In some companies, internal communications are treated as a formality, something that must be done to keep employees on top of the latest changes.
The leaders at these companies unfortunately don’t realize the connection between internal communications metrics and employee engagement. They fail to see how a strong internal communications program can actually increase productivity and lower turnover by boosting employee engagement.
Internal communications should be more than just inward-facing public relations. In fact, if employees see their company’s internal communications strategy as merely a series of “press releases”, it will actually push them toward disengagement.
Good internal communications programs engage employees through what feels like a conversation, not one-way declarations. This type of program helps to identify problems before they get out of control and communication breakdowns. It also helps identify growing negative sentiment and head off waves of turnover.
Why are internal communications so important?
Although the reasons for it might seem obvious, it’s important to consider why an employer should measure the effectiveness of its internal communications.
When internal communications are used to convey important information, they are directly connected to organizational goals. Employees that understand and respond effectively to important communications not only do a better job, they also tend to be more engaged with their work.
Internal communications strategy metrics can also serve as an indicator for levels of engagement across the company. If, for example, one poorly performing department doesn’t seem to be engaging with internal communications, but the rest of the company is, leadership could look into the reasons why that department is not getting the messages they should or acting on them in a useful way.
How can engagement with internal communications be measured?
Because a lot of internal communication occurs digitally, it’s easier than ever for human resources to track and quantify employee engagement with communication materials.
Internal communications strategy metrics include the medium of communication used, information being conveyed and how employees respond to various communications. Just a cursory scan of these metrics can be revealing. For example, the first and the third metrics can reveal which types of communications are most effective, while the third metric alone can reveal a general level of employee engagement with internal communications.
One of the most basic ways to measure employee responses is to track open rates of internal emails. In addition to this metric, intranet read receipts can measure if employees are reading and acting on the information they receive via email.
Tracking unique page views and similar metrics for company intranet sites can help with short-term and long-term optimization. Analytics tools can document how frequently people log into the intranet, the length of time they spend on each page and how they communicate within the intranet. This level of data gives company leaders and HR personnel a sense of the effectiveness of internal communication efforts.
In addition to tracking engagement digitally, there are also more traditional and more direct approaches. Online worker surveys can provide information on how employees experience internal communications. In addition to providing useful information, these surveys can make employees feel they have a say in how internal communications are handled, but only if leadership acts on the feedback they receive. People who feel like they have a voice tend to be more engaged in their work and more dedicated to the company.
Staff members should also feel comfortable asking questions and giving constructive opinions. In addition to employee surveys, an anonymous ‘suggestion box’ page on the company internet can foster two-way communication in a way that is also measurable.
While they tend to involve a less desirable, reactionary approach to internal communications, certain HR and business metrics can point to the quality of internal communications. For instance, productivity, customer satisfaction and employee turnover metrics point to the overall level of engagement, and by extension, the effectiveness of internal communications.
How can Tryane help?
We offer several ways for companies to track their internal communications metrics, including analytics solutions for both Microsoft Teams and Yammer.
Our MS Teams solution shows usage of the platform across an entire organization. The tool can seamlessly help you identify who is the most engaged and who is the least engaged with the platform.
With our MS Teams tool, you can customize internal communications metrics to reveal granular insights. For instance, you could identify the most effective uses of your main collaboration and communication channels, where information is most visible across the company. These insights can increase collaboration, not just optimize investments in Teams, by driving useful conversations and empowering employees.
Our analytics solution for Yammer can track the effectiveness of your internal communications on the platform. With this tool, you can quickly see which users are the most engaged and which content is getting the most traction.
The tool can be used to assess the effectiveness of announcements and compare your performance against similar companies. The behaviors of different users can also be compared to boost engagement and coach up less active users. Additionally, our machine learning technology can be used to identify trending topics within your network.
Contact us today
If you are wondering about the effectiveness of your internal communications efforts, reach out to us today. We can help you optimize your efforts and increase the engagement of your talented staff members.