We work with many different organisations on improving the role, impact and value of internal communications (IC). So as a regular feature we thought it would be a good idea to share some of the key findings we have uncovered through a combination of our IC audits and health-checks, our conversations with key clients and our observations of reports published by others. We call it The Inside Track and each month we will focus on one of today’s common IC challenges.
This is one of ten specialist internal comms blogs. Email Chris for exclusive access to the full collection before they're released.
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Frontline, factory floor, and other desk-less colleagues are often overlooked in internal comms strategies – but they’re integral to your organisation’s success.
Engaging with non-office based, frontline or factory floor colleagues is not easy and as such, this group can often be overlooked when it comes to providing the necessary tools and support needed to do their jobs. And perhaps, more importantly, what they need to help them feel connected and integral to the organisation.
We believe that this key population needs to be considered in the same light as desk-based colleagues, but we also understand the challenges this represents with many desk-less workers lacking access to company devices or technology.
Here’s our six key steps to get you started:
We know the experience of desk-less colleagues is far different from those who are desk-based or have ease of access to company technology. Therefore, it is critical to understand what matters most to them – the content they find most useful and the channels they find most effective. A combination of engagement surveys, focus groups and ongoing feedback loops appears to be the right approach.
With many of the organisations we work with we have found there is a strong appetite amongst many of the hard-to-reach population to become more involved in the cascade of internal communication. A key group who can become your local eyes and ears, helping to source new stories, land key messages and foster that sense of belonging beyond day-to-day operational communications.
Without exception, Managers and Team Leaders are the ones who desk-less colleagues rely upon the most for information. They have become the number one channel for internal communication and as such, organisations need to ensure the right level of customised training and support is in place for them. This could include the creation of manager-specific channels and tools.
A common theme across all of the organisations we work with is a lack of time colleagues have to consume internal content beyond what is deemed to be relevant to their role. This is consistent across all employee groups but more so amongst the hard-to-reach. For communication to be engaging and relevant it's not just what we say and how we say it, but also the time we allow for people to read and digest it.
When you seek to share a lot you often share nothing. Once you have established what matters most to your hard-to-reach colleagues you are well place to only focus on the right content delivered in the right way. This is more than simply the word count. It’s a combination of tone, style, channel choice and a clear ‘what’s in it for me’ call to action - helping to emphasise and reinforce the value of this group to the overall organisation.
We believe that deploying a test and learn strategy with internal comms is the right way to uncover how colleagues feel and react to new ways of communicating. If time and resource allows you to look at options simultaneously you could test ideas amongst a discreet group of non-office based, frontline and/or factory based colleagues to help build credible value in a new idea before it’s rolled out to everyone.
Conclusion
Without key communication devices and channels being available to this group, employers must consider other ways to ensure they stay connected. The pandemic of recent years had every single organisation refining their IC strategy to cater for more remote and new hybrid ways of working. With lessons learned and newfound experiences, organisations should now find that reaching the hard-to-reach is no longer as hard as it once was.
