When faced with a major change or project in your organization, it’s easy to overlook a well-thought out approach to internal communications. Yet most would agree building internal support is a critical success factor for any large initiative. In the September Make It Count e-newsletter I discussed common communication traps that can inadvertently trip up well-intended organizations. In the October issue I’ll offer four steps to avoid these obstacles and to help ensure your initiative is a success. If you’d like to receive the e-newsletter directly in your inbox, submit the sign up form.

Here’s an excerpt:

Too busy –when planning for a major initiative, much of the emphasis is placed on the external announcement or event and spending much time on the internal announcement can become an afterthought. However, the last feeling you want to inspire in the troops is disregard.

Using the same message for all audiences – whatever your message is, it needs to be meaningful and inspire a specific reaction from your audience. Staff will have different interests than media would, for example.

Leaving more questions than answers – there are times when you won’t have all the answers, granted. But anticipating the questions and having reasonable answers will at least take care of the immediate reaction and show that you have taken the time to consider their needs.

Giving the wrong message – what could be great news to one group can be cause for concern for another.

Failing to segment your internal audiences – staff is not a single entity. Divide your internal audiences up as much as appropriate to the project. This can be done by function, by role, by department or whatever works for your situation.

Not giving enough time for your internal audiences to digest the information – you’ve spent weeks or months being immersed in your project. When you announce your news, don’t be surprised if there are no immediate questions. Most people like to reserve comment or questions until they’ve taken the time to think it over.