In two recent posts, we discussed the first part of Huib Koeleman’s lecture on the importance of internal communications in the new work era. We explained how the new era of work affects our behavior and we listed 6 concrete steps to start implementing a winning internal communications strategy. Clearly, the communications strategy will only contribute to increase employee engagement and productivity if everyone actually participates. In this last post, we will discuss the last part of the lecture. How can you convince your employees to use internal communications?
The diffusion of innovations
Innovations usually spread gradually, with innovators being followed by early adopters, and subsequently by the late majority and the laggards who remain out of the loop (Rogers 1995). Given that the early and late majority are usually the largest groups, it is important to stress the importance of innovation among them.
How to convince the late majority about the value of internal communications
In order to foster the adoption of new initiatives, you can:
- Convince your managers to lead by example
- Create a scoreboard that shows how many employees have already adopted “new ways of working”. For instance, how many app downloads, how many article uploads, how many comments.
- Locate the most engaged employees and turn them into ambassadors. Click here for more information on how you could achieve this with an internal application.
- Develop a Q&A helpdesk and give your employees the information, knowledge and reassurance they need.
- Measure your apps’ reading behavior to understand your employees’ needs and adapt your communications strategy accordingly.
Do you agree with this approach? Have you successfully implemented new ways of working in your company? Feel free to share your comments below.
