7 ways to support communication success

“The biggest problem with communication is the illusion that it’s taken place.” I love this quote from George Bernard Shaw. It speaks truth on so many levels. Throughout my career, I have witnessed countless projects where lack of communication and clarity between key stakeholders and teams has resulted in false assumptions, finger pointing, and overall poor execution. So how do you set yourself up for success?

Doing your homework before crafting your communications plan is worth your time and investment. Here are seven ways to strengthen your chances of communication success throughout the planning process.

Understand the ask

Start with why. What problem are you trying to solve and what is the outcome you are trying to achieve? In other words, start with the end in mind. What is the overarching vision?  Ask questions and confirm the expected results before you begin your plan. If you’re asked to communicate before having the answers you need, ask questions and seek clarity to confirm if all necessary activities and discussions have taken place prior to the distribution of any communication.

Understanding the overall goal of the communication and the intended outcome before you begin is essential for success. It will also aid you in key message development to provide proper context and support clarity for your audience.

Know your stakeholders

Once you have a clear understanding of the communication goals, it’s important to know who the communication is being sent to. Not all communications are appropriate for a companywide audience, so it’s important to assess the unique needs and anticipated response from each stakeholder to understand what approach will work best for each audience.

Don’t be afraid to make recommendations. As communications professionals, it is our job to offer perspectives and guidance based on our experience and information we have about the ask. I have worked with teams who immediately gravitate to a companywide message. This is often a check-the- box activity and a common pitfall, particularly for communications that involve a large-scale transition or change. It is critical that you have a clear understanding of the upstream and downstream impacts, the perspective of each stakeholder and an assessment of what they will need, what they will require, and what they will lose or gain from the change. Using your stakeholder map to place audiences into categories can support a big picture view of the communications that will be needed, while helping you to find champions to support the change.

Know your timing

Not all communications should be released at the same time. Understanding the timing and release of specific communications will further help you shape your overarching communications plan with a full lens of your stakeholders, their needs, perceptions and potential impacts. Confirm who ultimately owns the decision to ensure all necessary signoffs have been received. You want to avoid misalignment, and the possibility that someone communicates before others have had an opportunity to ensure the plan is in place to support the change.

In the instance you are brought to the table later in the planning process, be sure to align with the decision leader and confirm timing for all communications. Once messages are distributed, they are difficult to retract. Furthermore, you run the risk of confusing your audience and undermining the credibility, clarity and impact of your message.

Assess your channels

Which channels are most appropriate for this communication? Are you communicating for awareness or is there a broader behavior change involved? If a channel isn’t available, you may need to create one to meet your needs.

In a previous role, my team conducted a survey with employees about the effectiveness of our communications channels. While employees were satisfied with the existing channels, they indicated feeling somewhat disconnected to the company’s strategy. They understood what the strategy was; however, outside of a quarterly all-hands meeting, information from their manager, and scouring articles on the intranet, employees had no real way to hear about key updates from other areas in the business. We needed a better way to share authentic stories.

We took the feedback and launched a podcast series. Not only did the podcast create opportunities to tell engaging stories, but it also helped employees connect the dots and see the big picture of the strategy at work, enabling them to listen at their leisure.   

When it comes to channels, there is no one size fits all, so it’s important to understand your audience and the multi-channel approach that will resonate and produce favorable engagement with your message.

Determine your deliverables

Next to your stakeholder map, this is one of the most important steps you will take when gathering information. Outlining the deliverables you will need to support your plan, early in your strategic process, will help you anticipate questions, deter risks, and identify timing for the release of key messages. If there is a call to action, be sure to include it. Clearly communicate to your people managers prior to the global communication being released. This enables them to offer perspective, proactively anticipate questions, and champion the message or the change.

Know the impacts

This seems par for the course; however, in many cases communicators are “told” there is an ask from someone higher in the organization. While it’s important to ensure leadership buy in, it is also critically important to confirm there is a process in place to support a change in the organization before you communicate. This is particularly important for larger organizations where several stakeholders, across functions and teams may be involved or affected by a change.

Your stakeholder map will help you determine who needs to know what and when, and the role they play in the outcome. Gain perspective during this step to understand how your audience may react to the change. Put yourself in your audience’s shoes. How might they interpret the message? Will they be resistant or receptive and why? Understanding your audience and assessing how they may respond to the information being shared will help you determine the channel, tone, voice (who shares the news and how) and the timing of the message.

Assess the gaps

Because you’re doing your homework, it will be easier to identify potential gaps that may need to be addressed before any communications are distributed.

When assessing where you may have gaps, evaluate the role your business partners will play. Are there legal implications to consider? What role, if any, does HR play? Is training needed? Is there a current process to support the change or will a process need to be created? These are all important considerations to weigh as you begin to shape your plan and overall timing.

Taking the above steps will not only help you establish a solid framework for your communications plan, but it will save you time when developing your key messages, while proactively addressing potential risks throughout the process. Most importantly, it will create a strong foundation for communication success.