8 mins read
For any business to do well, it is important that they pay attention to their customer communications. However, even more important than external communications is internal communications.
Healthy internal communication not only keeps employees happy and connected to your business but is also an amazing way to provide an effective flow of communication between departments.
Any communication that takes place within an organisation, online or offline, is internal communication. Thus, it can be physical staff meetings or discussions over the company Intranet.
Internal comms is a way for staff to share information across the business in the correct way.
Good internal communications help new staff settle in and allow existing employees to remain engaged with the company.
Particularly during the pandemic-induced social distancing age, having a good internal communication strategy has become integral to prevent employees from feeling lonely and demotivated.
Workers across the world are able to collaborate and stay on top of company updates. If done right, your internal communications can boost employee morale too!
This article will explore a few ways that internal communication can benefit your business and why it is crucial, no matter the scale of your business.
Boosting employee engagement and productivity
Internal communications, by design, bring employees together.
By keeping your team members connected, you give them the opportunity to build great working relationships and share vital business information with each other.
Employees who share good working relationships with their co-workers are likelier to feel engaged at work, making them more productive as a result. Better working relationships lead to improved collaboration too, allowing effective outputs.
Smaller businesses have a unique opportunity to use internal communications to gain insights into employee sentiments and actively make changes based on feedback.
Larger businesses can often find employees getting lost in the workforce. By implementing an internal communications strategy, all employees will feel included and engaged with all aspects of your business.
Whatever the size of your business, you can eliminate the need for long-winded meetings by having an online space where employees can quickly exchange information.
If they can easily share and access information, they are likelier to be on the same page and spend lesser time on coordination and communication.
Promotes effective sharing of information
Internal communications not only give employees the tools they need to share information, but also encourage them to collaborate more efficiently.
A good internal communication strategy ensures that there is a simple way that team members can easily and quickly communicate with each other.
For example, there may be a significant policy update that needs to be communicated to the management and workforce. If you have a sound internal communications strategy in place, you can quickly disseminate information to all of your staff and make sure everyone is on the same page.
Advances in modern technology have made it common for employees to use instant messaging or shared online spaces to collaborate with each other. This also means that companies have to keep up and upgrade their systems from time to time.
The beauty of internal communications is that they can be tailored to suit your business’ needs. Additionally, Intranet and collaborative tools are easily available and accessible to all organisations of all sizes.
Employees with access to the right tools for internal communications can share information in real time, connect instantly with each other, schedule meetings, and overall achieve more productivity and efficiency.
Improves employee experience and retention
While sharing vital business information, you can use your internal communications strategy to improve employee experience and increase retention.
If you include social activities and employee-centric initiatives, then you can ensure that your workers know you care about their happiness and wellbeing. This sends out a positive message of inclusion and shows that, as an employer, you are encouraging harmony between employees.
Through your internal communications, you could organise activities like:
- Social events (working lunches, quiz nights, etc.)
- Fundraising activities
- Training sessions
- Free online workout classes
- Employee discount offers
- Virtual office parties
By sharing this information across your business, you can make sure that everyone gets a chance to be a part of these events. With the right internal communication tools, you can ensure that everyone receives the message and there is high participation.
Millennials in particular are known to move between jobs. By having a strong internal communications strategy in place, you ensure to keep employees motivated and engaged, making valuable employees stick around for the long haul.
Employees who feel connected to and included in the company culture are more likely to stay for longer, meaning you keep the best employees who are the most engaged with your ethos.
Allows control over messages
Should there be an important but sensitive update about your business, the last thing you want is employees to find out from external sources. Whatever happens in your business—good or bad—employees should be intimidated directly.
You can also include media training in your internal communications strategy to prepare your employees for any negative press. Doing so ensures that they know exactly what to say if approached for a quote and aren’t caught off guard at any point.
This principle works for both large and small businesses.
In a crisis, companies should be open and honest with employees and use the internal communications strategy to make sure that employees are giving out a consistent message to clients and customers.
Employees can then use the internal communications process to raise any questions or concerns they may have. They can provide support to each other should they need to contact clients to discuss any updates. These updates can also add to their feelings of engagement and trust within the business.
With strong internal communications, you not only run an efficient office but also stay ahead in crisis management and planning.
Create a safe place to share feedback
Your employees are your best asset, no matter what size your business is. They work at the front lines and deal with customers every day.
Therefore, their feedback on your business processes holds a lot of value.
As part of your internal communications process, you could include surveys to hear your staff’s thoughts on the issues that matter most to them. You can find out exactly what they like and dislike, and any improvements they would make to everyday operations.
Moreover, when you ask employees for feedback, you are showing them you value their opinions. However, you must remember to act on this feedback whenever possible to show you really are interested in their insights and implementing change.
You could also use collaboration tools such as video or conference calls to have meetings where staff can discuss and share ideas in an informal way.
This gives them the chance to voice their opinions in a more comfortable environment. Whether yours is a small or large business, your teams can sit down together to discuss matters in a free and open manner, thus leading to a healthy exchange of views and suggestions.
Conclusion
No matter what size your business is, implementing an internal communication strategy is a brilliant way to increase employee engagement, productivity and ensure that your business is running as efficiently as possible.
With a strong communication plan in place, employees can provide insights into your business that management may never see. These insights are vital to the success of your business and could create better experiences for both employees and customers alike!
You can use a number of different systems and software to implement your internal communications strategy, one of which is a hosted phone system.
Hosted phone systems have all the tools you need to collaborate with employees across your business—shared spaces, instant messaging, video calling and so much more. All of this is easily accessible on your Internet-enabled phones and desktops.
Whatever you choose for your internal communications, many businesses have already implemented strategies to help increase employee engagement and keep their most talented staff around for longer!
To find out more about internal communications, contact our team today at 1888-859-0450 and see how a hosted phone system can help you keep your business connected.
