From Internal Communication to Internal Conversation

After the merger of 2 energy commodity suppliers into one major energy supplier, 4P square was asked to manage and coordinate a project which aimed to build a brand new platform for internal communications.

Objectives

As the management team aimed to have one main platform for all internal communication matters in order to put the company forward as one integrated firm, our client’s objectives were threefold:

• Use less communication channels for internal communication matters.
• Strengthen employee involvement.
• Better informed employees.

Two 4P square consultants were assigned to manage and coordinate this project together with some internal stakeholders.

How to tackle the project?

First, a clear business case was made after a deep analysis of existing internal communication documents & platforms. Some internal discussions with all involved departments were required in order to make a management proposal which had the buy-in of the companies internal clients: their employees.

By tight cooperation between the Communication department, IT and the other involved departments, clear business & technical requirements were set-up. It was now time to start building! One year later, a brand new intranet went live successfully.

At this stage, one of our 4P square consultants became responsible to put the operational workflow for all internal communication matters in place. This is not where the role of 4P square ended.

Business case

In order to make our client’s internal communication operations ‘future proof’, 4P square developed a business case to go from internal communication to internal conversation.

By adding some interactive components, the goal of this intranet 2.0 was to give our clients employees a voice on the internal communication platform.

The objectives were threefold:

• Improve the internal satisfaction.
• Cross-departmental information sharing & collaboration.
• Further strengthen employee involvement.

After an analysis of the business needs and technical possibilities, two interactive components were put forward:

• A content valuation model: by rating content on the internal communication platform, employees would be able to give indications around the quality and appreciation on internal communications. These ratings could also be useful for departments to get fast and direct feedback from colleagues.
• A contribution model: by giving the possibility to give comments on internal messages, employees would be empowered to share their knowledge across departments through this channel.

Deliveries

A full ‘future proof’ project outline was delivered to our client. Two years after the start of the project, our client feels ready (and also ready for the future) to take over its internal communication operations internally.

The project by 4P square? Succeeded!

To end, we would like to share some factors which were crucial for the project success:

• Phased approach to go from a static intranet to internal conversation.
• Content input from all involved departments.
• Collaboration between the Communication & IT department

Moreover, at the end of the project, we brought the whole team together to discuss and share learnings. This is what came out of it: Make sure you put your employees first in all you do.

At the end of the day, an internal platform is made for them. Whatever you do, don’t push information. Give your employees a voice to make them come back and get them engaged.