new product or future endeavors the company is planning to make. Their feedback could be crucial in the success of your company and in turn makes them feel like their opinions matter.
4. Utilize the Emerging Capabilities of Video
There’s no doubt that video is one of the most effective forms of content marketing in today’s digital space. What’s lesser understood is its tremendous potential internal communications space.
From video conferencing to live streaming corporate events to the creation of employee engagement and training videos, this medium offers a lot of unexplored territory for streamlining internal communications. The growing trend of remote employees that interferes with face-to-face interactions urges the necessity of video. Video conferencing is important in optimizing communication between employees and different departments within an organization.
From conducting many communication executive searches, we know the importance of face-to-face interactions in the success of a business. Trust in the power of video and other tools to make interactions and engagement between employees as personal as possible to ensure you’re building an agile workforce.