The Institute for Public Relations’ Commission on Organizational Communication created a research program in 2013 that will include qualitative and quantitative study to explore best practices in global employee communication. The first element of the program focuses on qualitative research in the form of in-depth interviews conducted by KRC Research. It will provide a platform for quantitative research in the form of a survey to test the findings on a broader scale. Represented in the interviews are companies such as Cargill, Chevron, FedEx, GE, IBM, Johnson & Johnson, McDonald’s, Navistar, Petrobras and Toyota. A few recurring concepts reflected include the idea of taking a strategic role with the corporate leadership, utilizing the power of direct supervisors as communicators, and relentlessly reinforcing message platforms and the path forward through a dedicated content strategy.

1. BEST-IN-CLASS PRACTICES IN
EMPLOYEE COMMUNICATION:
THROUGH THE LENS OF 10 GLOBAL LEADERS
IPR Commission on Organizational Communication

2. “OLD MODEL”
 Activity, Events Focused on
Employee Satisfaction, Motivation 1
3
5
2
4
 Communicated for the Corporation
 Employees Viewed as a
Homogenous Audience
 Awareness is Key Measure
 Boundary-Driven: Siloed,
Two-Way Information Flow
TECTONIC MOVEMENT:
RESHAPING ORGANIZATIONAL COMMUNICATION
CREATING VALUE IN TODAY’S ENVIRONMENT
 Analytics-Based, Business Performance,
Outcomes and Strategy Socialization
 Optimized Corporation’s Ability
to Communicate
 Segmented; Targeted for Influence,
Engagement , Social Prowess
 Discussion, Dialogue, and Debate
 Boundary-Less: Platform-Agnostic,
Integrated, “Democratized,” Multi-Way,
Peer-to-Peer Channels

3. SECTION 1: THE LANDSCAPE
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4. THE CURRENT LANDSCAPE
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STRUCTURAL CHALLENGES global companies, matrixed leadership
WORKFORCE CHALLENGES fast pace of the workforce, generational differences
MEDIA CHALLENGES bad press, misinformation
PRODUCT CHALLENGES recalls, shortages, distribution problems
MARKETPLACE CHALLENGES competition

5. ANSWERING SOME ESSENTIAL
QUESTIONS:
 “How do we keep our seat at the table?”
(If we ever had it)
 “How do we address growing generational
differences in the workplace?”
 “How do we cut through the clutter to discover
what really matters to employees?”
 “How do we track and measure internal
communications to show we’re making
a real difference?”
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6. SECTION 2: THE RESEARCH
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7. INTERVIEWS:
Engaged KRC Research in 2012 to interview internal communications professionals
at 10 world-class corporations
Chosen based on global scope, market leadership and perceived effectiveness in internal
communications (frequenters on the most-admired or best-places to work lists, awards)
to better understand internal communications methods
and practices in global organizations
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GOAL:

8. SUCCESS FACTORS OF THE 10 COMPANIES
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STRUCTURE
organization structure that connects internal
communicators with the rest of the company
UNDERSTANDING
innate understanding that strong internal
communications will have positive returns for the
brand and the company
ARSENAL OF TOOLS
tools and practices for listening and communicating
your message
COMMITMENT
strong commitment to keeping employees informed
before stories break in mass or digital media

9. 8
SHARED PERSPECTIVE OF COMPANIES’
INTERNAL COMMUNICATORS
BUY INTO CORPORATE
PHILOSOPHY
Believe deeply in the company, the brand,
and what it represents
LISTENING IS KEY
Understand that its as much about effective
listening as it is about distribution
ALWAYS ROOM FOR
IMPROVEMENT
Tough in evaluating their performances,
with a sharp awareness of their strengths
and weaknesses

10. SECTION 3: TEN PRACTICES
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11. BE A BUSINESS LEADER FIRST,
A COMMUNICATOR SECOND
 Internal communicators must be seen as business
people first
 Internal communicators need to as trusted advisors
delivering timely and proactive counsel in support of
business objectives
We are business leaders first, communicators second. And the objective isn’t the best
internal communication plan, or the best program on a specific project. Our job when we
come in everyday is: How do we help the organization sell more trucks, sell more engines,
as competitively and at the highest margins possible?”
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1.
“

12. BEGIN WITH THE END IN MIND —
REMEMBERING IT’S
ALL ABOUT THE “WHY?”
 An organization must be able to clearly and
concisely articulate the purpose and value
of change for its future success and for the
employees.
 This includes the business benefits, but
also the changed culture, business
practices and the environment envisioned.
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2.
“We’re intentional about what we do and how we do it, so our communications planning is very proactive:
Where, from a business and culture standpoint, do we want to be in the next 12 months, 18 months, two
years, five years? And then put plans in play that enable us to get there…”
© 2013 Institute for Public Relations

13. CHALLENGE, DON’T
“CHEERLEAD”— EMPLOYEES
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3.
“
 The workplace is shifting to demanding Gen X, Gen Y
and Millennial generation employees who are becoming
more democratized through social media, online
communities and affinity groups.
 These new collaborative communities share an
“ethic of contribution” which means going above
and beyond the normal job performance to
deliver a higher discretionary effort.
Employees want to have meaning in what they do. I mean, we spend way too many
hours of our life at work to let it be just a transactional relationship. And people want to
think they’re making a difference. So you need to have ‘line of sight’- what is the bigger
picture that I’m plugging into and then it needs to be localized.

14. CREATE A ROADMAP FOR
CHANGE, BUT EXPECT DETOURS
ON THE ROAD AHEAD
 Successful organizations develop a clear, measurable path to their
desired future state in their drive to create a shared purpose.
 Building a roadmap for change and communicating
it in a more integrated, creative way, through dynamic
storytelling, strategic learning maps, digital signage
or online communities is critical.
 Just as important as having a direction is recognizing the
may shifts and turns along the way. Being prepared for
bumps in the road will accelerate the journey.
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4.
© 2013 Institute for Public Relations

15. BUILD A DETAILED INTERNAL
STAKEHOLDER MAP
 Each employee constituency has a different
concern, and a different role in supporting change.
 Creating an internal stakeholder map that
identifies the specific needs of each group will
have a great influence on how audiences react
to a change and the messaging created.
 The key is focusing on your audience.
Its not social media needs, It’s not Facebook.
It’s not Twitter. It’s not LinkedIn. It’s the audience.
What does the audience need to be engaged and
effective? That’s what we focus on.”
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5.
“
MANAGERS
EXECUTIVES
CONSUMER
FACERS
VETERAN
EMPLOYEES
POTENTIAL
EMPLOYEES
NEW
EMPLOYEES

16. “
DON’T VACATE YOUR SEAT AT THE TABLE;
ADVOCATE A POINT OF VIEW
 Having internal communicators involved in the conversations that shape change before
decisions are made will enable effective implementation and adoption from the beginning.
 Communicators must come prepared and have a point of view that they
actively voice.
Communications is at the table.
Its at the decision-making table.
Its at the planning table.
Its at the research table.
Its not an after-thought,
which would turn us into a
reactionary organization.”
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6.
© 2013 Institute for Public Relations

17. ADOPT AN AUTHENTIC VOICE
 Today’s employees are looking for total value alignment with their employer.
 Authenticity- which calls for demonstrating integrity, telling employees the truth even if they news is
bad, being consistent in what is said and done internally and externally and acting in an honest,
trustworthy way- is how it’s done at best in class companies.
 Creating opportunities for dialogue, feedback
mechanisms, and face-to-face conversations
ensures that employee concerns and
constructive ideas are heard and incorporated
into future plans and messaging.
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7.
“
I’m fortunate to have a workforce that is
extremely proud of the work they do; they feel
the company is being honest with them.
Whenever there’s a crisis, we immediately go to
our employees and explain it and they feel as if
the company has credibility because we
address things with them.”

18. THE POWER OF LINE-OF-SIGHT MANAGERS
AS COMMUNICATORS
 For most employees, line-of-sight management through their direct
supervisor remains the most trusted resource for information.
 Empowering key leaders and front-line
managers to deliver messages is essential.
Any significant change effort will fail
without them.
Our leadership, particularly our front line managers
are about the most effective channel we have.
Our investment is increasingly in them—and the
tools and training them in the skills
they have for delivery.”
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8.
“
© 2013 Institute for Public Relations

19. CONTENT- AND CONTENT STRATEGY-
IS KING
 Successful internal communicators keep key
messages at the forefront of all communications
and in every vehicle.
 At the same time, employees increasingly are
driving communication at their levels. So we
need to join them in the conversations, or risk
being left behind.
We have numerous competing priorities, business
plans, objectives, multiple audiences, doing different
things. Its really the role of various communications
teams, and often ours, to pull all of that together and
tell a consistent story.”
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9.
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20. THE PRICE OF MEASUREMENT
 Best in class companies relentlessly track and measure strategies, tactics and
channels. They intentionally treat their employees like customers, and do process
checks, and effectiveness surveys.
You can have effective communication
but at $10,000 per person to play,
it doesn’t make sense.”
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10.
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© 2013 Institute for Public Relations

21. WHAT’S NEXT?
20© 2013 Institute for Public Relations

22. CREDITS AND ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS…
• IPR Commission on Organizational Communication
 Keith Burton, Chair
 Bruce Berger, Ph.D.
 Peter Debreceny
 Gary Grates
 Frank Ovaitt
• Research Steering Committee
• Colleen Learch, KRC Research
• Employee Communication Leaders at GE, Petrobras, Cargill, FedEx, Toyota,
McDonald’s, Johnson & Johnson, IBM, Chevron and Navistar
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23. THANK YOU!
22© 2013 Institute for Public Relations