Is it ever OK for IC not to be strategic? Steve Doswell ponders the question

“Complexity is not a prerequisite for breakdowns””

Internal communication faces a conundrum. The corporate mood music suggests its strategic role in the organisational mix is recognised as never before. And yet the pressures on budgets force often hard choices on those responsible for delivering communications. So what do you do if you have limited resources for internal communication?

Of course, such choices are not limited to IC but when team headcount and discretionary spend are pared to flesh and bone, there must come a temptation to dispense with a grand plan and opt for purely tactical measures. We at the IoIC would like all organisations to guard against this outlook, but first there are real obstacles to overcome.

There’s something of a divide between the largest organisations – those with 2000+ employees – and the ‘rest’. Our most well-known corporates, global players and large public sector bodies were galvanised early on by the sheer complexity of communication within equally complex organisations to develop systematic plans and processes and accept the costs associated with these, or face the consequences.

However, complexity is not a prerequisite for communication breakdown. It only takes two parties to mix messages, so misunderstandings can occur within organisations with two or more employees.

Smaller companies face specific challenges. Often major innovators, they can grow rapidly. Silos can then develop, creating distance between technicians, marketeers, and other functions.

The Government-sponsored Engage for Success campaign certainly embraces SMEs within its campaign to promote and enhance employee engagement, for which IC provides many though not all of the tools. At IoIC, we encourage smaller organisations to embrace internal communication as a priority, and are delighted when they enter and do well in our awards. Our judges are well aware of the specific challenges smaller employers face, and their judgements reflect the extent to which communication solutions fit the organisation.

Whatever the size, sector and specifics of an enterprise, the must-dos are the same:

• Make sure IC is linked to business plans and organisational objectives and employees know what these are. Create a clear picture and help individuals to understand their part in achieving them

• Even if you can’t do as much as you would like, plan and prioritise as much as you can

• Equip line managers (tools, training) to be the go-to communicators for their teams

• Get conversations started: put in place accessible mechanisms for multi-way communication and encourage people to join in

• Creativity and good ideas can still shine through in any environment. You may not to be able to do everything you want at once, so plan, think long-term, do fewer things and do them well.

There’s another kind of challenge, of course, in organisations that just don’t seem to value IC.

Making the case isn’t easy when decision-makers are signed-up members of the anti-IC club (it exists, although it’s sometimes a secret society). Here, arguments should be couched in hard terms that resonate with bottom-line business barons. Warning: be patient and don’t expect rapid conversions.

‘Hard terms’ means a strategy that cites the concrete business benefit effective internal communication can bring, robust research data, convincing examples of where IC has delivered unambiguous results in organisations your budget-holders hold in high esteem, and vocabulary that shows you are fluent in the language they use. Do this, and you might just get taken seriously enough to spend money on your plans.

Steve Doswell is chief executive of the Institute of Internal Communication