How can you hold your Internal Communications team accountable?

You can't hold a team accountable for anything. They can and should share a deep responsibility for the results and outcomes but true accountability can only be assigned to an individual, never a group. A team needs both for sure. But they are not interchangable.

Technically, all is said in this paragraph. Yet in order to have a good internal communication, it needs much more. one of the most important things is sharing the passion for creating identity within the company, creating an understanding for the values and purpose of the company, translating the business strategy into day-to-day communication. If you have done this, you can break it down into roles, functions, outcomes.

According to Dr. Cialdini principle of influence to keep people accountable one of the best exercises is to speak out about one's own goals in front of the team. By doing so, you make the team member more accountable to perform them!

Agreed! In my experience leading a team, clarity, regular check-ins, and a bit of cheer go a long way. It all starts with clear expectations—everyone should know their role. Regular catch-ups keep everyone aligned and on track. Friendly feedback is key—it's about growth and fine-tuning our approach. Celebrating small wins keeps morale high. For me, accountability is about building a culture where we're all working together towards the same goal, with a positive vibe.

By aligning all of your internal communication projects and deliverables to broader business goals and objectives, you'll naturally introduce more accountability. It will also make it easier for the IC team to see more tangible links with what they're working on and business outcomes. Of course, all good team management skills and principles should also be applied. These include project kick-offs, check-ins and reviews. It's well worth considering applying 'agile' working methodologies too.

Communications both internal and external are very subjective from the receivers perspective. Even if someone has written a brilliant copy, or a message, people would eventually have an opinion. For non communication folks, the next time you engage with a comms person, make sure you express your thoughts in quantifiable and structured manner. Avoid giving feedback like ‘It doesn’t sound good.’ For IC folks make sure you ask for feedback but manage it in a way that you aren’t overwhelmed. In short, speak to one another :)

Make it the norm to give open, constructive and honest feedback. Encourage your whole team to take this approach. As leaders, managers and the wider employees are all stakeholders, it's also best practice to also encourage and ask for feedback from all stakeholders. As long as it's constructive it will help the improve team and individual accountability and performance.

The first step to holding your IC team accountable is to define clear expectations for their roles, responsibilities, and outcomes. You should communicate what you expect from them in terms of quality, quantity, timeliness, and alignment with the organizational vision and values. You should also set SMART (specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and time-bound) objectives and key results (OKRs) that align with the overall IC strategy and reflect the needs and feedback of your internal stakeholders. By defining clear expectations, you can help your IC team understand what success looks like and how they can contribute to it.

Dê insumos para a pessoa liderada dar feedbacks dentro do que é esperado pelos valores culturais da empresa e pensando nos objetivos que o negócio tem traçado naquele momento. Um feedback construtivo, com bons argumentos e pautados nessas premissas evitam interpretações erradas.

In my experience empowering your team members to ask for feedback is key. There are multiple users and customers to gain perspective and enrich future communication outcomes. You as a leader are not the only source of truth. Help them to get out and also compare their job to their colleagues outside the company too.

I agree with all contributions around this accountability issue, I still feel that the missing clue is networking, mingling, being part of the organization. Of course there must be a strategy, purposes, feedback, metrics, everything exposed here, but to produce meaningful, valuable content for different teams, it is mandatory to be aware of the organization's interests: the 'talk of the town', even gossip or grapevine, formal and informal leaderships, connections. The IC team mus be empowered to be 'organization smart' and be sensitive of people's needs and wants. Internal Communication is a system, a flow, a complex rhizome that must catch attention and interest so it really delivers the company's message.

Collecting our team members opinion in how to improve and simplify our processes is a refreshing way to maintain the engagement and to develop accountability. Make room for simplification and to explore, experiment and test with new tools periodically.

I agree that learn How to be confident its the most important point. Show and speak. Yes, you can do this job, o choose you because you até the most prepare person to do this happen. The world i'll show the people can't do somethin, but the leaders do the empowerful.

Empowered team members not only work better, but also boost the rhythm of initiatives and deployment. With clear expectations and the right tools among a trusting environment, people can be more "actionable" and contribute seamlessly.

Have your team members mix-and-mingle constantly. Water-cooler speak is a lost art form. Have your team members visit other offices/departments/public spaces daily and have conversations with other staff about what's going on and how messages are being received. Having these conversations show proactivity and remove the ideas of "eaves-dropping" or "spying".

Accountability is often viewed as a negative concept. Something goes wrong and you get the blame. Mature organizations also focus on the positive. Reward those accountable for great results.

Schedule a meeting for fun... but tell no one it's just for fun! When participants arrive, have a game prepared (it can be something focused on a challenge to overcome, or even something like "company trivia") or snacks and a film/show... Something that reflects your teams recent accomplishments or motivates them to confront an upcoming challenge.

Leading by example will hold the key. Leaders must demonstrate the values of transparency, punctuality, and responsiveness they expect to see in their teams. By setting the standard, leaders establish a culture where speed and regular updates are the norm. A culture of active listening bolsters accountability in communication. Leaders must foster an environment where feedback is sought and valued, and team members feel comfortable voicing their ideas and concerns. This two-way communication loop ensures that the internal communications team is accountable for sending messages and addressing the responses to those messages.

Leading by example, is the key stone for leaders that want to have a great team. There is a famous line always seen in the internet, that says something like - in literal translation -: "The words convinces, but the example drag", that meaning something like "walk the talk". I really believe that's is a great way to have a great team.

Man Management... is the most difficult subject as I have experienced. one of the best tools to handle your team is to be a Leader and of course, Senior Managers should become role models of their organization.

Leading by example its based first in how to managenment people, how building relationship based on respect e empaty. Most people think tha most importante thing is technical knowledge, but soft skills still os most habilitei that we have to know to show How be a example people. Always take people and do to people.

Value your team's contributions and the mix of perspectives, ideas, approaches they bring to the table. Teams become cohesive because they are a valued voice in the planning and execution of tasks. A good leader understands how to nurture untapped talents and how to leverage the existing ones to have dynamic results that everyone can buy into.

In the dynamic landscape of communication, the success of your IC strategy is pivotal for fostering a resilient & engaged workforce. Here's a guide to ensure your team accountable 1. Define Clear Objectives 2. Measure What Matters 3. Regular Performance Reviews 4. Embrace Technology 5. Foster a Culture of Innovation 6. Alignment with Organizational Values Holding your Internal Communications team accountable is not just a managerial duty but a collective effort to elevate the entire organization. By setting clear objectives, measuring impact, providing regular feedback, embracing technology, fostering innovation, and aligning with organizational values, you empower your team to be not just communicators but catalysts for positive change.

GlasgowGPT perspective: 1. Clear Objectives: Set clear goals and expectations. Give them targets tae aim fur, or they'll wander like a lost tourist in the Barras. 2. Regular Feedback: Provide regular feedback, none ae that once-a-year pish. Let them know whit's workin' and whit's abysmal. 3. Performance Metrics: Track key metrics, like engagement, reach, and feedback. Numbers dinnae lie, ken. Hold their feet tae the fire, mate. Accountability keeps everyone on their toes, like a dancer in a ceilidh

A pain point across many IC teams is that senior leadership often don't view them as strategic partners. Exec expectations aren't aligned with reality or the current process, measurement isn't fully understood and recognition for all that the role requires is rarely given. Successful IC teams are brought in from the start, seen as strategic council and their opinions are valued/trusted.