Strategy: Making the most of your internal communication channels

Scheduled Dates Locations filtered. Show all UK course locations.

Course Overview

In your organisation you probably have a staff news update, perhaps also an intranet, face-to-face channels such as team briefings or staff presentations, and various management workshops or away-days. How happy are you with each of these channels and are they all working hard enough?

Are you informing your people - or really making them sit up and take notice? Are your staff being talked at - or do they feel involved, engaged and enthusiastic? Do you wish you had some fresh approaches to add sparkle and excitement to your regular communication channels?

In this fast-moving, highly interactive one-day workshop, we will give you a toolkit of practical, cost-effective tips and advice that you can implement straightaway.

Audience

This intensely practical workshop is aimed at anyone who is new to internal communications or who wishes to introduce different practical and creative approaches to their work. It is also valuable for people in other functions, such as HR or public relations, who have responsibility for employee communications. The workshop is ideal for people working in agencies and in-house departments alike.

Skills Gained

This action-packed workshop will give you practical and cost-effective tools to:

• Plan 'joined-up' communications by selecting the most appropriate channels for the job and using different channels to reinforce, not duplicate your key message
• Get the most out of your traditional channels such as newsletters, journals and videos
• Develop a successful intranet that is both a valuable business tool and a popular place that your people want to access
• Create team briefs that are fun to deliver and to receive, including an introduction to teamsheets - an excellent device to engage and involve all levels of staff
• Manage meaningful feedback in a variety of ways
• Optimise every opportunity for your senior managers to communicate with staff, and give your boss constructive feedback
• Facilitate innovative workshops and away-days, including a novel way to handle feedback in a large group

Above all, this is an ideal opportunity to get some new ideas and inspiration with which to re-energise your internal communications.

Course Outline

Choosing the channel

• A simple approach to communication planning
• What works when - selecting the best channel
• Using different channels to reinforce key messages and build a story, without duplication
• Getting the right mix of information, interaction and feedback
• Planning upward, downward and lateral communication
• Pulling it all together into 'joined-up' communications

Traditional channels: print, video and audio tapes

• The pros and cons of newsletters, videos and audio tapes
• Injecting new life into old publications
• Video or CD-ROM?
• Top tips for capturing your audience's attention
• Maintaining business integrity whilst avoiding 'management propaganda'
• A magazine for family and friends as well as staff
• Managing the letters page: an important feedback channel
• Posters: today's news is tomorrow's wallpaper - when and how to use them

Developing user-friendly intranets

• Upward or downward: designing for the business and the user
• Encouraging people to log-on
• Identifying the 'favourites'
• Truly two-way: simple ways to make intranets interactive
• Chat rooms, discussion groups and FAQs: the pros and cons
• Supporting the novice PC user
• Communications or IT department? Building a successful partnership

Getting the most from team briefs

• The pros and cons of team briefing
• Producing the brief: it doesn't have to be a chore
• Caring about your team briefers
• Making team briefs interactive and entertaining
• Managing feedback from team briefing sessions
• Compulsory or optional team briefs
• Securing support from senior managers

Introducing teamsheets

• What they are and how they work
• When to use them
• How to design and develop a teamsheet
• Practical considerations: size, print, colour, quality
• Involving managers and team leaders
• Managing expectations and the feedback loop
• Integrating teamsheets with the multi-channel mix

Optimising opportunities for communications between staff and senior managers

• Preparation and planning
• Formal and informal events
• Winning ways to encourage debate between staff and managers
• Your role as facilitator
• Making use of valuable information to feed your other channels
• Managing staff's expectations
• Giving senior managers constructive feedback

Workshops that work

• Preparation and planning
• Agreeing clear objectives and delivering results: managing your senior managers' expectations
• Involving your managers early enough
• Formal and informal events: managing on a tight budget
• Setting the tone and making an initial impact
• Managing interactive events without losing sight of the objectives or the time
• Taking feedback in a large group - a novel approach

Strategy: Making the most of your internal communication channels / ST-MMI