Part Two of our new series by Elyse Featherstonhaugh, LXDA Strategic Comms Partner, specialising in helping non-comms teams sharpen their message and elevate their impact.
2. Drifting in the Digital Sea: Fixing Comms for Deskless Teams
How do you get the operational comms right when your frontline doesn’t sit at a desk? I worked for the largest independently owned coffee shop brand in the world, with more than 1,000 stores in the United Kingdom. It had a working population of just over 8,000, covering about 100 nationalities. You could imagine how challenging it was to ensure our stores understood what head office wanted to communicate. As part of all head office employees’ induction, was to do a week’s barista training and then a week working in store. This was a fantastic experience. Not only can I now make a great cup of coffee, but it gave me great insight into ‘a day in the life’ of working in store and the challenges our people faced. For example, their priority is our customers; they don’t sit behind a computer all day waiting for head office to send emails. So how do we ensure important messages (e.g. food recalls, IT issues, introducing new food ranges) are received in a timely manner?
For this business, cascading information in a regular and consistent way was paramount.
The last Friday of the month before 5pm a multi-page operational newsletter was emailed to all stores. It included food launches, changes to the menu, colour photos of cake fridge displays and events for the month (e.g. delivery times, launch dates, product promotions, when to stop displaying, etc). It was important for this newsletter to be clear, easy to understand and accurate. With so many stores being run by busy customer-focused people whose second language was English, ensuring simple and direct language was key. Subheadings, bullet points, imagery and diagrams were used to convey information. Even using a table of contents and page numbering made reading the newsletter and referring to sections easier and quicker.
There was no room for error. And it was important for stores to know when to expect to receive this newsletter so they could prepare.
Each Monday morning before 10am, a brief newsletter was emailed to stores. It included reminders for the week based on the monthly newsletter (and any changes since the monthly newsletter had been sent). Again, it was essential it was received the same time every week so store managers knew when to check their emails. This small but significant act built trust with our stores, breaking down the ‘us and them’ mentality the stores had with head office.
But we didn’t just rely on written operational communication. We had a bi-monthly employee engagement full-colour magazine where we celebrated our wins and our people, ran competitions, and shared knowledge. This was eventually replaced by an app; an internal Facebook type app. Stores could have their own ‘closed’ group. Area Managers could have a group for their area and Regional Managers could have a group for their region. Cascading information and sharing stories had never been easier!
Sharing information and good news stories was now a two-way conversation. Our baristas could upload photos of their ‘latte art’, show off their amazing cake displays and take photos of their team during team events and meetings. And sometimes, the odd celebrity selfie was also uploaded. It meant our head office employees, including executives could like and comment. Again, breaking down the ‘us and them’ mentality. This app also meant we could get urgent messages to our stores more quickly.
Internal comms spends so much time and effort writing important information – don’t let it be ignored. If your audience can’t absorb it, your message didn’t land. You need to meet the people where they’re at.
What not to do
- Assume people will read your emails as soon as they’re received. If you want people to read them in a timely manner, manage their expectations and yours.
- Overwhelm your people with too much written information. Unless it’s explained and set out clearly, consider an alternative way of communicating (e.g. face to face presentations, videos, etc).
Internal Comms 101
- Be consistent. For some businesses – especially those who have team members sitting in front a computer screen – timeliness isn’t as important. But for those businesses who rely on information to be received and acted on immediately, regular and consistent messaging is essential. It also builds trust and confidence.
- Use simple language. Use diagrams and images to support your written instructions/information.
- Keep it clear. Break up your messaging with subheadings and bullet points.
Do your operational updates get read or just buried? Let’s redesign your comms rhythm.
Written by Elyse Featherstonhaugh, LXDA’s Strategic Comms Partner.
Elyse Featherstonhaugh is a Strategic Communications Advisor who helps organisations communicate with clarity, purpose, and impact; especially during times of change. With over 15 years of experience in internal and strategic communications across government, finance, education, and infrastructure, Elyse specialises in turning complex messages into simple, actionable narratives that build trust and engagement.
If you’re ready to strengthen your internal comms and align your messaging from the inside out, reach out to Elyse here at LX Design Agency for a conversation. Let’s make sure your next big message doesn’t just land, it resonates!