Four years ago, we did some research into remote and non-desk based workers. The research resulted in the Remotely interested? report. Working with SocialOptic, we explored why remote workers or non-desk based workers were cited as one of the biggest barriers to effective internal communication*, and why it wasn’t being made a priority. The findings …
In this article for HR Director, Jenni discusses what it takes to lead in an agile organisation. She shares the trademarks of agile organisations and why operating in an agile environment isn’t easy. The article also covers the three key leadership traits essential to being agile: adaptability, humour, and a sense of hopeful equanimity. First …
What does it take to lead in an agile organisation? Read More »
In this exclusive article for members of the Strategic community, Lucy Kemp – our employee experience expert – talks about the top three priorities for employees in the workplace for 2023. The article also looks at why employees stay or leave an organisation, what senior leadership teams can do to ensure their teams have a …
Create a high-performing organisation with positive employee experience Read More »
When people ask me what I do, the question that almost always follows is: “But what on earth is employee experience?!” Employee experience (or EX) has been defined as: “What people encounter and observe over the course of their tenure at an organization.” Culture Amp While others say it’s: “The way in which employees internalize …
This is a great question. And at the heart of the answer is the need to understand a bit more about motivation. There are lots of different theories about motivation, but first we need to understand the three pillars of intrinsic motivation. When we are intrinsically motivated, we complete an activity for its inherent satisfaction, …
How can we get people to step up, take responsibility and get shit done? Read More »
In this article for Forbes, Jenni Field asks whether leaders have been so focused on employee engagement that it’s become an unhelpful diversion for the internal communication function. Jenni picks up on a theme that she’s increasingly seeing – the confusion between employee engagement and internal communication. The article looks at the difference between internal …
Why we need to stop confusing employee engagement and internal communication Read More »
In this exclusive to subscribers article for Kogan Page, Jenni Field looks at how to get started when it comes to measuring the effectiveness of internal communication and how to translate your data into business results. We want to be more collaborative. We want to align people to strategy. We want engaged and motivated teams. …
Measuring the effectiveness of internal communication Read More »
One of the most used phrases of 2021 and 2022 has been the Great Resignation. Despite some people thinking that this is a myth (myself included… a crisis will always escalate an existing trend), there is still a huge concern about the unmet need for talent. This has caused a big power shift inside organisations, …
What model should I use for internal communication? It’s a question we get asked a lot – we all love a model or a framework to follow! Particularly when we’re navigating complex waters – as so many leaders and communicators are. I outline my model in the first chapter of my book, Influential Internal …
A model for internal communication strategy and planning Read More »
Internal communication audits can be hugely helpful in exploring how you change your internal communication channel mix. This is about looking at how people receive the information they need, the information they want and, importantly, how they share their feedback and views. A communications audit will tell you where there are issues with communicating at …
How a communication audit can help you be less chaotic Read More »
In a recent podcast episode, I talked about how to manage stakeholders. A stakeholder is someone who has an interest in the organisation. Stakeholders are directly related to what the company does, and they include employees, leaders, departments and teams. If we look externally, stakeholders can include suppliers, customers or investors. It’s important to manage …
As part of our Reality check research into the issues and chaos affecting their organisations and teams, we gave respondents the opportunity to ask us anything. It was interesting to see how many relate to leadership. Topics included how to: There were so many interesting questions, which I answered personally for each respondent, and I …
Ask me anything: solving communication, leadership and organisational chaos Read More »
We help clients work out the root cause behind issues that are impacting efficiency and employee engagement. This can often be big-ticket items like mergers and acquisitions, rapid growth or leadership behaviour, and it can also be during business transformation. Earlier this year we asked our community about the issues and chaos affecting their organisations …
Reality check – what’s really causing chaos in organisations? Read More »
In this article for Strategic, Jenni Field talks about growth, how chaos can occur during periods of organisational growth and how to overcome the challenges. The article includes some practical tips for improving your communication and team relationships when navigating periods of organisational growth. “With rapid growth – whatever the size of the organisation – …
Growth is great… so why does it feel so difficult? Read More »
Train operator, Greater Anglia, needed help with its internal communications strategy. The communications team felt they weren’t being brought into conversations with the senior team early enough and wanted to bring a fresh injection of innovation to their work. Understand, diagnose and fix With so many changes taking place in the industry, Greater Anglia wanted …
I’ve realised that I find inspiration in almost everything. From Chicago Fire on Netflix to the way products are packaged as gifts for Christmas. It reminds me of the film Love Actually. In the opening narration, Hugh Grant says: “Whenever I get gloomy with the state of the world, I think about the arrivals gate …
Inspiring Goodies – Chicago Fire, The Great Indoors and letting inspiration flow Read More »
How has your year been? Productive with a touch of chaos? Or challenging with some key milestones reached? Perhaps a bit of a mixture! Every year – however my year has gone – I love to reflect on what’s happened, what I’ve learnt and what I have planned for the following year. For me, 2021 …
A time to reflect – a year of variety, insights and community Read More »
In this Communication Strategy That Works podcast episode, Jenni talks to Emma Drake about strategic internal communication and how to go from chaos to calm. In this episode you’ll learn: When is the best time to think about strategic internal communication support as part of your team Where it sits in a growing business How …
If you’re a CEO or senior leader, you’ll understand this feeling… you know something’s wrong but you’re not quite sure why. It might be affecting a specific team, a function, or the whole organisation. That niggling feeling is what we call the symptoms of chaos. Everything feels a bit muddled, chaotic and people seem to …
Why we need to understand symptoms versus root cause Read More »
Back in 2017, we started working with Evolution Project to take founder, James Llewellyn, and his team through The Field Model™ to address symptoms of chaos they were experiencing. Understand, diagnose and fix The Evolution Project is a successful small business providing fitness coaching and nutrition advice. However, several issues needed addressing as they had …
When my book, Influential Internal Communication, launched in April this year, we were guided by COVID-19 restrictions and I was unable to hold an in-person book launch. Instead, I chatted online to like-minded professionals through Zoom and Instagram Live and answered some burning questions. But – as you know – writing a book isn’t an …
It’s becoming increasingly hard to focus our attention. We live in a noisy world; one that makes us feel like we need to keep up with the latest news, messages, posts or podcasts. Are you suffering from noise pollution? A few years ago, I read Notes on a Nervous Planet by Matt Haig. One section …
Why you need to invest in your communication skills to stay focused and productive Read More »
Internal Comms Pro podcast – in honour of International Women’s Day, this podcast is with Jenni and her good friends, Advita Patel and Trudy Lewis. You’ll learn how we have risen to the challenge to raise awareness against bias, and lead others to drive change. We share how our friendship played a key role in …
New research into the role of line managers! Line managers matter; they hold the key to many challenges inside organisations. They are one of the key elements to effective internal communication and an important part of The Field Model™ approach. We understand the importance of line managers from our Remotely Interested research back in 2019. Now it’s time to understand …
I have been listening to and reading The Fearless Organization by Amy Edmondson. It’s a book that was recommended to me by Dr Kevin Ruck, co-founder of the PR Academy, and one I have advocated since I started it. Grounded in research and insight, the book covers everything you need to know about the importance of psychological safety …
Psychological safety and trust are not the same thing Read More »
I talk a lot about productivity, setting boundaries and managing attention. In the last six months I have seen a huge increase in a sense of competitiveness over how ‘busy’ we all are. For those that have listened to the productivity episode on the podcast I co-host with Trudy Lewis and Advita Patel, you’ll know that I …
Why competitive busyness is toxic for you and others around you Read More »
In my blog, What is The Field Model™? I talk about the three elements of our model: Understand – Diagnose – Fix. In this blog, I’m going to look at the final stage – the fix. A lot of people are natural fixers at work and in their personal lives. Many of us don’t like …
As a mental resilience trainer, John Humphreys’ goal is to help people learn the art of resilience. John is part of the Redefining Communications collective and, in this long read, he answers some frequently asked questions related to mental resilience. What is mental resilience? Firstly, let’s look at the dictionary definitions of both words: Mental …
STRATEGIC editor-in-chief Orla Clancy enjoyed a virtual coffee with Jenni Field about how she achieves greater productivity by setting boundaries, a work style that she started as an employee and continues as a business owner. Jenni talks about how internal communications is a privileged position, impacting every part of the organisation. Winter 2020, pages 15-17. Jenni shares her …
From chaos to calm: putting people first with internal communications Read More »
Inspiring Change podcast – In a year of change, Jenni discussed the role of purpose, the importance of human connections at work and how to diagnose issues to fix them for the long term. Chatting to Scott McInnes, Jenni talks about the importance of internal communication and why it’s such an important role in organisations. …
Internal Miscommunications podcast – Jenni talks about how moments of miscommunications in her past triggered chaos, what she learned from those experiences and how she moved forward with a bright vision for her future. Interviewed by Erica Goodwin and Keith Riley, there is a lot of laughter and some terrible spelling! Listen now
The Internal Comms Podcast – In this episode, Jenni and Katie consider the need for businesses to adapt amid the global coronavirus pandemic, the role of membership organisations in the current climate, and improving diversity and inclusion through education and action, among other topics. Listen now
This week I took part in a webinar with Dynamic Signal to talk about how we need to consider the rhythm of work after the crisis. We talked about the need for business as usual, about new ways to use technology, and the fact that this has forced digital transformation upon us. There was lots of great content …
How to recapture your work rhythm during and after a crisis Read More »
StreamGO podcast – This episode takes a close look at research conducted by Jenni: Remotely Interested, to discover why non-desk based workers are one of the biggest barriers to effective internal communications. Listen now
The Internal Comms Podcast – Jenni discusses Gatehouse’s State of Sector findings and the recently released – Edelman Trust Barometer, which found people put more trust in ‘my employer’ than NGOs, business, or the media. Listen now
In this Multi-Site Masters podcast, Jenni talks to Lee Sheldon, co-founder of Mastering Multi Units and provides insights as to what an internal communications department should be doing to improve the quality and frequency of the communication within the organisation, as well as sharing her experience regarding the diverse ranges of tools, platforms and apps …
How do you achieve great communication in a multi-site organisation? Read More »
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