Why effective internal comms has never been more important

And in the second part of our conversation, we looked at the Edelman findings, metrics, brand purpose and much more.

Trust

So, let’s start with those Edelman findings. It showed that 61 per cent of people believed the communication from their employer.

To put that in context, 58 per cent believed what they were told by their government and 57 per cent trusted media reports. Meanwhile, just 39 per cent believed social media.

Neil feels these figures highlight the rise to prominence of internal comms and show how the function has performed in the spotlight.

He said: “This year’s trust barometer showed that of all sources of information available at the moment, employees trust what their company is telling them the most.

“So, they trust that more than the media and more than what the government tells them. I’ve never seen that before.

“And that shows how important internal comms is at the moment, and it will remain that way until trust returns in what the government and media say.”

So, how can internal comms build on this trust and ensure they are communicating effectively?

Employee voice

Internal comms has traditionally been top-down, with messages passed from management to employees.

But organisations must get away from this. Employees want to feel their views and opinions matter.

They need to feel they have a voice and that it is heard.

Neil says to do this well, internal comms must spend time with frontline workers and understand how they work.

He said: “Capturing employee voice is crucial because you need to be able to talk to people on their terms and in their language.

“Unless you understand what is on their mind, what they have questions about and what their day-to-day work looks like, whatever you design and deliver will not hit the mark.

“The best way to do that is to spend time with your audience and get to understand what their working day looks like.

“When I joined Iron Mountain, I spent half a day in Birmingham with one of our drivers. I went out on his delivery route and saw what he did.

“And basically, he would start at the depot, load up the boxes of records, understand what customers he was delivering them to and where he was picking things up. He then drove around the city, finding places to stop for 10 minutes while he made his visits.

“I learnt that it was physical work and that he has a specific number of customers to visit, so he didn’t have much time to stop.

“And when he does have a break, all he wants to do is have his lunch and read the paper, not the stuff I’m producing.

“The chances are the only time he would hear what we are saying is at a team meeting at the depot.

“So, I knew then that to reach him it wasn’t about fancy videos. It had to be a more traditional method.

“That’s why the tabloid newspaper we produce works. It was on his dashboard, so he probably flicks through it.

“But that same tabloid format probably wouldn’t work as well for someone in finance. They are probably happy with digital content.”

Human

Another crucial step is to ensure communications are human.

We’ve probably all sat through meetings with endless slides or perhaps read an update from a leader that doesn’t sound anything like the way they normally talk.

It is a good way to ensure people switch off and stop reading.

Neil is encouraging his leaders to show more of their human side through telling stories and having conversations.

“We are trying to do a lot more storytelling, not just in those easier ways of getting an emotional connection, but when we are talking about the business,” he said.

“We are trying to get away from calls which are slide after slide after slide and say ‘forget about the slide, let’s have a conversation’.

“So, we have leaders talking to other leaders about the challenges of some of the projects and telling stories about the ways they are finding a way through.

“That helps to build more of a connection than just facts and figures.”

This type of approach might sometimes be referred to as leaders being ‘authentic’.

But that is not a word Neil is keen on.

He said: “I think you have to be careful with the word ‘authentic’. People sometimes think it means you have to be bright, cheerful and breezy.

“And some leaders are not that type of personality. And that’s fine because people respect who they are.

“Our job is to find the right way of getting that across. There are some leaders I would not recommend for video because they freeze up. But put them in a room with maybe 20 people around a table, and they are brilliant.

“So, you have to know what works best for them and play to their strengths.”

Purpose

While we are on the subject of buzzwords like ‘authenticity’, another often used one is ‘purpose’.

Now, don’t get me wrong, purpose is increasingly important. Done well, it can help people to understand their contributions and bring more meaning to their work.

But not all purposes are created equally.  And this means, ironically, it can often be difficult to see the purpose of the brand purpose.

Neil believes that involving employees is crucial to getting it right.

He said: “Purpose is important if it means something to people. The best purposes I’ve seen are the ones that are created by talking to people on the ground about what they do, why they work for the company, what gets them out of bed and what matters to them.

“That insight is so much more likely to lead to a purpose that connects with them and has meaning.

 “Get it right, and everyone understands where you are heading and what needs to be done. If you can have a more societal aspect to the purpose, that tends to be something people buy into.

“If the purpose works, you shouldn’t need to change it for maybe five years or longer, and you can point everything towards it.”

Measurement

The vital role of internal comms has never been more prominent.

But that prominence also brings increased scrutiny.

And we are living in an analytical age where we can measure almost everything.

Is the increased use of metrics good for internal comms?

Neil believes it is. But he also feels there is a missing link between what is measured and business goals.

“There has never been more data to share and show the impact of what you are doing,” he said.

“The challenge we have as an organisation, and probably as a profession, is how we are making the most of that.

“We can get an understanding of what people are reading and watching. But how do you connect that to the business goals? What difference does it make if 2,000 people are watching a video? You want to know if they are remembering some of the things in the video or, if they are asked to do something in the video, whether they are actually doing it.

“And I think that is the bit where we have still got a bit more to do to be able to measure effectively and show we are making a difference in what we are saying.

“Ultimately, what we are doing is trying to get people to do something differently – a change of some description – and that’s the bit we still need to define.”

Challenge

Once you get those measurements right, it also puts internal comms in a better position to challenge and say no to requests they don’t believe will work.

And move from doers to advisers. 

Neil said: “There is often an expectation that things should be going out and should be produced.

“But our job should also be about asking why we need to do that and considering whether it is the right thing to do.

“To do that, you need experience and good relationships. But good measurement is also crucial.

“Let’s say you’ve got a leader who insists they need a 10-to-15-minute video.

“If you’ve got the data that shows that viewers start dropping off after two and a half minutes and that they should aim for three minutes at the most, they are more likely to agree with what you are proposing than if you don’t have that data.

“Data helps you make informed decisions, guides people on the length of content, the right channels, and the best day to send things.

Mentor

With the greater focus on internal comms and the ever-increasing demand for information, I wondered about the role coaching or mentoring could play in helping those in the industry overcome challenges, increase their influence and fulfil their potential.

It turns out Neil has been mentored during his career and mentors those coming into the industry.

“I’ve benefitted from good people managers who have played the mentor role for me,” he said. And I’ve also had the opportunity to get to know leaders I have supported, and they have helped me understand their role and what they are looking for.

“I’ve also had more formal mentors at times in my career, and they’ve taught me how to think through different problems and challenges, influence situations and get the decisions you want.

“What we see more of now, and I’m pleased about, are internal comms bodies developing mentoring programmes for people starting out.

“It is important because some of us who have been doing it for years don’t have all the answers, and we can learn as much as the person we are mentoring.

“People should grab the opportunity to be mentored if they are offered it. And, if you think you have something to offer as a mentor, you should get involved.”

Don’t forget you can find the first part of my chat with Neil, where we looked at the impact of the pandemic and how his company communicated with employees during the crisis, here. 

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