Two documents published by the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD) provide best practice guidelines for using individual and group communication channels.

Internal communication is an important management function that contributes to leadership, productivity, and employee engagement within organisations.

The new CIPD guides provide practical advice for HR professionals but are also useful primers for internal communication professionals.

Using group channels

The Guide to Using Group Channels (opens as a PDF) includes meetings, apps, focus groups, employee forums, intranet, and employees.

Meetings

Meetings are the backbone of organisational communication but are often mismanaged. Different meeting formats should be used for different types of employee engagement.

• one-to-one meetings - strengthen relationships and build trust

• onboarding - establish expectations, values and understanding

• brainstorming - collaborate and creatively generate ideas

• department meetings - build a sense of connectedness between employees operating in and with closely related teams

• project meetings - set out goals, give clarity, and establish a mode of regular feedback

• organisation meetings - to increase engagement from senior leaders with all employees

Apps

COVID-19 has seen growth in employee apps to communicate information and engage with employees. They are a useful tool to engage employees irrespective of location. The CIPD recommends that they should be optional rather than mandated and be supported by other means of communication to ensure accessibility.

Focus groups

Focus groups can give a richer set of insights than you may get from a survey, as they delve deeper to uncover detailed information. Focus groups should be used to identify important issues that can then be explored further through surveys or wider studies with a larger representation of the workforce.

Forums

Employee forums are a development of a focus group, used to inform employees about significant issues related the organisation. These are a legal requirement in the situation of a consultation.

Intranet

A company intranet can empower employee voice by making it visible and promoting knowledge-sharing within an organisation. COVID-19 has seen a growth in enterprise social networks as a development of intranets.

Using individual voice channels

The Guide to Using Individual Voice Channels (opens as a PDF) covers surveys, line management, voice champions, senior management, and all employees.

Surveys

A quick and low-cost way of gathering and sharing an employee perspective. Critically, insights should form the basis of driving change

Line management

Managers can delivery substantive improvements in engagements, productivity, wellbeing and culture.

Voice champions

Voice champions are a complement manager and senior leadership if they are unable to engage with the entire workforce.

Management

Management buy-in is key to gaining the support and involvement of employees. If employees see that leaders genuinely value their input, they may be more receptive to expressing their voice.

All employees

Employees gather valuable information from direct contact with customers, suppliers, and other employees.

The CIPD is the professional body for HR and people development. It has more than 150,000 members across the world and provides thought leadership and professional training.