The state of play for internal comms

In the world of internal comms, the ability to pivot and adapt at a moment’s notice is key to effectiveness. Communication has a crucial part to play in the overall employee experience, and refusing to evolve may lead to employee disengagement. To foster an engaged workforce, companies must reckon with the current landscape of internal comms as it stands today.

Many companies are investing to understand their audiences as a way to ensure they’re meeting existing employee needs while attracting top talent. However, a few prevailing trends stand out from the rest. Let’s take a look.

The digital future of internal comms

Right now, one of the biggest talking points in the sector is how the proliferation of digital platforms and channels is disrupting internal comms. Our State of Sector research painted a nuanced portrait of the role of communications in businesses, but it was unequivocal on the appeal of digital channels. Face-to-face communication still plays a crucial role, but employees are becoming increasingly accustomed to accessing HR services and employee benefits through digital channels.

As a result, employers can no longer afford to treat the digital employee experience as an optional extra in addition to an analogue offering. It’s more than that now: Digital is the whole thing. Companies are reviewing their existing digital ecosystem and laying the groundwork for a new workplace where regular two-way comms will take place primarily on digital platforms. 

In all likelihood, those platforms will be augmented by AI, too. When we surveyed a global group of HR and internal communications leaders for Gallagher’s State of the Sector Report, as many as 68% believed that AI would impact their business in the next five years, up from 40% in the year before. It’s the way of the future, and businesses cannot ignore the call.

Understanding the value of two-way communications

The most effective internal comms teams are designing communications to be meaningful, interesting and purposeful. They’re also taking time to listen to employee feedback, after all, communication goes both ways. For example, a newsletter without a call to action (CTA) is unlikely to garner much engagement. Data from Mailchimp found that campaigns with a single, clear CTA increased clicks by 371%, emphasising the importance of virtual interactions. 

As such, it’s critical that internal comms materials inspire direct participation from employees and engage in a productive dialogue. It’s all very well telling employees that their thoughts have value, but unless internal comms teams proactively implement channel strategies where employees can voice concerns, the company will risk losing the attention of its workforce.

The future of work might be remote, but HR leaders must stay close to employees

The COVID-19 pandemic accelerated the move to remote work from the traditional in-person status quo. It’s almost old news by now, but every company can learn a few lessons from our new remote working normal.

Many HR leaders recognise that flexible work arrangements are a value-add to your total rewards package when increasing compensation may be off the table. But it’s not perfect: home working has many benefits, but it can cause work-related stress and negatively affect mental health. In Microsoft’s 2022 New Future of Work Report, researchers found that although remote work can improve job satisfaction, it can also lead to employees feeling “socially isolated, guilty and trying to overcompensate”. Crucially, being isolated from managers and colleagues can make it difficult for affected employees to access proper support. 

As a result, many HR departments are putting in place procedures to ensure regular direct contact with hybrid workers is maintained to ensure signs of stress are identified as early as possible, implementing feedback systems and regular virtual check-in meetings to assess an employee’s mood in dynamic way.

Keeping up with change

The HR sector is moving at pace, and keeping track with all the developments is enough to make your head spin. But the state of play has always been evolving. In 2017, the sector was almost knocked out by the 365 Office Effect, as comms teams struggled to incorporate Microsoft products into channel frameworks, leading to poor governance. But the sector survived and though a little bruised, it learned some valuable lessons.

We are still learning lessons now. It’s less of a hyperbole to say that AI will transform the entire internal communications sector than a statement of fact. There will be a lot of work to do in the coming months. But as long as HR leaders stay focused on their core goal – fostering employee engagement in a diverse workforce through flexible and digital hybrid strategies – the future will be bright.