When Should You Engage the Internal Communications Team?

As an internal communications professional, you typically wind up in one of two situations: either it’s like pulling teeth to get content for your efforts, or everyone wants everything sent out at every possible moment.

Regardless of which situation you find yourself in, here’s three steps the internal communications team can take to better position themselves for the best possible engagement across an organization.

How To Streamline Communications Requests

If you’re trying to manage requests, from direct messages, to random email threads and in-person asks, do yourself a favor and create a simple, streamlined request form.

When positioned the right way, a form will drive better results for everyone involved, rather than feeling like an extra hurdle for someone to complete. Plus, it gives you the chance to ask all the key questions you need to get the work prioritized properly, or redirect it if needed.

A communications request form is designed to ensure that every department's essential messages, announcements and updates are amplified to the correct audience, and all your goals are aligned. You can also use a specific communications request form template to gather information about which topics specific departments would like to include in your upcoming employee newsletter.

Set up this form with whatever software you like. It can be directly connected to a project management platform, but a Google Form or Typeform will do just fine, too. It’s more about getting these requests in a centralized place.

Here are the form fields worth including on a request form template: 

• First and Last Name
• Email Address
• Department/Team Requesting:
  • Marketing
  • Finance
  • Operations
  • Sales
  • Human Resources
  • Other (please specify)
•  Type of Content:
  • Email
  • Video
  • PDF
  • Text
  • Other (please specify)
• Communication Details (i.e., message, goals, process changes, updates, etc.)
• Who does this content need to be sent to?
  • Entire company
  • Specific department
  • Specific list (please describe in detail)
• When would you like this communication to be sent? 
• Is this deadline firm or flexible?
  • Firm
  • Flexible

How to Politely Decline and/or Redirect Requests 

It may seem like a never-ending list of requests is an annoyance, or a bad thing. However, you should consider it a huge win — an individual or department knows to come to you with this request and is aware of your expertise.

If you’re getting overwhelmed with requests that aren’t part of your role, don’t fret! Save some snippets in a note file to help redirect people to the right place, if internal communications isn’t the right one.

These snippets are often structured like: "Love that idea, Sarah! We don't have the capacity to fulfill this request until May, unfortunately. If you need it sooner, I'd suggest X." Or, "Interesting, David! This doesn't really align with my team's goals, but have you talked to Y? Their department typically handles this kind of thing!"

It’s also hard to know when exactly to draw the line or delegate a department or individual to complete a task on their own. When it comes to swag requests or PDF resources, we prefer to let people produce their own work internally, if they aren't going to use the company logo (for example, a piece of swag for an internal event). Using the logo starts to get into branding territory, which needs to be carefully maintained and handled through the proper channels. 

Get Department Heads and Leadership To Engage Communications More 

If you’re struggling to get information from leaders and employees across the organization, you’re not alone. However, this isn’t the time to be shy. Instead, it’s often better to strategically insert yourself into the places and conversations where this information is flowing. You can schedule regular meetings with department heads or the go-to project manager within each department. Often, I simply ask or invite myself into department-wide meetings and get the updates for myself.

Of course, you can also run an internal communications campaign about internal communications, especially if you feel like the entire organization could use a primer on understanding what your team does and how you do it.

Alongside those efforts, you can include a list of moments and scenarios where employees and managers should be proactively reaching out to the internal communications team, such as: 

• Major Announcements: Any major company announcements — such as mergers, acquisitions, leadership changes, or big policy changes — should involve the internal communications team to ensure the message is clear and consistent.
• Crisis Communication: During a crisis, the internal communications team plays a vital role in managing the flow of information, addressing employee concerns and maintaining transparency.
• Campaign Launches: When launching new initiatives, products, services or campaigns, the internal communications team can help craft messages that resonate with employees and drive engagement.
• Employee Engagement Initiatives: For programs aimed at boosting employee morale, engagement or wellness, the internal communications team can develop strategies to effectively communicate these initiatives.
• Change Management: During periods of organizational change, such as restructuring or adopting new technologies, the internal communications team can help manage the transition by keeping employees informed and engaged.
• Leadership Comms: Big memos or letters from department heads are great opportunities to work with the internal communications team to make sure the message is clear, empathetic and effective.
• Newsletters and Regular Updates: Recurring updates — such as monthly newsletters, departmental updates or performance reports — can be amplified with the expertise of an internal communications professional to make sure there’s consistency, clarity and personalization.

Effective internal communication is so important to creating a smooth and successful organization. By engaging the internal communications team at the right time, departments can make sure their messages are clear, consistent and impactful.

On the internal communications side of things, streamlining requests through a centralized form, knowing how to redirect irrelevant requests and actively seeking engagement from department heads can significantly improve the flow of information within the company, while creating less headaches for you!