Members Click Here for Additional Tools
Get Instant Access to 200+ Cheat Sheets, Videos, and Other Immediately Usable Tools for Busy Managers – Try Out a Wily Manager Membership Today!
You should never hesitate to initiate a communication plan even if you are a lower-level manager. Think about it – if your organization is undergoing a significant change but has not communicated it well, you can still create a communication plan for your direct reports so that they have a better idea of what is going on.
The techniques of effective communication are not difficult, but require discipline to execute. A written communication plan will assist in establishing and maintaining the required discipline. In some cases, a communications plan can be written on one sheet of paper. In other circumstances, the plan may be significantly longer.
This topic bundle is intended to assist managers when they have a specific event or decision to communicate. Ongoing communication between organizations and employees is better covered in the Communicating for Results Cheat Sheet (coming soon).
Elements of a Good Communication Plan:
- Guiding Principles – What are the parameters under which this communication will take place?
- Context – What events or conditions staged the necessity for this communication? What definitions and terms of reference are there?
- Purpose or Objectives – What is the communication intended to achieve?
- Risk Analysis – What could go wrong with this communication? What happens if you don’t do it?
- Stakeholders Analysis – Who are all concerned parties, and what is the importance of each of them?
- Targeting – How will you most effectively reach each stakeholder?
- Media – What is the most effective method of communication for each stakeholder?
- Budget – What budgetary and other resources will be required to effectively roll out the message?
- Assessment – How will you know if the communicationsplan has been successful?
Tips to build an effective communication plan:
- Consider an effective communication campaign to be very similar to a marketing initiative.
- Use electronic media such as email and website. These are usually inexpensive, and can be highly effective
- Always target your audience properly, and remember that the same message can be communicated differently to different target groups
- Only ask people for their opinions or feedback if you are prepared to consider their input
- Prepare an ‘elevator speech’ for what you are communicating. Be prepared to condense your message into small, easy to understand segments
- When soliciting feedback or two-way communication, ensure there is media available to support this. It is not enough to say, “We’d like to hear from you”; there must be infrastructure in place to gather opinions
- Be very clear on exactly what action, or change in behaviors the communication is intended to address
Get the Complete ‘How to Build a Communication Plan’ Topic Bundle
The How to Build a Communication Plan topic bundle includes:
- How to Build a Communication Plan Cheat Sheet (pdf)
- How to Build a Communication Plan Booklet (pdf) containing:
- In-Depth Topic Overview
- When to Create a Communication Plan
- 9 Critical Elements of a Communication Plan
- Communication Plan Template
- Example of a Communication Plan for an Organizational Change
- Media Decision Worksheet
-
Recommended Resources – where to find out even more about How to Build a Communication Plan
- Easy-print versions of the tools contained in the How to Build a Communication Plan Booklet (pdf)
- How to Build a Communication Plan Podcast (mp3)
- How to Build a Communication Plan Podcast Slides (Powerpoint)
Get instant access to the complete ‘How to Build a Communication Plan’ Topic Bundle…
