This document outlines 11 steps for creating excellent internal communications to improve employee engagement. It recommends (1) understanding your mixed audience, (2) listening to employees and tailoring messages to their language, (3) making communications a two-way conversation, (4) focusing content on corporate strategy and desired behaviors, (5) personalizing communications from specific individuals rather than departments, (6) using multiple channels to cut through noise, (7) cascading information face-to-face, (8) balancing newsletters with employee comments, (9) using intranets as an information hub while keeping it engaging, (10) measuring engagement through surveys and focus groups, and (11) addressing rumors through transparent communications.

1. How to Create Excellent Internal
Communications and thus Employee Engagement
By Liz Murphy
Senior Marketing and Communications Consultant
www.marketingconsultant.org.uk
07939 167313 in the UK

2. Employee Engagement via Internal Communications
• Done well, it directs behaviours,
informs of new developments and
supports morale
• The lack of it creates rumours some of
which could be highly damaging
internally AND externally
• Great staff communications are the
life-blood of any strong, growing
business or organisation
is a vital part of business success

3. 1. Your audience
• Is mixed and likely to contain the ‘recently
employed’, the ‘well informed’, the
‘sceptical’, the ‘hard working’, and
occasionally the ‘verbally poisonous’
• It is important to kill the rumours by
getting the truth out into the business
• Investment in employee engagement is
likely to offer great pay-back in terms of
commitment and motivation

4. 2. Listening
• By listening to employees and tailoring your
message accordingly to your audiences, in
their language, with their terms, sometimes
even playing the words of some of the staff
back to them, will make your communications
impactful

5. 3. A conversation
• Internal communications should
be a conversation rather than a
one-way speech
• Questions should be taken by any
channel and the option of
anonymous questions should be
considered

6. 4. Content
Often it falls into two main themes;
- What the organisation wants to achieve
so the corporate vision and strategy
- What staff behaviours or way of
working do you want as your brand
- But it can also be product development,
company performance, merger, take-
over, leadership changes response to bad
press, restructures, redundancies,
appointments, jobs generally, job
function awareness etc.

7. 5. It should never be faceless
• It needs to come from a person
• So, for example ‘Jane Smith in Payroll
explains how to get your expenses paid
promptly’
• Questions should ideally be to that person
• Not a department or bland job title
• Communications should be personal and
relevant

8. 6. Channels to cut through the noise
• Use more than one for maximum effect
• Such as email, newsletters, magazines,
notice boards, text messages, closed social
media groups, Skype, webcasts,
conferences, audio message, video,
meeting requests, intranet sites.
• Type of content will help decide the
channel
• For example redundancies would not be
appropriate via social media but ideal to
announce a company wide charity event

9. 7. Cascade face-to-face
• Effective and speedy, often considered the best
• Includes regular team briefings, surgeries for frontline
staff with senior leadership, town hall events, roadshows,
annual conferences, regular CEO briefings etc.
• It allows for personalisation of the message so is usually
the most effective for employee engagement
• Provide notes with figures so that the right information
can be given
• Encourage feedback and questions and give a swift reply
• Avoid raising false hopes among staff regarding the extent
to which feedback can be acted upon
• When communicating the mission or values, the aim is for
employees to understand them, not just know them
• Consider mixing people and departments so people can
meet each other as an added bonus

10. 8. Newsletter propaganda?
• Newsletters are a popular tool. It’s worth
considering actually printing it to gain
additional attention
• In some organisations directors and even
the CEO can insist on signing off all content
before publication. The challenge is for
them to avoid being seen as
“propagandist”. In other companies, senior
management have no such involvement
• Balance copy with comments and articles
from juniors

11. 9. Intranet sites
• An ideal information hub for HR matters, product
updates, social events and more
• Don’t become over reliant on it as it can seem
faceless and impersonal
• Just typed words can be dull. Consider a multi
media approach, using it for a dialogue, webcasts
and add some humour
• As so little is now put on paper, it can work well
with a printed newsletter

12. 10. Measurement and Evaluation
The following is highly recommended;
• An annual employees survey – with a small prize for
everyone in the department completing it
• Focus groups for new issues, possible problem areas
or activity
• Also adhoc qualitative research for major changes in
corporate strategy or values
• Valuable data is available via click-rates to intranet
pages, emails opened/unopened, viewing figures on
internal websites etc.

13. 11. Don’t let the gossips take over
• Employees talk – about good and
bad things, it’s what we do as
humans
• Incorrect, negative comments will
harm morale
• Sometimes incorrect information
can rumble round the business
and into the media, which can be
highly damaging. Thus staff need
to be properly informed
• Excellent internal
communications and ultimately
employee engagement is at the
heart of any great business or
organisation

14. Need some help?
• Are you too busy? Would you like an independent review of your
communications? Or a project completed? Or need qualitative
market research groups?
• I’m a successful, freelance, marketing consultant at director level
• You can hire me for a few weeks, a few months or offer me a job
• I’m friendly and upbeat so feel free to ring me for a chat
Liz Murphy
lizmurphywork@gmail.com
07939 167313 in the UK,
find me on LinkedIn or
see more at my website
www.marketingconsultant.org.uk