How to Maximize Value in Internal Communication

Here’s the honest truth: You can be great at your job and still not be seen as a strategic communicator. It’s not about how many town halls you organize. It’s not how beautifully your intranet stories are written. And it’s not the number of campaigns you’ve launched or emails you’ve sent. The difference between tactical and strategic communication comes down to one question: Is your work directly aligned with business goals? Too often, communicators get stuck in execution mode: busy supporting every team’s announcements, launching new channels, and “getting the word out.” That’s important work. But it’s not strategic unless it connects back to what your company is trying to achieve at the highest level. Let me give you a clear example. Tactical Communicator Let’s say the company wants to increase customer retention. The tactical communicator thinks, “We should launch a new internal newsletter focused on customer success stories.” Even if it's well-written, beautifully designed, and goes out on time, there's a problem: It's an assumed solution, not a business-aligned one. There are no metrics that show increase retention. Strategic Communicator The strategic communicator starts with the business goal. If retention is the goal, they ask, "What are the biggest drivers of customer churn? What do employees need to do differently to reduce churn? How are frontline teams being supported to improve service in order to reduce churn?" Then they work with business partners and data teams to identify gaps, co-create messaging that supports behavioral change, and embed communication into operations such as onboarding, frontline manager huddles, or incentives. They don’t just tell a good story. They move the needle. This is where the leap from tactical to strategic happens. The deliverable isn’t the point. The impact is. If you’re a communicator looking to earn a seat at the table, stop thinking of your job as “translating” strategy and start thinking of yourself as a co-creator of it. The real value of communications isn’t in making people aware. Instead, it’s in helping the business perform.

Despite companies blasting out updates via Slack, email, and town halls, half the workforce still misses key information. That’s not just a communication gap; it’s a performance issue. When employees don’t get timely, relevant updates, they can’t align with priorities or feel motivated to act. And it’s not just frontline employees who are left out. Engineers deep in code, marketers across time zones, anyone not looped in at the right time or in the right way can also miss out. From my experience as a CHRO across global tech firms, I’ve learned what actually drives inclusive and effective communication. Here are tactics that work: -Morning standups with talking points from leadership -Digital messaging in an easy-to-find app -Physical communications (lunchroom posters, desk drops) for offline teams -Short video messages via QR codes -Targeted updates on Slack, mobile, and email -All-hands meetings that foster connection, not just information I loved this Nectar HR guide on inclusive internal comms: https://lnkd.in/g58S5syU One key stat: 89% of employees say regular leader communication boosts engagement. That’s material. Tactics matter, but true impact comes from a thoughtful strategy: segment messages by team, role, and language, and choose the right formats. When comms fall short, alignment and engagement suffer. People assume, check out, or move on. As leaders, we must do more than check the box—we must ensure everyone hears what matters, when it matters. What’s really working in your internal comms strategy? #InternalComms #EmployeeEngagement #InclusiveLeadership #HRTech #PeopleStrategy

As consumers, we expect information to come to us. I used to think personalized ads were creepy, but now I'm just thankful. Sometimes, ads are so calibrated that I'm like, "Thank you for showing me exactly what I needed/wanted to see" 🙏 Get this: Companies know more about their employees than their customers, yet 72% of companies blast the same message to all (Gallup). Starting to see the disconnect here? ⛓️💥 Would you ever read a newsletter... that's not meant for YOU? Your employees aren’t dodging you. The reality is you only have 𝒕𝒉𝒓𝒆𝒆 𝒔𝒆𝒄𝒐𝒏𝒅𝒔 to capture their attention before they scroll or archive. There are now 𝒇𝒊𝒗𝒆 𝒈𝒆𝒏𝒆𝒓𝒂𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏𝒔 in the workplace. You must think like an internal marketer. Otherwise, your messages will continue going unread. I like dos and don'ts, so here are a few I learned from our customers: ❌ Don't force your employees to log into something to digest information. ✅ Meet them where they are. YOU need to provide the versatility. ❌ Don't rely on one medium across all your employees e.g. newsletters. ✅ Diversify multiple formats of content to match mediums to mindsets. ❌ Don't send your message once and expect information absorption. ✅ Schedule a series of 7-8 touch points to reinforce the message. It doesn't need to be boring; it can be fun! And what's in it for you? Well, companies that hyper-personalize see 3x higher engagement and 40% lower turnover (McKinsey). 🧪 TRY THIS EXPERIMENT 🥽 Create dynamic content in your newsletter tailored toward your exact audience by department and region to start. Ask the Department Head to write a few relevant sentences at the top (above the fold) and include a background image of their local city... ... then say what you need to say. Notice your uptick in readership and reactions. Continue experimenting, iterating, and sharing tangible data back to the business. Master the art of how to capture your employee's attention... ... and you'll become a very popular internal communicator in no time. Don't be surprised if people ask you to help them with their campaigns 🏆

Want to know why your team misses important updates but somehow remembers random company trivia? This has been a struggle in every x-functional role I'va had. We danced around this problem constantly. Meeting summaries, action item tracking, knowledge bases--all useful but neither solved this issue. Until I realized that we're mixing two fundamentally different content types: CTA Content ↳Requires immediate action ↳Best channels: A dedicated Slack digest (no ongoing chatter, just one update every week) , workshops ↳Example: "3 things to do this week" FYI Content ↳Information to know, not act on immediately ↳Best channels: Email newsletters, videos, podcasts, briefs, battlecards ↳Example: "This is why we made this decision" When you send FYI content through high-urgency channels, you create alert fatigue. When you bury CTAs in low-urgency channels, nothing gets done. The most effective internal enablement programs I've built maintain this clear separation. Your team will thank you for respecting the difference between "need to know" and "need to do." What's one internal comms channel you could improve today?

Internal Communications pros, let's ditch being the "email person" and show we're high-impact leaders. Here's how I explain my role to stakeholders: Internal Communications isn't about drafting messages, editing emails, and sending updates. We're leaders. But only if we position our work as strategic, not tactical. 3 ways to reimagine your Internal Communications role to show you're more than a "doer." You're a leader. 1. 𝗖𝗼𝗺𝗺𝘂𝗻𝗶𝗰𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗖𝗼𝗮𝗰𝗵 Help VPs become clear, confident communicators. We're more than ghostwriters. We're skill builders. When every executive communicates well: 👉 Business priorities are clear. 👉 Employees feel more connected. 👉 Customers feel the difference too. Turn communications into a business capability. —— 2. 𝗦𝘁𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗲𝗴𝗶𝗰 𝗔𝗱𝘃𝗶𝘀𝗼𝗿 Great comms pros don’t only execute—they advise. We tie our comms strategy to business goals. We create sustainable systems: 👉 Signature channels that build a leader's reputation. 👉 Scalable approaches to reach the right audiences. 👉 Structures for clarity, alignment, and momentum. Earn your boardroom seat with your strategic chops. —— 3. 𝗣𝗿𝗼𝗱𝘂𝗰𝘁 & 𝗖𝘂𝗹𝘁𝘂𝗿𝗲 𝗦𝘁𝗼𝗿𝘆𝘁𝗲𝗹𝗹𝗲𝗿 Product & culture are intertwined. How you build matters as much as what you build. Be the internal journalist: 👉 Go behind the scenes. 👉 Spotlight the humans behind the work. 👉 Bring values to life in a way posters never will. Stories stick. They shape culture. That’s your edge. —— 𝗥𝗲𝗰𝗮𝗽: You do a lot. But you're only a doer. You're a leader. 3 vital roles of top Internal Communications pros: 🗣 Communication Coach 📊 Strategic Advisor 📖 Product & Culture Storyteller Focus here and you'll never being seen as 'nice-to-have' around. You'll be seen as the leader you are. 👇 Let’s talk in the comments. 👉 Which role do you lean into most? 👉 How do you position your value with stakeholders?

Some advice to help you go from Communications order taker to business advisor. The other day I posted about reasons why the Communications function is treated as an order-taker not business advisor at some organizations. But we can’t stop at talking about it. And What can we DO about it? Sorry to say, it’s a long road. But the destination is WORTH it. For you. For your team. For the Communications profession in general. Here are some guidelines to get started: 1. Create a proactive, annual communications strategy that maps to business goals. (This is a post and much more in itself.) 2. Set expectations. Explain how long you need to respond to inbound requests, that you look for the goal and not the tactic. Do this with everyone. Explain that the longer you have, the better the impact. 3. Understand your peers. Meet with them to understand their motivations, goals, priorities, and share yours. If something comes inbound that could have been planned for when creating your annual plan, make sure you note it and investigate the reason. Was it lack of trust? Was it just forgetting or dismissing? Address accordingly. Do not sweep under the rug and move on. 4. Find your advocates and let them be your internal key influencers. Once everyone sees what Communications did for Joe or Julie when acting as business advisor, they'll all want it. 5. Set and KEEP boundaries. Boundaries are flexible, but are generally there to keep you sane. This means saying no. That’s right, say no to things that don't fit with business goals. 6. When at the table on a key issue, show them how you are an advisor using the lens of communications. Focus on implications … the operations impact, the sales impact. Share an alternative approach to meet the goal. 7. If you're not proactively invited to the table to address a key issue, invite yourself. Yes, ask if you can join and why. What's the worse that happens? They say no. So what? At least they’re paying attention to you now. When or if something is decided or a decision is changed after the fact when you weigh in on an implication, it can be pointed at as a reason being at the table is important. What’s simple to us, isn’t simple to others. So we have to MAKE them see Show them what we’re capable of Teach them to treat us as the business advisors we are. Nothing changes without change. Make it happen. Want more? Go back and listen to episode 14 of the Communications Business Advisor™ Podcast. It’s an oldie but a goodie. OR if you’re ready to make change happen but want support because doing it on your own is A LOT … (and not your only option) reach out! Bringing in third-party advisor can help you think through all of these pieces, navigate with you, discuss options, and shoulder some of the weight of planning behind-the-scenes. An agency, a consultant, a coach … someone! Doing it alone is daunting.

If you think internal comms is just about great writing & storytelling, think again. 🔹 Leaders don’t just want good comms—they want RESULTS. 🔹 Comms teams don’t get budget unless they show ROI. 🔹 IC needs to prove it moves the needle on business goals. That means: 📌 Measure employee engagement before & after campaigns 📌 Track open rates, click-throughs, and survey responses 📌 Tie comms impact to retention, productivity, & culture When I started focusing on data-driven comms, everything changed. Leaders paid attention. Budgets got approved. I had a stronger voice in decision-making. IC pros: If you’re not tracking your impact, you’re leaving influence on the table. What’s one IC metric you swear by? Drop it below! 👇🏽 #DataDrivenComms #InternalCommunications #ROI #Leadership #CommsStrategy