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by Arthur on Nov 10, 2022 6:07:00 PM
The importance of internal communications for any organisation is well known. It keeps employees informed, boosts engagement and helps shape company values. Even so, 34% of organisations remain in the process of reviewing their internal communication channels. What’s moew, even if you are one of the organisations with a clear internal communication strategy already in place, this doesn’t mean that your work is done.
The nature of internal communication is constantly shifting, driven by technological and workplace trends. Looking ahead to 2023, some of these trends are having a major impact on how businesses engage with their employees - regardless of their industry and geography. We’ve listed some of the most important below:
1. More digital tools
Digital transformation is being pursued in all walks of life - and it is certainly impacting internal communications. Digital tools can lead to a 67%, increase in productivity, a 53% increase in employee engagement and a 43% growth in revenue. Given the benefits that these solutions can provide, it is hardly surprising that digitalisation will continue to be a key focus area for internal communications across 2023 and beyond.
Whether they focus on video conferencing, social intranets, gamification or collaboration, there are a huge variety of digital tools on the market today that can enhance an organisation’s internal communication. This is not an area where businesses have reached the endpoint. Communication technologies utilising virtual reality, artificial intelligence and the metaverse are likely to be just around the corner.
2. Keeping hybrid workforces connected
Although remote working isn’t new, the COVID-19 pandemic rapidly accelerated the transition to a more flexible world of work. With many businesses formulating a hybrid strategy - research indicates that 58% of workers have the option to work from home for all or part of the week - keeping employees connected comes with new challenges.
With hybrid working seemingly here to stay, businesses must find ways of communicating (and engaging) with employees that are not physically present. How can you ensure that these workers receive important updates and feel part of a team? Offering them a Zoom account is not enough. Holistic all-in-one communication is likely to be more effective at ensuring your workers remain connected - wherever they are based.
3. A more inclusive workplace
For organisations that do embrace hybrid working, an opportunity to create a more diverse and inclusive workplace arises - but only if the right internal communication solutions are employed. Remote communication tools can facilitate the onboarding of top talent - regardless of their race, gender, age, or geography. Biases that may manifest themselves during in-person recruitment, for example, can be avoided.
Just take working mothers as one example. Hybrid working could make workplaces more inclusive for these employees, ensuring that they remain engaged even while offering more flexible work schedules. Plenty of research underpins the fact that diverse companies enjoy higher profits - internal communications could pave way for this.
4. The rise of social intranet 2.0
The corporate intranet is not a thing of the past - it has simply been modernised. Today, social intranets provide easy, fast and mobile ways for employees to communicate on their own terms. Offering chat, top-down communication and access for external parties, a social intranet can connect employees across silos and organisational boundaries.
Combining onboarding modules, satisfaction surveys, integrations with other apps, and many other features, a modern social intranet platform should lie at the centre of your internal communications. It’s user-friendly, feature-rich, and delivers everything your employees need in one place. That’s the power of social intranet 2.0.
5. Putting values first
An overwhelming 88% of employees believe that a strong company culture is essential to business success. But how can organisations shape and share this culture? One way is through internal communications. This is not just about sharing updates and administrative matters but prioritising values. Gartner has found that the shift to hybrid work has been a net positive for the culture at many organisations - but this has required substantial effort on their part. 68% of executive teams are reevaluating their company’s culture in light of the new normal of virtual and hybrid work. It’s something most firms have to consider.
6. Recognising your frontline
When employees don’t have a desk or perhaps even a corporate email account, it’s easy to neglect them when crafting your internal communication strategy. This is a mistake - particularly given that there are an estimated 2 miljard frontline workers worldwide. Despite the size of this talent pool, many feel disengaged at work.
2023 will see the increased adoption of mobile communication tools that recognise the importance of engaging with frontline staff. These solutions will be easy to use, secure and facilitate streamlined collaboration with colleagues on-site, on the road, or in the office.
How Plek can help you foresee the next internal communication trend
At Plek, our smart platform lets you connect, engage and empower your employees - wherever they work best.
Our solutions increase alignment and centralise your internal communication. They are frequently updated and offer integrations with over 750 different tools, apps and software solutions. The world of internal communications continues to evolve - and at Plek we’ll help you evolve with it.
