Internal+communication

= Internal Communication  =

Internal communications is a generic expression for all communication (formal and informal) that an organization undertakes with its close stakeholders — i.e. those people with whom it has a relationship that requires support, principally direct/indirect employees and/or members. The main purpose of formal internal communications is to inform employees or members of the direction and performance of the organization (and/or team) to which they belong. The profession of internal communications builds on fundamental principles of other disciplines like human resources (HR), marketing, project management and media planning. As a result it often gets adopted in organisations under different labels: employee communications, employee engagement, internal marketing, company communications, staff communication, etc. Responsibility can also reside within different functions: marketing, corporate communications, transformation, HR, CEO office, etc. In common with other communication professions, there are different areas of specialism within internal communications: channel management, speech-writing, change communications, HR communications, project communications, event management, social media, intranets, etc.

__**Internal communication channels: **__
The internal communications department should be responsible for developing and maintaining a number of 'channels' that allow effective communication to take place across the business. A communications channel refers to the medium used to convey information from sender to receiver - in this case from organisation to employee. The range and quality of channels differs between organisations, depending on their size and technical infrastructure. The American political scientist and communication theorist Harold Lasswell popularised the concept of the communication channel in his 1948 paper The Communication of Ideas where he proposed a simple five-stage model based around the following question(s): In reality internal communications is not a linear system and informal channels exist outside the internal pipework of formal communications channels. This is important for those practitioners that (wrongly) believe that internal communications is simply about controlling the message.
 * Who
 * Say what
 * In which channel
 * To whom
 * With what effect?

= = Formal channels typically fall into one of four broad categories:
 * ** Formal channels **
 * Electronic <span style="color: #800080; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 150%;">: - Communications that are delivered and/or accessed electronically, either by computer, telephone, television or other devices. Examples include email, intranet, video and webcasts, electronic newsletters, podcasts, blogs, Wikis, voicemail, conference calls, SMS text messaging, screensaver messaging, desktop alert messages, desktop news feeds and internal social media tools (e.g.: internal Twitter-style sites such as Yammer)
 * <span style="color: #000080; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 150%;">Print <span style="color: #800080; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 150%;">: - Paper-based communications. Examples include magazines, newsletters, brochures, postcards and other desk drops, posters, memos, communication packs for line managers, etc.
 * <span style="color: #800080; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 150%;">Face-to-face: - One-to-one and one-to-many forums where people are physically present. Examples include team meetings or briefings, conferences, site visits, 'back to the floor', consultation forums, 'brown bag' lunches, round-table discussions, 'town meetings', etc.
 * <span style="color: #000080; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 150%;">Workspace <span style="color: #800080; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 150%;">: - the working environment. Examples include notice boards, plasma and LCD screens, accessories (e.g.: mousemats), window decals, etc.

= = <span style="color: #800080; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 150%;">These channels reflect the non-linear dynamics of a social network and can be as, if not more, influential than more formal channels. Often informal internal communications is more likely to stimulate and create discussion and dialogue. The channels often manifest themselves via the rumour-mill, water-cooler conversations, social networking, graffiti, spoof newsletters, etc.
 * <span style="color: #ff00ff; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 170%;">** Informal channels **

= = <span style="color: #800080; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 150%;">One of the key challenges any internal communicator will face is how to select the right channels - and the right mix of channels - for both the audience and the message. The main considerations are:
 * <span style="color: #ff00ff; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 170%;">** Selecting channels **
 * <span style="color: #800080; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 150%;">Availability: what channels either already exist within the organisation or can be introduced effectively?
 * <span style="color: #800080; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 150%;">Audience: who are they, where are they based, how do they prefer to access information and how effective will the proposed channel be in reaching them and engaging them?
 * <span style="color: #800080; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 150%;">Objectives: what does the organisation want people to learn, think, feel or do as a result of the message?
 * <span style="color: #800080; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 150%;">Content: what is the context and substance of the message? (For example, sensitive messages may need to be communicated face-to-face, rather than by, say, SMS text message.)

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