Internal Communication27 Feb 2024Simon Druery

Driving business performance with internal communications 

Effective internal communication is essential for an organisation to succeed. When done well, it keeps people engaged, productive and working towards the same goals. By positively impacting both business performance and culture, internal communication proves a powerful tool to help boost performance. 

Let’s take a closer look at the importance of internal communication, how it impacts performance, and the common challenges organisations face when it comes to creating effective internal communications strategies. 

Why is internal communications so important?

Internal communications are the foundation of organisational performance, acting as a strategic tool that ensures everyone is moving in the same direction towards common goals. Beyond information sharing, it helps create an aligned environment where people collaborate well, work productively and achieve results.

In addition to the bottom-line impacts, effective internal communication strategies help create powerful, high-performing cultures. They can be used to help people feel valued, connected, and part of a larger purpose, which in turn helps retention and talent attraction. With the right approach, internal communications can help unite teams and departments so they are fully aligned with an organisation's goals and feel driven to innovate. 

How internal communication impacts business performance

Internal communications play a vital and multifaceted role in the success of an organisation. Here are some of the benefits: 

Keeps employees informed

Sharing information clearly and consistently can create a sense of community and connectedness to an organisation’s purpose, helping foster an open environment and engaged workforce.

Helps promote company culture

Internal communication serves as a powerful tool for building and sustaining company culture by shaping perceptions and reinforcing values.

Boosts employee engagement

Keeping employees informed, encouraging feedback, and offering transparency can help employees feel valued and connected to their organisation, helping to improve their engagement. 

 Improves collaboration

Clear communication helps people understand common goals, priorities, and the work they need to do to achieve results. With a shared understanding across people and teams, there is less chance of misunderstandings, rework, and conflict. 

Aligns people with organisational goals

Aligning internal communication with organisational goals is crucial for ensuring that all employees understand the company's mission, vision, and strategic objectives. When employees know and understand the organisational goals, they can focus their efforts on achieving them together.

Improves productivity 

Effective communication leads to greater clarity, efficient resource utilisation, and increased productivity. Additionally, it promotes knowledge sharing and collaboration within and across teams, which further boosts productivity.

Increases customer satisfaction

When people and teams are engaged, working productively, and aligned to the same purpose, this has a flow-on effect that creates a better customer experience. 

Common internal communications challenges

Navigating the challenges of internal communication is crucial for organisations to ensure effective information flow, collaboration and employee engagement. Some of the most common challenges include:

1. Lack of strategy

Without a strategic plan and clear messages linked back to broader business goals, internal communications can lack consistency and confuse employees. 

2. Ineffective communication channels

Relying on outdated technology and failing to use modern tools can prevent timely and efficient information sharing. 

3. Information overload

Too much information can overwhelm employees, making it hard for them to focus on what's important.

4. Creating inclusive communication

Diverse workforces across generations, cultural backgrounds, and capabilities mean careful consideration has to be taken to avoid misinterpretation and misunderstandings. 

5. Catering to hybrid or remote work

The adoption of distributed workforces demands creative strategies to ensure all employees are catered for, regardless of where and when they work. 

6. Facilitating feedback

Establishing a culture that encourages feedback is crucial for creating buy-in, engaging employees and improving the communication process.

7. Consistent messaging

Different departments or teams may communicate conflicting messages, which can lead to confusion and a lack of trust. 

8. Security concerns

Balancing openness with the need to protect sensitive information is vital, especially in certain industries.

9. Measuring effectiveness

Measuring the success of internal communications initiatives can be difficult, so it’s important to establish metrics and ways to measure effectiveness from the start. 

To tackle these workplace communication challenges, a comprehensive approach is key. This includes a well-crafted communication strategy, adopting diverse communication channels, creating continuous feedback mechanisms, and adapting to employees' evolving needs. 

Ready to transform your internal communications strategy?

Effective internal communication helps keep employees informed, engaged, and productive. Taking the time to develop a strategy and invest in the right tools and support can help drive significant business and cultural impact for your organisation. 

At Belong Creative, we support organisations to shape their internal communications strategy which empowers employees to drive results. To learn more, schedule an appointment with our communications specialists. 

Book now

Article by Simon Druery

Simon Druery is Director and Brand Strategist at Belong Creative. What gets him jumping out of bed each day is helping business owners and marketers craft brands that people want to belong to. When he’s not working you can find him travelling Australia in the family caravan and enjoying a tawny port by the fire.