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The importance of an internal comms plan in today’s landscape
Effective internal communications have long been the backbone of enterprise productivity – connecting global teams and ensuring every employee is engaged with the company's vision. But in recent times, their value has increased significantly, and this is largely down to the changing business environment.
At a time of unprecedented change, being able to pivot and adapt is a non-negotiable. But many enterprises – particularly those with large, dispersed, and global workforces – find it difficult to enact the necessary changes at speed. The sheer size and scale of the workforce can slow down information flows and stall decision-making.
For example, Unily’s research of frontline workers showed that on average, it takes 4.5 days for them to receive important information – part of a critical internal comms crisis that’s costing enterprises over $80 billion a year.
In aviation, only 21% of frontline staff receive critical company updates within a day, resulting in millions of hours lost annually. This organizational lethargy creates productivity sinkholes, compliance gaps, and operational risks that C-Suite leaders cannot afford – making strong internal comms a critical success factor.
Disconnected and disengaged:
The economic cost of frontline friction
Why every organization needs a robust internal communications plan
High-performing organizations understand that clear, purposeful communication is key to sustaining momentum and driving performance. An internal communications plan enables leadership to identify priorities, build trust, and engage every segment of the workforce.
By having a well-structured communication strategies, there are many benefits you’ll see. These include:
Accelerated change management
Well-structured communication helps employees understand not only what’s changing, but why change is necessary and how it will impact them. By addressing potential concerns proactively and providing clear guidance at each stage, leaders reduce uncertainty and resistance. This accelerates adoption of new processes, or technologies.
Enhanced employee engagement and satisfaction
Having an internal comms plan that includes consistent, transparent and two-way communication makes employees feel that their voices matter. As a result, these employees are likely to have a greater sense of job satisfaction – improving all-important retention metrics.
Eliminating productivity bottlenecks
Communication breakdowns – whether through unclear direction, conflicting messages, or information silos – slow down execution and create frustration. A robust communications plan establishes structured pathways for sharing updates, decisions, and resources. This reduces confusion and empowers teams to focus their energy on productive work rather than constantly seeking clarity.
Meeting compliance requirements
Things such as safety protocols, industry regulations and company policies must be communicated accurately across the organization. A disciplined comms plan ensures employees receive this critical information in the right format, at the right time. This reduces legal and operational risks while strengthening accountability.
Aligning teams behind key business goals
When leadership articulates goals clearly and reinforces them through multiple channels, employees can see how their individual contributions ladder up to organizational success. This alignment fosters a shared sense of purpose and links day-to-day work with long-term strategy. This ultimately leads to more cohesion and measurable progress toward core business objectives.
Ultimately, a strong internal communications plan creates the conditions for agility, resilience, and trust – equipping organizations to both manage day-to-day operations and to grow in the long run.
Key elements of a strategic internal communications plan
To meet the needs of large, complex enterprises, an internal communications plan should include some key pillars.
Situation analysis
Before building or refining a plan, leaders must establish a clear picture of the current communications landscape. This includes identifying existing strengths, gaps, and pain points, while capturing feedback from all stakeholder groups – executives, managers, frontline staff, contractors, and support functions. A comprehensive analysis helps uncover misalignments, duplication of effort, or areas where critical information is not reaching the right audiences.
Audience segmentation
Enterprises are made up of different employee communities. This includes different working locations and shift patterns, as well as cultural differences. Mapping these groups and understanding their roles, information needs, and preferred communication styles ensures that messages are relevant to each individual.
Goal setting
An effective communications plan ties directly into the organization’s broader strategy. Goals should be specific, measurable, and outcome-oriented. Examples include accelerating adoption of digital transformation initiatives, increasing retention, or reducing compliance-related risks. Clear objectives create alignment across leadership and allow communications teams to demonstrate their contribution to business success.
Channel selection
Enterprises typically operate across multiple geographies, time zones, and working environments, so a one-size-fits-all approach won’t work. A strong plan identifies the optimal mix of channels – from digital signage to mobile apps – to ensure best results. It’s worth using your intranet or employee experience platform as a big part of the mix, as the best ones are able to reach every part of the workforce.
Messaging framework
Clarity and consistency are essential. A messaging framework ensures that core messages are clearly articulated, tailored to the right audience, and delivered at the right time. This framework should balance enterprise-wide priorities with localized relevance, so messages resonate for everyone. It also provides guidance on things like tone and storytelling, which is a key part of internal communications.
Feedback loops
Communication must be two-way to be effective. Enterprises should build structured mechanisms for employees to share feedback, raise concerns, and contribute ideas. This includes pulse surveys, focus groups, internal social platforms, and digital listening tools. A strong feedback loop not only enhances engagement but also allows leadership to get real-time insights from the people delivering on their strategy.
Measurement and analytics
Without measurement, communications can’t be optimized. Establishing KPIs – such as message reach, engagement rates, and time-to-impact – provides visibility into effectiveness. Data-driven insights enable communications teams to refine tactics and demonstrate ROI. This emphasizes the role of communications as a strategic driver of performance rather than a support function.
Governance
Large enterprises require discipline in how communications are created, shared, and managed. A governance structure defines responsibilities while also outlining policies for content approval, brand standards, and usage of communication platforms. Clear escalation protocols for crisis communications are also critical, ensuring the organization can respond quickly and accurately in high-pressure situations.
Impactful internal communications examples
With over 20 years of experience, Unily has seen some fantastic best-in-class examples of internal communications from enterprises. Here are some which may help you when putting together your own strategy.
British Airways
British Airways needed to unite a dispersed workforce of frontline and office-based employees – while having a more agile approach to communications in the turbulent airline industry. After a transformation program, BA not only improved day-to-day engagement but also gained the agility to respond to unexpected disruption. For example, during the 2025 Heathrow outage, communications teams were able to deliver critical updates in real time. Executives, meanwhile, began using AI-powered reporting to track workforce sentiment and sharpen leadership messaging.
Download The British Airways Case Study
Flight Centre
Flight Centre needed to empower frontline workers – across multiple brands – with fast and relevant information, so they can deliver exceptional customer experiences. By unifying communications into a single hub, the business has given employees the tools to act with confidence. As a result, Flight Centre now has a scalable, multi-brand communications strategy that equips staff to respond quickly and consistently, even in moments of disruption.
Download The Flight Centre Case Study
Boston Beer Company
With many sales workers in the field, Boston Beer Company wanted to make critical information, while streamlining business processes. By launching Brew Hub, the company created clarity of messaging and connected field reps, brewery teams, and HQ in one digital workspace. The hub quickly achieved 92% adoption among the sales team and delivered “the most streamlined Annual Business Planning process” in company history.
Download The Boston Beer
Case Study
Transforming internal communication plans to action: The power of intranets
Internal communications plans require execution at scale. Here’s how a modern intranet or employee experience platform can help.
- Centralized, secure hub: An EXP is a source of truth for policies, protocols, real-time updates, and critical documentation.
- Consumer-grade mobile experience: Native employee apps deliver content and messages directly to frontline employees – without reliance on email addresses or legacy logins.
- Integrations: By seamlessly integrating with HR, IT, and productivity apps, friction is reduced and daily workflows are accelerated, having a tangible impact on productivity.
- Rich analytics: Real-time dashboards let IC leaders validate message reach and impact for ongoing optimization.
- Scalable personalization: Content personalization enables teams to target messaging by location, role, language, and more – ensuring relevance and engagement.
Internal communications plan template
Looking to get a head start? Download our professional internal communications plan template here:
Download our internal communications plan template
Internal comms plans: A blueprint for enterprise agility
For large and complex enterprises, communication becomes the connective tissue that holds transformation, culture, and performance together. It therefore means your internal communications plan takes on a huge amount of value.
It’s important to note that it’s more than a tactical document. It’s a strategic enabler for enterprise success. By establishing clear objectives, aligning messages with business goals, segmenting audiences, and leveraging the right mix of channels, IC leaders can unlock the collective intelligence of their organization.
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