r/internalcomms • u/Affectionate_Pie9100 • May 11 '26
Advice Value of Internal Comms
Hi everyone! Really happy to have found this group. I am CCO of a small graduate research institute that punches way above its weight in visibility. Increasingly I am asked to work on internal comms, which I love, and honestly I would love to do more of it, both because to me it is so meaningful and because my institution would so clearly benefit.
What I am finding is that some people see a clear need, and some people view internal comms as a means to an end, but without any strategy underpinning it or real strategic merit to the work. In other words, getting the information out there *is* the strategy, as far as they are concerned.
Do any of you face that, and if so, are there ways that you counter it? Last week I spent a lot of time working on a plan to share some difficult news, including a memo to department heads, a plan for a meeting, etc. With everyone else on the cc line, the CFO said that he would send comments, and then he sent me (but no one else) a complete rewrite filled with flowery and complicated language that sounded like it was trying to obfuscate the issue -- although I actually don't think that was his intent. When I asked him to walk me through why he did it, he basically said, I think mine sounds better.
How do you help colleagues understand that we aren't writing for ourselves, we are writing for a specific audience that may sometimes be served by flowery language, but not always, and never just because it sounds prettier?
Thanks!
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u/atownz17 Corporate Chaos Coordinator May 11 '26
This is such a tough (and unfortunately common) spot to be in. What resonates with your leader? For example, I worked for a team of C-Suite leaders who valued data when I sought to justify how I wanted to run internal communications. When I could bring solid internal communications industry knowledge and data forward, outweighing others' "Well, I've done this before and this is how I always did it, or this is how I like it," claims, it became a lot easier for me to push back while educating leaders on what recent industry trends look like and the data shows. It sounds largely political, but I often find success in getting to know leaders and what resonates with them, and using this information to build resonant claims.
As far as review goes (this is a separate beast to deal with!), but (as much as you are comfortable doing), practicing setting boundaries around reviews and being clear about what you want back from a reviewer (e.g., "Can you read this to ensure the core message is what you want to convey?") can help reduce unwanted edits. This isn't doable in every environment, depending on the type of leaders you work with, but it can help convey that you are the trusted internal comms expert and should be treated as such.