Internal Communications Tips & Resources

Employee communication is changing rapidly as new social media tools evolve and impact the workplace. Employees and other internal audiences are key ambassadors and reaching them today is both challenging and rewarding when done right.

Navigate the world of workplace communication and employee engagement including internal communications planning, best practices, tips and resources.

Other PR resources include: Newsletter Writing Tips, Community Relations, Corporate Communications, Public Consultation and The PR Coach Blog: This Just In….  Sites with a  W are PR Coach “winners.” Note, some docs are PDFs, so patience may be needed while they open.

PRoactive: The Public Relations Job Hunter’s Guide
Seriously looking for a PR or internal communications job? Get PRoactive – the new book loaded with valuable strategies & practical tips on search tools, social networking, public relations resumes & portfolios, best PR jobs websites, much more.

10 tips for communicating change
Inc. offers 10 ways to say it right to communicate change effectively.

12 Ways to Communicate With Factory Workers
Here are a dozen great ways to communicate with workers from Ragan.com.

AOL Layoffs Yield Communication Lessons
Kevin Allen highlights layoff lessons and tips in an excellent article.   W

Able and How
David Ferrabee blogs on organizational change and people.

Are Your Employees Engaged or Not?
A 2008 Gallop survey of 1,000 Australian workers found 79% were not engaged or actively disengaged. Here are the 12 Qs asked and several tips.

Are Your Leaders Communicating Effectively? Are They Telling the Truth? [Video 6:17]
David Grossman explains why leaders are having trouble communicating to employees, what they should be communicating and how to show them change is necessary.   W

AT&T Ahead of the Curve on Internal Communications [Video 4:44]
AT&T’s Blair Klein discusses how the company pushes the boundaries on internal communications.   W

Basics in Internal Organizational Communications
Here’s a set of practical suggestions to help establish or improve internal communications.   W

Best Practices in Employee Education and Communications
Here’s a 10-point best practices list from Principal Financial Group to guide you in educating employees about their benefits.

Brand Experience Agency ABT Looks at Internal Communications [Video 3:02]
An animated, tongue-in-cheek look at internal communications.

British Association of Communicators in Business
CiB is a member organization but does offers no-charge access to numerous Knowledge Bank articles and a  free newsletter.   W

Building Support for the Strategic Plan: Aligning Employees With Strategy
Employee support can make or break turning a vision into a reality. Robert Bradford suggests steps to help get employee alignment.

By the Water Cooler in Cyberspace, the Talk Turns Ugly
Message boards are popular for companies, common for schools, professional groups and other interest groups. NY Times looks at these free and often useful exchanges that tend to be intertwined with vicious gossip and hateful comments.  A new challenge for communicators.

CEO Communications Within Your Organization
Rob Friedman discusses the role of his CEO in internal communications at Eli Lilly on Ragan TV.

Change Management in Changing Times: Q&A with Employee Communications Pros
Elizabeth Castro interviews top employee communicators.  W

Communicating in an Economic Crisis
What should you be saying to employees in tough times? Find out more from CiB.

Communication World (CW)
IABC’s excellent monthly magazine requires a subscription but is of high quality and always topical on internal and external communications.   W

Communications AMMO!
Sean Williams writes about effective communications, public relations, reputation management, internal communications and more.

Corporate Governance
Website has many articles and valuable links to other websites on the issue of corporate governance.

Creating Effective Internal Communications
Here’s how to make the best use of today’s internal communications tools.

Creating Engaged Employees: Four Tips for Getting Surveys Completed
Employment engagement surveys are valuable. Here’s how to get them back.

CW Bulletin
This is IABC’s monthly e-newsletter and archives which are generally available to non-subscribers as well. Excellent articles on internal and external communication. Thanks IABC and sponsors!   W

Developing a Public Relations Program to Attract and Retain IT Staff
Your employee public relations program might make the difference between the ability to attract talent — or the need to scramble for it. Jeffrey Geibel offers advice.

Diary of an Internal Communicator
This is Rachel Miller’s very useful internal comms blog.  W

Employee Awards Programs: The Key to Implementing Your Corporate Business
Three best practices to help you inspire employees.

Employee Communications Check-Up
Irish study looks at key employee communications benchmarks with some interesting findings worth studying.

Employee Communications Important Part of Public Relations
You’ll never completely prevent employees from being unhappy when their work situation changes, but take steps to help them give you the benefit of the doubt. Listening to and addressing their concerns is essential.

Employee Engagement: 13 Important Questions for Management
In addition to listening, 13 questions are critical for management to consider.

Employee Engagement – As Simple As ABC
Ken Milloy shares 26 tips for effective employee engagement.

Employee Engagement in Just Six Words
Engaging, creative ebook with 150 6-word “stories” of employee engagement.

Employee Expression on Social Media – Red Herring or Real Problem?
Good insight into using social media for internal communications.

Employee Engagement: Over 200 Powerful Sentences of Advice
200 sentences of advice for employee engagement managers in an ebook worth reading, contributed by  Employment Engagement Network members. W

Employee Engagement: Powerful Sentences of Advice for MANAGERS
An ebook with inspiration for internal communication managers from members of the Employee Engagement Network. W

Employee/Organizational Communications
Institute for Public Relations article looks at benefits of internal communication, roles of communicators, four issues in current practice and 15 principles for effective communication.   W

Encourage Self-appointed Ambassadors to Tell Your Story
Employees, vendors, clients, business colleagues, or individuals that you have mentored – here’s how to harness and benefit from their goodwill.

Employee Social Media, Three Hurdles to Overcome
A look at policy, training and executive buy-in.  W

Engaging Questions: The Question is the Answer
95 Employee Engagement Network members each shared an employee engagement question and the resul;lts make interesting reading.  W

Engaging Unengaged Employees – An Exploration
Presentation looks at engagement challenges and how mentors can help.

Enhancing Internal Communications With Blogs, Wikis and More
Have a look at how Google and other organizations are using some new tools to enhance internal communications.

Five Questions for Jeffrey Saltzman: Motivating Workers in Uncertain Times
NY Times article talks with Sirota Consulting’s CEO Saltzman about the motivational strategies and leadership for today’s employees.

Good Employee Communication is Critical
Begin with a plan. Whether a small entrepreneurial firm or a large Fortune 500 company, employees should — and need — to know the corporate facts of life, the good and the bad. From The Phoenix Business Journal.

Help, My CEO Just Resigned!
Internal communications insight and advice.

Home Depot Remodels Internal Communications
A good case study in refocusing communications for better potential return.

How About It? Engaging Your Employees
Study shows employee engagement takes on a higher priority for leaders.

How Michael Arrington Explained Selling TechCrunch 
Interesting employee communications angle.

How to Handle Change Communication Effectively
Angela Sinickas shares valuable tips on timing, content and channels of communicating change.

How Volkswagen Spreads Good News Internally [Video 3:46]
On MyRaganTV, Tom Keefe tells how a little PDF gave VW employees a sense of job security.   W

I Tell You You Tell Him He Tells Me
We must understand the nature of all firm information, value of each kind of information to each segment of the firm, and the structure to categorize it. Wha? Huh? Incomprehensible.

IABC Research Foundation Resources
Valuable research studies, reports, books and study materials are available.

IDeA Internal Communications
An excellent set of local government internal communications best practices and resources.

Identifying the Real Value of Communication
An interview with Bill Quirke examines the “toxic” communications companies are using, how the impact on employees is decidedly negative and how to change it.

Inside Internal Crisis Communications
Jonathan Bernstein looks at the critical role employees play in a crisis.

Inside Molson Beer’s Corporate Social Responsibility Program
The foundation for Molson’s successful CSR program is good employee communication.

Internal Comms Hub
Membership is expensive but this is the premier internal comms site on the net.

Internal Communication Strategies – The Neglected Strategic Element
Robert Bacal looks at the importance of strategic planning for internal communications.

Internal Communication Toolkit
This exceptional internal communication resource was developed by Civicus. It includes tips on strategy, research, tactics and tools as well as templates such as a sample internal communication plan.    W  W

Internal Communications Case Studies – World Television
This production company has several corporate case studies promoting video for internal communications impact.

Internal Communications for Effective Strategic Implementation
Dana Baldwin suggests five principles that should guide your internal communications strategy.

Internal Communications: It’s Not Rocket Science!
This manager’s guide to employee communications is a detailed guide to internal communication strategies and tools. It reviews tools in detail, providing pros and cons on face-to-face, voice, print and electronic communications.   W W

Internal Communications Makes the Difference to Success
Read about the positive ROI of effective internal communications.   W

Internal Communications Plan Template on the PSPDA
This internal comm plan template for the Treasury Board of Canada is excellent and well worth studying as a model.   W

Internal Communications Statistics Presentation [Video 3:32]
Powerful stats on employee communications support its critical role in successful organizations.

International Association of Business Communications
IABC is the internal communicators best professional organization and resources. Most material is for members.   W

Internal Communications During Mergers & Acquisitions: A Checklist
The Eastbury Partnership has an M&A checklist with planning and implementation tips worth reading.

Internal Communications: Ten Things You Should Do
Here are ten things you can do to improve internal communication.

Is Breeding Contentment Worth the Investment?
If you want higher workplace morale, give employees more say over their jobs. But don’t expect happier workers will necessarily be more productive according to recent National Bureau of Economic Research study.

Is Internal Comms Dead?
Provocative premise and a good read. What do you think?

Is Your Company Talking to You?
Heyman Associates survey uncovers some interesting internal communication trends.

Jaunty Angle
A blog mostly about internal communications and sometimes other stuff.

Julia Hood of PR Week Elevates Internal Communications’ Importance
Shel Holtz blogs about the importance of internal communications, especially during tough times.

Ken’s ken
Ken Malloy blogs on internal communications.

Measuring Internal Communication in Professional Service Firms
Learn the practical ways to measure and improve internal communications in a professional service firm.

Mergers & Acquisitions: Internal Communications
Cultural due diligence rivals the importance of financial diligence in M&As. The role of communications becomes critical.

Never Forget Employee Communications
Because they are a critical part of your brand, they need to be informed.

Newsletter Can Help Employees Cope with a Corporate Downsizing, Merger…
To help ensure that employee communications is successful, here’s a check list: devote a special section. encourage and show honesty; make sure they get the news first; use “Ask the CEO” feature; give answers.

Overemphasizing External: Companies Still Neglect Employees
Employee communications is lacking in many companies.

Primers for Engaging Conversations
Questions anyone? What a great place to explore employee engagement with this little ebook of primers and questions from members of the Employee Engagement Network. Brilliant and engaging!  W

Prosci’s Communication Checklist
An excellent checklist to guide communication and useful as an audit or benchmarking tool.   W

Q&A with Employee Communications Pros
Tips on change management in changing times.

Realizing RBC’s New Vision for Employee Communication
Here’s a look at how RBC transformed from employee communications to employee engagement.  W

Rethinking Employee Communications: A Strategic Analysis
Learn Jim Lukaszewski’s six keys to better communications including: challenge assumptions, rethink the organizational mix, master the human dimension, recommend doable options and anticipate the consequences.

Rockstar Communications
Ian Harris offers tips, hacks, and how-tos for easy-going internal comms.

Seven Ways to be ‘Relevant’
How internal communicators can stay relevant.

Six Lessons Learned From a Major Merger
Six critical lessons that helped keep the communications chain strong during a merger of Thermo Fisher Scientific.   W

Sleepwalking Through the Workday: How to Use Internal Communications to Engage Workers
69% of workers are not engaged or actively disengaged on the job. Here’s how to get them back.

Social Media as Strategy
Excellent 4-minute video on using social media for internal communications.  W

SnapComms
Innovative series of tools for internal communications including screen savers, quizzes, surveys, staff-generated e-mags and blogs, desktop alerts and more.

Social Media Improves Internal Comms at Dell [Video 5:29]
Vida Killian discusses Dell’s online internal suggestion forum called EmployeeStorm.   W

Sprint’s Intranet Engages All Employees from Entry Level to Executives [Video 4:07]
“Sprint Space” is more than just an intranet Jennifer Sniderman explains on MyRaganTV.   W

Supervisors are Still not the Preferred Communicators!
Angela Sinickas challenges prevailing wisdom and finds that there are many other preferred channels for internal communications.

The Best Way of Communicating Change in Company Strategy
Seven tips for communicating change to employees.

The Different Needs of Different Audiences
Which channels are best for message types and various audiences? Find out here.

The Employee Engagement Network
David Zinger hosts this site with excellent employee engagement articles, tips and resources. W

The Good News About Bad News: Openness Works
Employees want forthrightness and here’s the ROI on open communications.

The Human Element: Employee Communication in Small to Medium-sized Business
This executive summary highlights the IABC Foundation study findings which offer some valuable best practices.

The Keys of Employee Engagement
12 Authors and their employee engagement alphabets are presented by David Zinger.

The Politics of Employee Communications
According to Jim Lukaszievski, these five mistakes usually cause internal communication efforts to fail.

The Power of Engagement
Learn the three key elements needed for engagement and five essentials when developing your engagement strategy.

The Role of Intranets and Other e-Channels in Employee Communication Prefrences
While e-channels are growing in favorability, research shows employees still prefer a mix of electronic and other sources.

The Top Tens of Employee Engagement
A free ebook with hundreds of employee engagement ideas from the Employee Engagement Network. W

They’re Not Just Words – They Mean Business
Roger Maire provides helpful rules of good communications, better word choices, and what to do before you communicate.

Top Tips for Internal Communications
Nine tips that can keep your internal communications on track.

Using Twitter for Internal PR
Employee communication Twitter tips.

Using Technology to Fuel Better Internal Communications
Nora Carr’s presentation shows how to use new media for more effective communications.

Webcasts BuoyInternal Communications
Webcasts can be a great way to keep employees engaged, connected and talking.

Will Social Media Kill the Internal Communicator?
No, but we’d better join the conversations and learn to lead fast.

Writing for Internal Communications
These tips will show you how to get your message across in plain English.

Photo credit: Mike Brown