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Introduction: The Evolving Role of Internal Comms in Change
Change is no longer an exception in today’s organisations – it’s the norm. Whether it’s mergers and acquisitions, digital transformation initiatives, cost-saving restructures, or cultural shifts to meet evolving workforce expectations, change is a continuous process. For internal communications (IC) professionals, this constant flux presents both a challenge and an opportunity.
The opportunity lies in becoming a strategic driver of change from within – ensuring that employees are informed, engaged and empowered to act. But that’s easier said than done. In many organisations, the IC function is still under-leveraged or pulled in too late, left to translate complex strategies into communications on tight deadlines, with limited access to decision-makers.
In this post, we explore why change communications remains one of the most complex aspects of internal communications. We’ll look at how expectations are shifting, what best-in-class organisations are doing differently and what strategies you can adopt to lead through change with clarity and confidence.
The Realities of Change Communications in Large Organisations
At its core, change communication is about building trust and reducing uncertainty. But that’s a tall order – especially within large, complex and often siloed organisations. Let’s unpack four of the most common barriers comms teams face during change initiatives.
1. Late Involvement of Comms Teams
Many internal comms professionals can relate to the all-too-familiar scenario: you’re handed a deck of strategic slides on a Thursday and asked to launch comms by Monday. With minimal background and no involvement in the planning stages, you’re expected to transform dense, jargon-filled content into clear, motivational messages.
This reactive approach not only sets comms teams up to fail – it diminishes the value of change communications itself. When change communications are an afterthought, the result is often inconsistent, last-minute messaging that creates confusion instead of alignment.
What’s needed: Early involvement in planning, with comms leaders seated at the decision-making table alongside HR, legal and strategy teams.
2. Conflicting Stakeholder Expectations
Large organisations involve multiple voices – senior leadership, HR, compliance, regional leaders, department heads – all of whom may have their own messaging priorities. Comms teams are left to reconcile these differing views while preserving message clarity and cohesion in change communications.
In practice, this can lead to conflicting messages being circulated to different audiences, or worse, multiple versions of the “truth.” Employees begin to question the credibility of updates, and trust in leadership erodes.
What’s needed: Strong editorial governance and clear escalation paths for messaging conflicts, supported by a centralised source of truth to maintain consistency in change communications across the organisation.
3. Siloed Operations and Tools
When communications are managed across spreadsheets, slide decks, email threads and generic project management tools, coordination becomes a nightmare. It’s easy for key dates to be missed, content to be duplicated, or campaigns to clash with one another.
These challenges are exacerbated in organisations with global footprints or matrixed teams. Without a unified platform, comms teams spend more time managing logistics than driving strategy.
What’s needed: A dedicated internal comms platform that integrates planning, approvals, content creation and performance tracking – providing a clear view of what’s happening, when and where.
4. Difficulty Demonstrating ROI
Despite growing awareness of IC’s role in successful transformation, many teams still struggle to prove their value. According to ContactMonkey’s Global State of Internal Communications 2023 report, 72% of internal communicators consider measurement their biggest challenge.
Without data, it’s hard to know what’s working, what needs adjustment and how to advocate for additional resources. This is especially true for change communications, where the stakes are higher and the outcomes harder to quantify. Worse, it makes internal comms seem like a “nice to have” rather than a must-have.
What’s needed: A shift toward measuring engagement, sentiment and behavioural impact – not just content delivery.
A Shift in Mindset: From Broadcast to Conversation
The last decade has seen a fundamental shift in the way organisations approach change communications. The old “top-down” model – where information was pushed out from leadership with little room for response – is being replaced by a more human, responsive model.
From “Telling” to “Listening”
Traditional change communications relied heavily on corporate memos, newsletters and all-hands meetings. Today, those tools still have a place – but they’re no longer enough. Employees want to be heard, not just informed. The best IC strategies now prioritise listening: town halls with live Q&A, anonymous surveys, internal social channels and feedback loops.
Example: Some companies run “Ask Me Anything” (AMA) sessions with senior leaders during change, enabling employees to ask candid questions and receive direct answers.
From “Information Delivery” to “Emotional Connection”
Facts and figures don’t drive behavior. Stories, emotions and relevance do. Effective change comms addresses not just what is happening – but why it matters and how it will impact employees personally.
Example: Instead of announcing a new system with a technical brief, share stories from teams who piloted the change and benefited from it.
From “Event-Based” to “Ongoing Support”
One-and-done announcements don’t work in a world where change is iterative. The best organisations plan for long-term support: pre-announcement engagement, launch comms and regular reinforcement over time.
Example: A six-month transformation might be supported with a rolling content calendar of updates, video briefings, team huddles and storytelling campaigns.
Lessons from Global Companies Doing It Right
What can we learn from companies that have embraced modern change communications strategies? Here are three standout examples.
1. Unilever: Navigating Organisational Change with Strategic Communication
In response to evolving market dynamics and internal restructuring, Unilever emphasised transparent and strategic communication to guide its workforce through change. Key initiatives included:
- Clear Messaging: Developing concise and consistent messages to articulate the reasons for change and the envisioned future.
- Employee Engagement: Involving employees in the change process through feedback mechanisms and open forums.
- Community Support: Leveraging corporate social responsibility initiatives to reinforce company values during transitions.
These efforts aimed to foster resilience and maintain trust among employees during periods of uncertainty.
Why it Worked
Unilever’s approach was successful because it tackled both the emotional and informational needs of employees during a period of significant change. By combining clear, consistent messaging with open feedback channels, the company reduced uncertainty and gave employees a voice in the transformation process. Their use of community-focused initiatives also reinforced trust and corporate values, helping employees feel supported and aligned with the bigger picture.
- Values alignment: Linking change to CSR initiatives reminded employees what Unilever stands for, strengthening emotional buy-in.
- Trust-building: Transparent messaging and open dialogue built credibility and reduced resistance.
- Inclusion: Creating space for employee feedback made people feel heard and valued.
2. Microsoft: Enhancing Internal Communications with Microsoft Viva Amplify
To streamline internal communications and adapt to hybrid work environments, Microsoft implemented Viva Amplify, a platform designed to unify messaging across the organisation. This initiative focused on:
- Centralised Communication: Providing a single platform for planning, creating, and distributing internal messages.
- Employee Engagement: Utilising tools like Viva Engage to foster community and dialogue among employees.
- Feedback Integration: Incorporating employee feedback to refine communication strategies and tools.
This approach aimed to enhance clarity, reduce information silos and promote a more connected workforce.
Why it Worked:
Microsoft’s implementation of Viva Amplify succeeded because it addressed the core challenges of fragmented communication and information overload – common pain points in large, hybrid organisations. By centralising internal messaging into one platform, they ensured clarity, consistency and better alignment across departments.
- Clarity: A unified platform meant less noise and more focus on key priorities.
- Consistency: Streamlined messaging across teams and tools reduced confusion.
- Engagement: Viva Amplify empowered communicators with feedback mechanisms and analytics, improving message relevance and timing.
This approach shifted internal communications from scattered and reactive to strategic and data-informed – strengthening employee understanding and engagement.
3. HSBC: Implementing a Global Talent Marketplace to Drive Change
HSBC launched an AI-powered talent marketplace to promote internal mobility and skill development, aligning with its broader transformation goals. Key aspects of this initiative included:
- Skill-Based Opportunities: Matching employees with projects and roles based on their skills and career aspirations.
- Transparent Communication: Clearly articulating the purpose and benefits of the talent marketplace to encourage participation.
- Change Management: Providing training and resources to help employees navigate the new system and embrace the cultural shift.
This strategy aimed to empower employees, foster a culture of continuous learning, and support organizational agility.
Why it Worked
HSBC’s internal talent marketplace succeeded because it empowered employees to take ownership of their career paths during a period of organisational transformation. By transparently communicating the purpose and benefits of the platform – and backing it with supportive learning tools – the initiative reframed change as opportunity rather than disruption.
- Empowerment: Employees had access to new roles and projects that aligned with their skills and goals.
- Transparency: Clear comms around the “why” and “how” of the marketplace boosted trust and participation.
- Support: Role-based learning and accessible onboarding made adoption easier and reinforced HSBC’s investment in its people.
By aligning the talent platform rollout with strategic communication, HSBC fostered a sense of agency, adaptability and optimism across the workforce.
Building a Better Change Communications Strategy: A Five-Step Framework
Based on these examples and broader industry best practice, here’s a practical five-step framework to strengthen your change communications approach.
1. Get Involved Before the Messaging Starts
Don’t wait for an announcement to begin planning comms. Proactively build relationships with transformation leads, HR and compliance teams so you’re part of early conversations.
Action: Develop a “change readiness checklist” that outlines comms considerations during the strategy phase, such as messaging risks, audience impacts and channels.
2. Co-Create the Message
Avoid top-down, polished-only messaging. Involve key stakeholders – and even employee reps – in developing messages. This boosts authenticity and fosters buy-in.
Action: Host a narrative co-creation workshop with leaders, project sponsors and front-line representatives to align on tone, framing and key themes.
3. Segment and Personalise Content
Recognise that employees have different needs, concerns and ways of consuming information. A one-size-fits-all approach won’t resonate.
Action: Create internal personas (e.g., tech-savvy office workers vs. frontline retail staff) and use these to shape tone, format and frequency.
4. Use a Multichannel, Phased Rollout
Think beyond email. Use intranets, video, in-person briefings, digital signage and social tools like Viva Engage or Yammer. Phase messaging before, during and after key milestones.
Action: Build a 90-day content calendar per change initiative, planning pre-launch teasers, go-live support and follow-up reinforcement.
5. Measure, Learn, Adapt
Use both qualitative and quantitative tools to track message reach, understanding and sentiment. Then refine based on what you learn.
Action: Combine platform metrics (open rates, views, clicks) with pulse surveys and manager check-ins. Track not just “what they know” but “how they feel.”
10 Practical Tips to Strengthen Your Change Communications
- Involve comms early: Help shape change narratives, not just deliver them.
- Prioritise honesty: Be transparent about risks, timelines and what’s unknown.
- Use emotional storytelling: Anchor communications in values, people and real stories.
- Train your managers: They are your most trusted comms channel.
- Build in feedback loops: Listen actively and respond quickly.
- Leverage leadership visibility: Make execs more approachable and present.
- Centralise planning tools: Use dedicated platforms to align campaigns and avoid overlaps.
- Repeat and reinforce: Don’t assume one mention is enough.
- Celebrate small wins: Highlight progress to maintain morale and momentum.
- Always debrief: After each campaign, review and refine for the next one.
Final Thought: From Messenger to Strategist
Change communications is no longer about cascading memos. It’s about enabling transformation. As internal comms professionals, your role is to guide employees through uncertainty, build belief in the future, and ensure no one is left behind.
With the right strategy, tools and mindset, you can move from being a messenger to being a trusted partner in change – helping your organisation navigate the unknown with clarity, empathy and confidence.
Sources
Change doesn’t have to feel chaotic.
With the right tools and approach, internal comms can lead with clarity – not scramble to keep up. Explore how ICPlan helps comms teams manage change with less stress and more impact. Start a free 14 day trial today or book a call with us.
