Achieving effective internal employee communication is not something that can be done entirely organically. Instead, it pays to establish a specific framework on which to hang the ins and outs of internal communications.
This is easier said than done, so let’s go over a few collaboration strategies, tools and tactics that will amplify the role of internal communication within your company, catalyzing projects and enhancing the employee experience in the process.
Why cross departmental collaboration matters
Simply put, internal communication is about the exchange of information. This matters in a range of contexts, from boosting engagement during employee onboarding to providing a sense of purpose for those already established in their roles within the company.
All of this leads towards strengthening the culture that underpins your organization, and defining the values which you stand for, so that everyone is on the same page.
This might sound nebulous, but it has tangible applications as well, such as allowing you to share central strategies and lay out the path forward for different departments so that they know what part they’ll play in reaching the collective targets you’ve set.
In the long run, this will also mean that how internal communication organization is handled will result in higher retention rates. So it’s not just about employee onboarding, but also about keeping them happy and satisfied over months and years.
Looking into the needs of your organization
In order to put together the right collaboration strategies, you have to know what your company actually requires from such a framework.
This starts with assessing whatever strategy you have in place right now, and which communication tools are being used, so you can determine where it is working well and where it is falling short.
You must also set out objectives you want to achieve, and choose metrics to measure so you have a means of working out whether any changes you make are having the desired effect.
Choosing tools & setting ground rules
There are ample ways for colleagues to communicate and collaborate today. The challenge is to not just decide which tools to use, but also to codify the way that they are to be harnessed so that everyone understands the best practices and the etiquette involved.
Instant messaging platforms are a good example of this. Solutions like Slack have become the lynchpin of internal communications for lots of organizations, and they can be a positive influence over interdepartmental interactions, as well as providing spaces for smaller teams to chat and share ideas separately.
Traditional meetings can also be considered a key tool in fuelling collaboration, whether hosted in-person or whether taking place virtually. There are caveats to this, of course, as you want to make sure that meetings are purposeful and don’t waste the time of attendees.
It is probable that you’ll rely on several different tools to achieve the right mix of communication and collaboration you require. However you compose your setup, laying down rules for which platforms are to be used for which types of communication, and what policies must be followed regarding their use, will avoid confusion and conflict in one fell swoop.
Asking for feedback
It is not helpful to come up with a new framework for cross departmental communication and collaboration without actually consulting with the people who will be relying on it from day to day to fulfill their professional responsibilities.
Employees might have valuable input to give with regards to things like tool choice, as well as in view of any tactical shifts or etiquette changes that are being proposed. This could lead you to sidestep snafus that you would not otherwise have noticed until it was too late.
Likewise you need to be willing to listen to feedback even after a fresh strategy has been rolled out, and don’t just rely on the data. If it looks like collaboration is improving, but team members are not happy with the state of play, then this will only cause issues further down the line.
Practicing what you preach
Finally, if you are in a managerial position, you need to adhere to the collaboration strategies you have put in place within your organization, and also harness the tools at your disposal in the same way that you’d expect of your employees.
This means communicating in line with the desired etiquette, and also sharing info on strategy and explaining decisions that have been made, rather than pushing ahead without keeping team members in the loop.
All of this should lead to a refined, robust framework for communication and collaboration both between departments, and across all spheres of the organization.