In a world spinning ever faster amid constant change, breaking news and evergreen uncertainty, it’s on communicators to go beyond serving as the mindful messenger and ensure a culture of communication exists among all stakeholders across the business, too.

Employees want, and expect, companies to speak out about significant world events. They also need to know their leaders are authentically connected and understand how current events are affecting them. And certainly, as this Brunswick article argues, the companies that do not have a plan for speaking up will be left in the dust.

Are we in a recession?

Already companies ranging from 7-Eleven and Walmart to Netflix and JPMorgan are letting employees go. Even if you’re not losing your job, you’re seeing those pandemic-induced pay hikes eaten up by inflation. Whether we’re in a recession or not, many employees are anxious about their livelihood, which is tied to the company.

Once upon a time, it was enough to have an e-mail address. Then, you needed a social media handle. Now that most of us have gone multi-platform, our profiles are silently screaming to be noticed amidst all of the other thought leaders, artists, influencers, and career professionals out there. Creating a bio for billions to see can seem overwhelming, but a well-crafted, strong bio can tell an amazing story for everyone who reads it.

While the idea that the most successful brands have a clearly defined purpose may seem obvious now, the concept was not always so widely understood.

For a couple of straight lines, hyphens, em dashes and en dashes can be surprisingly tricky to use. But they’re a critical tool for any writer, especially if you’re hoping to add drama or connect thoughts together.

Most communicators working on diversity, equity and inclusion (DE&I) initiatives understand that it starts with benchmarks, as an organization can’t make progress when it doesn’t know where to start.

Did you know internal communicators have a super power? It’s that people trust them and the information they share. It’s true, and this fact puts the role of internal communicators as the new influencers in the spotlight. And just like Thor’s hammer has the power of lightning, IC professionals now have power and influence as trusted advisors to leadership.

According to the Deloitte Global 2022 Gen Z and Millennial Survey, an employee’s level of satisfaction with their company’s commitment to societal impact, sustainability and diversity and inclusion can directly impact their loyalty to the organization.

When watching a soap opera, be it “The Young & Restless” or “General Hospital,” you can return to the show seven months later and it’s like you’ve never stopped watching. The characters are mostly the same and the plot has hardly changed. It’s predictable, comfortable, easy to follow, a little bit exciting — but nothing earth-shattering.

Colleagues occasionally refer to a harmoniously executed collaboration as “making beautiful music together,” but rarely does the metaphor extend to leadership. That’s why speaker, bassist and leadership coach Michael Gold, PhD, founded Jazz Impact, through which he delivers music-based learning programs focused on building collaborative skills that are essential for innovative organizations.

As companies grapple with learning how best to boost employee retention, one tactic often goes unnoticed: learning and development.

A recent LinkedIn Learning blog post notes that L&D can drive employee engagement, which then leads to higher retention rates. And the first step in a comprehensive L&D program is an early career development initiative.

If orange is the new black, and fifty is the new forty, doing more with less is the new work normal. Expectations are up, resources are down. This seems universally applicable to communicators regardless of where they reside: company, nonprofit, government, or agency. Employees leave, positions aren’t rehired and the work simply shifts to remaining staff. Work responsibilities significantly increase (congratulations) without adding people or funds (uh oh). Communicators are expected to wear not just many hats but every hat, and to wear them all happily without a hint of resistance.

We’re busy. No one has time to read lots of words when a few will do.

Before you write anything for clients or employers, ask what style or tone they want – formal, informal, polite, provocative? Whatever terms work for you. They may not know, but it’s better to inquire. And if they don’t know, you’ll likely have greater license to share your expertise.

Feel like you’re stuck in a rut with your internal comms strategy? Maybe like you need to shake it off?

Or perhaps you’re bored with the day-to-day of your position, feeling like you know your work all too well.

As communicators seek to engage dispersed workforces and help culture thrive, they must figure out a strategic mix of content, channels and cadence to consider how they ensure messages reach all employees.

A comprehensive internal communications strategy requires you to have the necessary tools to reach and engage your employees. Commonly referred to as a “tech stack,” a term used by developers to describe a collection of programs used to design an application or platform, an internal communicator’s stack pieces of software can help reach employees and measure messaging efforts. These measurement features are an invaluable resource when you are looking to prove the efficacy of your messaging strategies to C-suite members and other high-level executives.

Avoid rainbow washing, celebrate intersectionality and more.

PR professionals have been looking for a plug-and-play measurement panacea for decades. That’s a problem, according to Katie Paine, founder of KD Paine Partners.