Employee engagement is back on the agenda, with a new government task force launched in April. This is good news considering the challenges facing managers.

You can’t really talk about employee engagement without talking about internal communication, though many people do. The two go hand in hand. And if you want to know how you are doing on engagement, you need to be able to measure internal communication. But amazingly, while frequently discussed, meaningful measurement is rarely undertaken. When measurement is undertaken, often the wrong thing is measured. Some consultants even claim that a financial ROI for internal communication is the way forward.

Ignoring measurement can be explained in most cases by a lack of understanding, which is often the result of an absence of training. Indeed practitioners tend not to be trained in developing measurable communication objectives. Training is an issue that is fairly straightforward to address. Dealing with management demands can be more difficult.

While I can understand the reasons for internal communicators seeking a magical return on investment for their work when faced with management pressure, the approach is flawed.

It is essential that we resist this pressure to pull the rabbit from the hat by demonstrating our contribution in financial terms. The idea that we can demonstrate our worth in this way is fanciful. The links are too difficult to prove as people are influenced by too many factors outside “official” internal communication. Saying that internal communication can be measured like this puts unattainable expectations on practitioners.

Interestingly, CEOs recognise that there is not a straightforward correlation between good PR and profit. Advertising value equivalents (AVEs) are finally on their way out. We should learn from this to avoid going down the same blind alley with internal communication measurement. CEOs are increasingly aware of the benefit of employee engagement, thanks in part to the MacLeod and Clarke report (2009). However, they do not always connect this to informed employee voice, a concept that emphasises the importance of employees feeling well informed and having an opportunity to have a say in what goes on. These are two primary factors for high levels of engagement.

It is up to us to challenge senior managers who fail to see the bigger picture. And this is where training can help. It’s down to us to develop a better understanding of how internal communication can support change and increase engagement.

Whatever we do, we need to stop trying to prove our worth using mythical equations to link resources spent on internal communications to additional revenue. Instead we need to set measurable communication and engagement objectives that focus on outcomes such as understanding of the organisational strategy. This foundation for engagement often tends to hover at around only 50-60%.

Organisations should focus on employee identification with the organisation and stop using a dated approach to engagement measurement that involves focusing predominantly on the individual’s role. Connection to the wider organisation is emerging as a more powerful factor and that’s where the importance of internal communication lies. Measurement based on solid communication objectives with measurable outcomes, rather than a simplistic and unachievable financial return on investment is integral to the success of internal communication and the organisation it serves.

Kevin Ruck is co-founder of the PR Academy and a PhD student researching internal communication measurement. He is also editor of the textbook Exploring Internal Communication.