Good internal communication is essential for a successful business. It's important for managers to communicate effectively with their teams, and for teams to communicate amongst themselves, to ensure that ideas, information and workflows move quickly and efficiently between different departments.
Unfortunately, many businesses don't have well established practices for internal communication, leaving employees feeling disconnected, out of the loop, or frustrated with the lack of information. To help you get the most out of your internal communication, here are some best practices you should try to follow:
Establish Clear Communication Channels
The first step in creating effective internal communication is to establish channels through which employees can communicate. Depending on the size and type of your business, this could include emails, phone calls, texts, or a company-specific app.
It's also important to ensure that all employees have access to these channels and understand how to use them. Make sure each employee has an email address, that everyone is comfortable using the phone, or that the company app is installed on all devices.
Keep it Organized
When it comes to communication, organization is key. Make sure your channels are organized, so that important messages don't get lost in a sea of emails or texts. You can create separate folders for different departments (e.g. Sales, HR, IT), or use keywords so that messages can be tagged and easily searched.
Make it Timely
If you're sending out messages or information, make sure that it's timely. If your team needs to be informed of something right away, don't wait until the end of the day to send out the message. It's also important to keep messages short and to the point; long-winded emails or texts can be overwhelming and easily ignored.
Encourage Openness
It's important to encourage open and honest communication between everyone in the business. Everyone should feel comfortable speaking up or asking questions, and managers should create an environment where employees feel like their opinions are valued.
Take the time to listen to your team's ideas and suggestions, and make sure everyone is kept up to date with any changes in the company.
Set Some Rules
Finally, it's important to set guidelines for communication. Make sure employees know what kind of language and behavior is acceptable, and any rules that should be followed when communicating.
How can ShawtAwt support you in improving internal communication?
You can benefit from ShawtAwt's features, including a variety of ones that can improve internal communication in your business. ShawtAwt is an internal communication tool that enables any type of organization—business, community, club, or educational institution—to update its members of the most recent news and announcements while also tracking member engagement and behavior. By increasing transparency and offering better access to more information, ShawtAwt creates stronger alignment between the organization and its members and helps to build confidence. ShawtAwt has features like an easy on-boarding process and information posting at any time to help groups post any kind of information and improve effective communication.