Traditionally, many experts by saying “communication” used to imply only external communication and PR, paying very little attention to the notion of internal communication. Yet, efficient internal communication is of paramount relevance to the team’s productivity. Poor dialogue is a long-standing problem in many companies. Often it results in personnel working inefficiently and getting different interpretations of what their tasks are supposed to be.
Team leaders often overlook memos about internal challenges or updates causing staff to receive confusing instructions and requests. However, the situation has apparently changed for the better recently. Today, we seem to be witnessing a new era of internal communications emerging. Showing emotions and sincerity is no longer considered to be a bad thing to do at work. Moreover, a growing number of managers are introducing different communication tools to keep their team members highly committed, motivated and happy. Now, let’s take a look at how it works in practical terms.
Establish a Feedback System
In every company, many employees have something to say concerning their internal processes and procedures, if they are asked. So, first of all, you need to make sure that they are. Moreover, they need to be asked in such a way that makes them feel comfortable and confident to share their ideas, concerns, fears, and suggestions. And this is exactly why you need a functional feedback system in the first place. The key feature of this system is to provide an efficient and effective channel for listening to your employees.
All feedback received should be duly processed and analyzed, and then forwarded to the top management so that they can take appropriate actions to tackle the issues raised. From the implementation perspective, there are several options of what this system should look like – it all depends on a concrete company and its needs. For example, it’s possible to create a digital feedback box that allows every employee to share their ideas and comments. Importantly, this box should provide an option for anonymous feedback.
Event Calendar
Team building exercises are a trusted way to improve relations inside the team, strengthen interpersonal ties and boost the team spirit. To streamline the planning process and make sure that all employees are aware of details of the upcoming events, you can create an internal event calendar. When it comes to events and activities, the written word is not always enough.
A video or an animated image can pass the message in a much more efficient way making sure that it immediately captures the team member’s attention and compels them to participate. Another important aspect here is an event invitation. Sending out an invitation adds a personal touch to events and shows your employees that you really care. With an online invitation maker, you can easily design as many invitations as you need, even if you don’t have any graphic design background.
Avoid Email
There is no doubt that email is a very efficient communication tool that has been in use for long years. Yet, the benefits email possesses don’t really apply to internal communications. The baseline rule is: don’t use email for internal communication, your employees already send and receive many emails on a regular basis. Try using applications – Slack, for instance – that offer features for topic groups, controlling notifications, etc.
Develop Leader Communications
At a certain point in time, every company has to face a period of hardships and difficult decisions. During uncertain times businesses need to provide regular, timely, and transparent messaging. The quick response allows companies to control the narrative depending on the information available and to clearly communicate what steps to expect next. Rolling down communication through managers and team leaders ensures clarity and provides the staff with a feeling of stability and motivation to carry on despite the temporary difficulties.
Avoid Information Overload
Sounds like a pun, but perhaps the most important role of an efficient internal communication system is to avoid information overload. Any business process involves a lot of communication, so restricting internal communications will work to the benefit of the team and increase overall productivity.
Less is more, and this wisdom perfectly describes the situation. Releasing an endless flood of major announcements or launching too many engagement campaigns can be confusing and lead to a lack of action or response from your audience. Effective communication in the workplace is strongly dependent on the amount of information sent out, as well as the quality of the messaging.
Conclusion
Apparently, there is no need to repeat that internal communication is a vital prerequisite for the successful operation of the company. The good news is that the internal feedback system is something every company can improve to get the most of it. The cornerstone here is to create opportunities for and encourage two-way open and sincere dialogue between the employees and the management.
