Internal communication (IC) is the exchange of information between people at different levels or within the same organization. Organizations today spend a lot of money on public relations and marketing to improve their external communication, but they don't spend nearly as much on improving their IC.
The quality of our lives is ultimately determined by how we communicate with others and with ourselves. Similarly, the health and productivity of an organization are determined by how employees or members communicate with one another. As a result, you can't put internal communication in your company on the back burner; instead, you must recognize its importance and work to make it a front runner.
Importance of Internal Communication- Why Businesses Need It?
Internal communication plans serve as a roadmap for keeping employees informed about the company's goals and initiatives. Internal communications specialists create messages on behalf of the company and upper management and facilitate two-way communication between the organization and its employees.
Effective communication is essential for providing excellent customer experience solutions. Internal communication strategies include employing a standard, agreed-upon style and mode of language about a company and its products communicated to the outside world and the broader day-to-day function of facilitating employee interaction.
In addition, it also acts as a vital tool to build trust and achieve increased levels of employee engagement. By assisting team members in comprehending the company's direction and, more importantly, their role in achieving its vision and goals, internal communication strategies help promote workforce engagement.
Role Of Internal Communication In Promoting Business Growth
In today’s highly competitive business world, a solid internal communication plan must be a top priority and not just an option for any business, irrespective of its size and industry.
The following are a few ways in which IC helps promote business growth:
- Ensures Company-wide Transparency
Internal communications ensure transparency in an organization. Transparency promotes trust. Employees don't want to know about a major announcement from a third party or any other outside source. They want to learn from their company's top executives or management.
According to a few studies, 80 per cent of employees want to know how their company makes decisions. This means they want more transparency so they can understand how their company operates and how management makes decisions. Transparency allows employees to have faith in their leaders, which promotes accountability.
- Helps Build Better Organizational Culture
Internal communications' primary function, in many ways, is to aid in the manifestation of your company's culture. Your IC strategy, if executed properly, will bring your workplace culture to life. It will leave your employees scratching their heads if done incorrectly.
Culture should be at the forefront of your IC strategy: it should be woven into the messaging, tone, back-and-forth conversation, and the news that is shared and omitted. Internal communications should be guided by your culture and vice versa. Because a strong, thriving corporate culture is crucial for modern businesses.
- It Keeps Employees Up to Date And Informed On Key Happenings
IC strives to keep employees informed about any information they require. Employees are interested in knowing what is going on in their company because it can help them work better and improve their relationships with their coworkers. This demonstrates how eager employees are to learn about company news. Employees can be kept up to date on company news with the help of an effective internal communications strategy. For example, any policy changes, business performance, and work culture changes must all be communicated to employees.
Employees are more likely to be engaged when they are eager to learn about the company and the projects they are working on. However, if effective communication is completely lacking, it can result in high employee turnover, which can be costly to the company.
- Provides A Clear Picture Of Your Company
You can only create a better workplace if each employee is aware of their current position and important updates within the company. Due to ineffective internal communication, management frequently fails to explain its goals and objectives to its employees adequately. When an organization uses a hierarchical communication system, important messages are commonly miscommunicated.
Employees, especially new hires, are often unaware of the company's history. Many of their questions should be answered. This creates a stumbling block and is one of the major causes of employee dissatisfaction and productivity. Communication should always be a two-way street within any organization. A solid IC strategy helps for an effective flow of communication within the company by providing leaders with a clear picture.
- Creates A Channel For Feedback
Your communications strategy must allow for feedback, pushback, and public debate of issues and ideas in order to promote open communication at your company. This is how collaboration takes place, and it isn't always pretty.
Internal communications can be used to open a channel for these difficult conversations. Employee polls, a link to an internal discussion forum, an event announcement to encourage feedback and criticisms, or even an org-wide invitation to debate a specific goal or project are examples of how this can happen.
Conclusion
Effective, strategic internal communication is critical as we continue to navigate this information-rich, technologically advanced world. It sets off a chain of events. Strong IC strategies resulted in a better work environment and increased employee engagement. Employees who are engaged are more productive, efficient, creative, and invested in their jobs and the company's future growth. It results in increased revenue and profits.
Therefore, irrespective of the method you choose to improve internal communications, a transparent, consistent, and thoughtful approach will undoubtedly strengthen your organization and close the gap between you and your most valuable asset: your employees.
