Comms Training Toolkit:
PRODUCTIVE USES FOR THOSE
REMAINING BUDGET DOLLARS
Managers might also be glad to have a
toolkit with instructional materials on best
practices of communication, such as how to run
a meeting efficiently, how to craft emails that will
be read, how to handle difficult conversations and
how to use branded templates to keep internal
communications professional and consistent across
the company.
Communications Survey:
Perhaps you’ve got a little money left in your budget for 2017. What could you use it for that
would really make an impact in your internal communications?
We’ve got eight great ideas for you, one each for Dasher and Dancer and all the rest. Any
of these can be managed as a simple stand-alone project at a price you might be able to
squeeze out of this year ’s budget. And yes, now that you ask, Tribe certainly could handle
any of these for you.
Infographics for Financials:
When the company releases financials,
is the information that’s shared with
employees communicated in a way that gives
them any clue what the numbers mean? Plan
now to illustrate the 2017 financials in an easy-to-
understand visual format of infographics, or for
sharing quarterly results as infographics in 2018.
These infographics, with explanatory copy that
makes sense even to non-accounting majors, can
be shared in a town hall, on the intranet, via email
or on posters or table tents.
Employee Photo Shoot:
One of the fastest ways to undermine
the authenticity of your internal
communications is to use stock photography of
people who clearly aren’t employees. An on-site
shoot of your actual employees, in the office,
on the manufacturing floor, in the call center or
wherever they are, can increase the relevance of
your communications significantly.
At Tribe, we’re familiar with the time demands and
safety concerns of shooting employees on the job,
and can manage all aspects of the shoot, delivering
a library of fantastic photography that shows real
employees engaged in their work. Imagine the
difference that can make on your intranet, in your
publications, on digital signage or posters — and in
your recruiting materials.
Values Toolkit:
In most companies, managers are charged
with cascading vision and values to
their teams, but not all managers are trained
communicators. Make it easier for them by
providing a toolkit of materials, from PowerPoints
to templated emails, and FAQs to conversation
guides. Two benefits of these sorts of materials
are that they increase the likelihood that the
communication will happen and help the message
to stay consistent.
Do you know how your employees prefer to
receive communications? Have you asked
them what topics they care about most? Are you
interested in exploring whether they’d be open to
receiving company news through an app on their
personal mobile devices?
8
Town Hall Activation:
Even with excellent live-streaming, it can be
difficult to get employees throughout the
company to take the time to participate in a town
hall. One strategy is to make the town hall itself a
can’t-miss event, by improving the way the content
is presented, by including more two-way interaction
with employees and by adding entertaining reasons
for employees to stay tuned to the very end.
But you also can repurpose content presented
in the town hall — by shooting video and editing
shorter clips, posting some of the best questions
and answers on the intranet, capturing the most
powerful leadership statements to use as quotes on
digital signage or maybe producing a short podcast.
You don’t necessarily need to survey the entire
company. You might do a more limited survey
but include wide representation of employees in
different business units, locations, job functions
and generations. Analysis of the results can tell you
what’s working well, and what could be improved,
as well as what sort of content they’d like to see
more of.
Employee-Generated Content:
One of the best ways to ensure a steady
stream of fresh, relevant content on your
intranet is to have employees write it. But don’t
cut them loose without providing guard rails for
what makes appropriate content and guidelines for
professional writing. Give them an online manual for
how it's done.
7
Digital Signage Content:
Maximize the communication power of
digital monitors with an editorial calendar
that covers a wide range of topics, like values,
wellness, safety, employee recognition, IT security,
HR topics, CEO Q&A, and holidays. Then have the
slides prepared on a monthly basis. By including
a lot of different content and keeping it fresh by
updating the deck weekly or monthly, you can
make digital signage a hard-working channel for
offering employees bite-sized bits of information.
Interested in starting something before year-end?
Tribe can help.