In today’s world, means and tactics of communication have been heavily sought after and most of us have been communicating more than we usually do. Many of us have changed our style of communicating and have started to avail different resources. Companies have reconsidered the way they communicate with their employees. It is  now that we see communication professionals adopting new perspectives to rise to this crisis and make a difference. 

So what is Internal Communication? Put simply, it is the view of how a company communicates within its organisation and to facilitate the distribution of information from the top-down hierarchy of the company. Internal Communications professionals play crucial roles in their organisation to ensure smooth running of businesses. They help to manifest a dialogue with the employees to the vision of the company, motivate and empower employees, promote the culture of the company and also manage crisis communication. 

In this era of remote working where top companies such as Netflix and Twitter encourage their employees to work from home, the role of Internal Communication has proved more vital than ever. Many Internal Communicators believe remote working will stay and thus a need for closer collaboration is required going forward. Businesses must hone their digital approach to encourage more collaboration, to help colleagues to connect with one another. 

Even though digital communication can help us stay connected, they can bring challenges. For example when we communicate through text messages,  we loose our vocal intonation or body language in the exchange. Hence,It is important that every business meeting over video call, commences with clear cut and measurable objectives in mind. 

A lack of communication make employees feel detached from the company and confused. It is vital in such times that managers and leaders are over-communicative with their employees for their satisfaction and wellbeing. With the use of employee communication platforms we can all collaborate and communicate efficiently during the pandemic. Having a talk from your bosses makes an impactful difference on how the company staff define their work purpose and also reinvigorates them to strive for better in producing their deliverables. 

During the pandemic, the rise for change and crisis communication has been pushed to the forefront. Communicating change within the company calls for careful planning and an understanding of your staff concerns and needs. Examples of these types of communications are structural change in a business, office change in location or closures, the use of new software etc. Crisis communication don’t come with a lot of notice, hence having a crisis communication plan in place beforehand can mitigate the risk of the situation and help preserve the safety of the staff. Sending out the right information to the right people in an effective and timely manner is mandatory in a crisis situation. 

The Internal Communicators of the company need to be as transparent as possible while sharing information with the employees and also need to respond quickly to questions that may arise from the employees by anticipating their needs in advance. This kind of proactive communication during a crisis and change scenario of a company, will build trust within the organisation. 

For such Internal Communication, channel options need to be considered to find appropriate methods to send out information to everyone regardless of where they are and their access to devices such as a laptop. In this type of high-stress approach, a multi-channel network of communicating works better. Using broadcasting tools that helps send out a message through multiple channels such as email, text message, voicemail and ensuring such channels are setup ahead of time will help Internal Communicators to constructively tackle crisis management. 

Employee well-being has also been pushed into focus during this concerning time. Morale-boosting communication and positive engagement with the employees helps to combat isolation and motivate the staff to work towards the goals of the organisation. A huge number of the population have been struggling anxiety, depression and lack of motivation during this pandemic and going back to work triggers a range of emotions. Many employees may be reluctant to go back to the office because of health and mental setbacks. All of these issues need to be clearly addressed by the responsible Internal Communicators of the organisation, and also the solutions to these issues. This is predominant to the success of the post pandemic work culture. 

Remote working should be considered by businesses as a long term solution, where possible. The message that the business should also impart to its employees, is that the country has been thorugh a tough distressing time and that feelings of unrest and anxiety is expected. Managers need to be comfortable starting such conversations with the organisation, take time to highlight the drawbacks and solutions to the situations and have suitable follow up check-ins with their staff. Keeping your organisation connected, well informed and being proactive with your communications, is the way forward in this new normal work life.