How to improve internal communication on the frontline: 10 tips to win

New employee journey maps can take time to develop. But when adding more smiley faces isn’t enough, how do you get an employee journey map to work better for your organization? 

The concept of employee experience maps has been gaining traction as a way to boost employee engagement and improve your onboarding process. 

The template follows a pretty straightforward path from hiring, through training, and eventually exiting, but it’s the way you use these maps that makes them valuable. 

You know your workers will have training at a particular stage, but how helpful is it? Do you see an increase in turnover at any stage? These are the types of questions your employee journey maps should help you answer. 

Why use an employee journey map?

An employee journey map can be a helpful tool for improving the employee lifecycle. This concept visualizes the entire employee experience through your organization, from onboarding until their last day.

There are a few different ways to name each stage of the journey, but every employee experience map follows the same basic flow:

• Recruitment and hiring
• Onboarding
• Engaging and training
• Development
• Progress and performance
• Exit or offboarding 

These employee journey touchpoints describe the main stages a worker might be at within the company.

You can track the average time it takes to complete each step, assign different training and feedback for different stages, and look for patterns within your journey maps.

An employee journey map can help with engagement as you can better address the needs and concerns a worker will have by knowing where they stand in the organization. 

Making the most of this tool will help you actually get some use from it.

How to make a better employee experience journey map

Don’t worry. Not all good employee experience journey maps lead to Manchester. They just have to lead to happier workers. 

Whether you already use an employee journey map template or are just starting to look into the idea, there are some steps you can take to make your maps work better.

They are the following:

1. Create different maps for different roles. The map for a frontline manager will look different from a warehouse worker, with different training and onboarding for each position. Depending on your organization, you may need a few maps or a few dozen.
   
2. Analyze your employee journey maps and look for patterns. Do many employees have trouble at the same part of the training? That may become more obvious when you compare maps and visualize the issue at hand.
   
   The latest report from the Bureau of Labor Statistics shows an average tenure of 4.1 years, and 22% of workers had been with their current employer for a year or less. 

Looking up industry-specific numbers can help you further pinpoint areas to focus on when planning out your journey maps.

3. Time feedback to the stage in the journey your employee is at. Look for onboarding feedback while the process is still fresh in their mind.
   
   Provide appropriate feedback to your employees as well. Let them know how they’ve improved after training, or likewise what they could concentrate a bit more on.
   
4. Remember, journey maps are a tool that can help predict how an employee’s experience will look, but it’s not set in stone. There can be unexpected events that change their journey map.
   
   Like a global pandemic that reduced working hours by 17.3% in 2020. Most of us are still trying to get back on track after that one.
   
5. Make sure your organization learns from the tool. These aren’t coloring book pages for employees to fill in while HR processes their paperwork. Learn from them.
   
   Did you know only 12% of employees strongly agree their company did a good job at onboarding? 

Using an employee journey map, you can analyze your new hires at this stage and see why they might feel that way. 

Wrapping up — Making employee journey maps better for your workers

Employee journey mapping is one of those tools with lots of potential. It can help you improve different processes in your organization, increase employee engagement, and create an easy-to-follow workflow for various roles.

Or you can spend an entire quarter making everyone fill these in and then promptly lose them in a subfolder that was last opened three years ago.

Just keep in mind that creating an employee journey map is the first step. You also need to make it easy to access for employees and have them provide feedback. 

12 ideas to increase employee engagement

We can boil employee engagement down to two key employee attributes.

Attitude – how an employee feels about the company, their co-workers, their managers, and their role. And behavior – the effort that an employee is willing to invest in their work.

These two attributes have a huge impact on your business.

When an employee has a positive attitude and is willing (on most days) to give their all, they’re more energized and productive. They’re keen to learn and find solutions for workplace problems.

Engaged employees are also more loyal to your organization. Teams with high engagement have turnover rates 18% to 43% lower than those with low engagement. They have lower rates of absenteeism, too.

It’s easy to see how employee engagement can help to build a more effective and efficient organization. You reduce costs linked to recruitment, sick leave, and low productivity. And you get the very best from your workforce.

Understanding the importance of employee engagement is the first step. However, finding ways to improve employee engagement within your organization, is another - And that’s what we’ll be focusing on here.

We’re going to explore a range of employee engagement ideas that you can put into practice at your business to increase engagement. But first, let’s take a look at how employee engagement applies to frontline organizations.

Employee engagement in frontline organizations

Employee engagement is so often focused on those working remote or behind a desk, rather than your frontline employees. Common activities or ideas to increase employee engagement actually actively exclude frontline workers, as well. Think in-office lunches, social happy hours, or team building activities during the standard workday. 

But the truth is frontline employees want to feel engaged in the same way a desk-based team does. They benefit from a sense of belonging and connection. And your business benefits too.

Engaged employees working on the frontline provide a better service for customers or patients. Like their office-based co-workers, they take less time off sick and are less likely to look for another job.

All frontline organizations should be looking to improve employee engagement - and it’s easier than you might think. Below are our top ways to improve employee engagement across your entire organization - applicable to not only desk-based teams, but frontline organizations as well. 

12 ideas to improve employee engagement quickly

Employee engagement goes way beyond team building activities and the standard annual employee review. The most engaged organizations weave employee engagement activities into the fabric of their workplace.

Our tips to improve employee engagement:

1. Embrace technology
2. Promote two-way communication
3. Recognize and reward
4. Offer growth opportunities
5. Foster work-life balance
6. Gather feedback from employees
7. Set clear expectations
8. Give regular feedback
9. Promote team collaboration
10. Celebrate milestones
11. Lead by example
12. Measure and act on feedback

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1. Embrace technology

Today’s tech is intrinsically engaging, to the extent that people spend an average of 4.8 hours a day on mobile apps. That’s a third of their waking hours.

People leaders can take advantage of this fact by embracing mobile tools to increase employee engagement. Of course, embracing a clunky old intranet is going to do more harm than good. It won’t offer the user experience that employees now expect from their tech. But with cutting-edge software and apps, leaders make the cornerstones of engagement – communication, collaboration, and recognition – more appealing and accessible to employees.

For frontline organizations, this can revolutionize the way you work.

Employees no longer need a desktop or company email to access internal comms. With an employee engagement app like Blink, they can simply use the smartphone in their pocket, meaning everyone stays connected.

Teams can access chat functions, recognition features, and company tools and resources – all from the same interface.

Leaders can make the most of employee engagement surveys and analytics features. They can use data to understand employee engagement like never before, finding more effective ways to improve it.

When you put the very best tech tools at the heart of your employee engagement strategy, you connect your frontline to co-workers and management. You also make measuring and improving engagement a whole lot easier.   

2. Promote two-way communication

Good communication is the key to employee engagement. It’s a way to share information and company values and to include every member of your organization in company culture. But 80% of professionals rate their organization’s communication as poor or average.

If your company comms aren’t hitting the mark, it may be because communication only moves top-down. Your leadership team speaks and everyone else listens.

You’re much more likely to motivate employees when you create channels for two-way communication. (Like they did at Domino’s). When you give them a voice, encourage them to speak up, and listen to what they have to say, employees are much more engaged.

In fact, employees who say their voice is heard at work are 4.6x more likely to give their all.

Creating two-way communication is harder in large, hybrid, and frontline organizations. How do you connect co-workers, managers, and leadership when they don’t physically cross paths? And what do you do when frontline employees don’t have a company email account?

Again, it comes down to having the right tech tools. You need communication channels that are easy to access – from the office, at home, on the shop floor, and on the road. So everyone stays connected and updated wherever they’re working.

3. Recognize and reward

When employees feel that hard work goes unnoticed, there’s less incentive for them to bring their A-game. So if you’re looking to improve your employee engagement strategy, recognition and rewards are another key focus area.

Some organizations go all out with a points and rewards system. Employees earn points for good work and can then spend points to get gift cards, company merchandise, or even make a charitable donation.

But there are lots of other ways to show your appreciation for employees. An employee of the month program or a simple thank you goes a long way. And – as we’ll see in a moment – rewarding high performers with training and career progression opportunities may prove more meaningful than small monetary prizes.   

However you approach recognition and reward, the key is finding a strategy that works for all employees. 

Perhaps a frontline employee stays late to get a job done. Or receives positive feedback from a customer. These employees should enjoy the same level of manager and peer-to-peer recognition as their office-based co-workers.

With Blink’s recognition tool, it’s easy to create a culture of appreciation. Anyone can send personalized messages of appreciation, sharing posts with individuals, teams, or the whole organization. 

4. Offer growth opportunities

Employees who have a clear career path are more likely to stay working with your company. They’re also more engaged and productive in their work.

But too often, the focus is on the professional development of management and office-based employees. According to McKinsey research, many employers underestimate the value that frontline workers place on learning and career advancement opportunities.

Of the 2,100 frontline employees McKinsey surveyed, 70% said they had applied for a promotion or a job with more responsibility. But only 25% of those who applied were successful. And 65% said they were unsure how to achieve advancement.

As well as highlighting the lack of growth for frontline employees, McKinsey made several recommendations:

• Share professional development, mentorship, and promotion opportunities with every team member
• Give managers the training they need to help employees establish career growth goals – and support them to achieve them. 
• Where a promotion isn’t possible, consider a lateral move or the assignment of new challenges within an employee’s current role to satisfy their hunger for growth

Ultimately, when employees are given the support they need to thrive in their careers, it’s a win-win. An organization retains employees and improves performance. Employees get to enjoy the challenge and satisfaction of expanding their talents.

5. Foster work-life balance

Achieving work-life balance as a frontline worker isn’t always easy. Shifts tend to be long and unpredictable. And when employees are supporting customers or patients, it can be hard to even take scheduled breaks.

This has long been accepted as “the way things are”. But with a third of workers saying that work-life balance is a top priority when looking for jobs, frontline organizations looking to increase employee engagement have a real opportunity – to outshine other employers and better support their staff.

You could offer predictable shifts and – where that isn’t possible – communicate shifts in advance. Consider flexible working and fair overtime policies. Encourage employees to get enough downtime by addressing an always-on culture.

Another key consideration? We know that 70% of frontline employees have suffered from burnout or felt at risk of burnout. This is something that the Starbucks team has taken on board.

Starbucks employees get access to a mental health care platform and free therapy sessions. They also get 10 days of backup care for the children or adults they care for, helping them balance the competing responsibilities of work and caregiving with less stress.

By helping employees to plan and enjoy their time away from work, organizations can count on improved productivity and engagement each time workers arrive for a shift.

6. Gather feedback from employees

Frontline employees are your eyes and ears on the ground. They can provide valuable perspective on what is and isn’t working operationally and how you can improve the customer experience.

But if your organization – like many frontline firms – is suffering from a frontline connection gap, you struggle to access that insight. More often than not, frontline employees don’t have the access they need to provide this valuable feedback.

This means you miss out on all kinds of frontline employee feedback – including their thoughts on employee engagement. You find it much harder to identify and address engagement issues before they affect morale and retention.

The first step to fixing this issue is developing feedback channels for all employees. Tech tools can help. An app like Blink allows you to send a feedback request to a frontline worker’s smartphone, meaning they’re much more likely to see it and respond. 

Remember that different employees prefer different feedback methods so open up a variety of options.

Make pulse surveys, annual employee engagement surveys, and manager one-on-ones part of your feedback request schedule. And give employees the option to leave feedback anonymously so they feel comfortable being completely honest.

With up-to-date employee feedback, you can make your employee engagement strategy more relevant and effective. You get to the heart of how employees feel – and discover the areas where change is most needed.

7. Set clear expectations

Uncertainty and employee engagement don’t mix. Role ambiguity creates stress and it’s one of the leading causes of employee burnout.

Employees need to understand exactly what’s expected of them. They need to know what work to do, how to do it, and who to do it with. Even when a frontline role involves a lot of autonomy, employees need guidance on their remit to feel confident and motivated.

Managers are responsible for setting clear expectations. And it all comes down to good communication.

Frontline managers should clearly define the role and its responsibilities for new hires. They need to set key performance indicators (KPIs) so employees know what success looks like. And they need to give clear instructions when assigning new tasks.

Employees also need to know how their role fits into the bigger picture. How do their tasks relate to overarching company values and goals?

By giving employees clarity you improve employee engagement. But you also promote accountability and show employees that their work is valuable.

8. Give regular feedback

Picture an employee – let’s call him Jim – who hasn’t had any manager feedback in a while.

Jim keeps running into the same customer service problem. But he doesn’t feel comfortable approaching his manager about it. And he’s not due a one-to-one for months.

So Jim keeps at it, doubting that he’s doing a good enough job but unsure what to do about it. Without regular manager input Jim feels less confident in his abilities. His job satisfaction inevitably takes a hit.

Now let’s picture a different scene.

Jim’s manager – let’s call her Jane – understands how important feedback is to employee engagement. She sets up regular, informal one-to-ones, where both she and Jim can raise any issues.

Jim gets to hear that he’s doing a great job. And gets useful, actionable advice on what he could do better. He gets recognition where it’s due and a regular reminder of role expectations.

Feedback needs to move in both directions. And it’s as relevant to your longest-serving staff as it is to new hires. Feedback boosts the confidence of employees and increases their job satisfaction, which means better employee engagement.

Employees also stand to benefit most when feedback is constructive. This means managers focus on facts, not opinions. They talk about the actions of an employee, not their personality traits.

They also approach feedback as a two-way conversation, where employees get a chance to share their thoughts within an open and supportive environment.

9. Promote team collaboration

Two heads are always better than one. And employees who work well together are happier, more productive, and less stressed. Team collaboration can help to prevent loneliness, too.  

Glassdoor research shows that 60% of employees with less than five years of work experience feel lonely all or most of the time. But 89% of all workers say that a sense of belonging within their company is essential for workplace happiness.

Bringing teams together, including frontline employees who tend to work alone, is therefore crucial to employee engagement. And it starts with company culture.

You need a psychologically safe environment where everyone feels comfortable contributing their thoughts and ideas. Like a calendar of team building activities. Special consideration for new hires and team members who work in isolation. And praise for team successes as well as individual wins.

The right communication and collaboration tools are another important part of the puzzle. Project management software helps people to collaborate when they’re not working in the same location. And chat tools allow workers to share problems, ideas, and solutions with ease.

Elara Caring is one of the largest care providers in the US, with around 32,000 carers working on their frontline. The company found it hard to connect its carers and was experiencing a collaboration problem.

By making Blink their communication hub, they improved team collaboration dramatically. Now 95% of employees say they feel more connected to the organization and their co-workers.

10. Celebrate milestones

Mavis Mills, an ASDA supermarket employee, recently celebrated her 80^th birthday. And the whole team celebrated with her. They decorated her checkout with banners and balloons and gave her gifts, flowers, and a cake.

Celebrations like these bring teams together. They boost employee engagement for the person being celebrated and inspire other employees, too.

You can celebrate birthdays, work anniversaries, passing probation, or the successful conclusion of a company project. Anything that fits with your company values and culture.

Of course, it’s easier to plan a celebration for on-site teams. You can organize a gathering in the office or – as ASDA did – around the checkout where Mavis was working.

But that doesn’t mean hybrid and dispersed frontline teams have to forgo celebrations. You can still improve employee engagement by celebrating milestones via internal communication tools.

For example, with the Blink Feed, you can share meaningful milestones with a team or the whole organization – and encourage employees to join in the celebration. You can celebrate little and often to show appreciation for employees on a regular, informal basis.

11. Lead by example

The leaders of today do things differently. Good leaders understand that transparency, fairness, and emotional intelligence help to improve employee engagement.

Unlike workplace leaders of the past, they know that when everyone, at all levels of a company, sticks to the same rules and values people feel more invested in a company’s success.

As a leader, this means practicing what you preach.

You should demonstrate the same commitment to two-way communication, collaboration, and recognition that you want to see in employees. You should model work-life balance so workers find it easier to follow suit.

By living and breathing company values and culture, you inspire trust and respect in your workforce. And when you join them in using the same communication and employee engagement tools, you make it much more likely that people will follow your lead. 

12. Measure and act on feedback

Gathering feedback is an essential part of any employee engagement strategy. But simply getting employees to leave feedback isn’t enough. You have to measure and act upon employee feedback, too.

Research shows that people who say their employer takes meaningful action based on their feedback are 37% less likely to look for another job. And they’re also much more likely to take part in future surveys.

So mine employee feedback for data. Then create employee engagement KPIs so you can measure progress. You can base targets around metrics like:

• Absenteeism rate
• Employee retention rate
• Employee net promoter score (eNPS)

It then all comes down to good internal communication. Share your feedback findings and engagement progress with employees. It shows that you take their views seriously and are committed to making improvements.

Employee engagement: the next step

In thriving organizations, the drive to improve employee engagement is more than just an HR team initiative. It’s something that the whole organization embraces as part of its ethos.

Communication, feedback, and recognition become part of everyone’s every day. And the organization benefits from better staff retention, productivity, and satisfaction.

Your organization may not be at this point yet. But wherever you are in your employee engagement journey, the 12 ideas listed above will help you move forward. Weave these activities into your employee engagement strategy and you’ll encourage the employee attitudes and behaviors you want to see.

When it comes to frontline organizations, the right tech tools are a priority because they make employee engagement so much easier. They provide the vital line of connection between every member of your workforce, from new hires to stalwart staff, and frontline workers to your office-based team.

Blink’s mobile-first super-app helps every frontline employee to feel valued and heard. And with a news feed, secure chat, recognition features, surveys, analytics, and more, you have everything you need to transform internal communication and employee engagement for the better.

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What makes them awesome? 

Mohammad Ramzan is one of Scotland’s longest-serving bus drivers. He began his journey with Tayside Passenger Transport in 1978 and continues to serve the Dundee community with unwavering dedication.

In addition to his regular duties, Mr. Ramzan has played a key role in Xplore Dundee’s “Did It for Me” recruitment campaign, emphasizing the supportive and friendly environment created by his colleagues. He credits this camaraderie for his long-standing tenure with the company.

Mr. Ramzan — most commonly known to his colleagues as Uncle Ramzan — has been a dedicated Xplore Dundee bus driver for over 46 years, and was even awarded the esteemed title of Frontline Employee of the Year at the Scottish Transport Awards 2024.

How has Blink helped in their role?

Blink has empowered Mohammad Ramzan to interact with his colleagues and provide them with additional support.

What do they want to do next?

Despite being past retirement age, Mr. Ramzan would love to continue his service to contribute to the McGill’s Bus Group.

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Nominated by: Bethan Dooley, Marketing Team Leader 

Tumbleweed over on your new tech tool?

You launched the system. You hosted the training. But employees just aren’t using your new tech. If this sounds familiar, you’re not alone.

Across industries, companies are investing heavily in new digital tools — internal communication software, employee apps, intranets, and core HR systems like Workday. But while the technology is powerful, access and adoption often fall short — especially for frontline and deskless workers.

Before you blame the tech (or call IT in a panic), take a step back. The issue often isn’t the system itself. It’s what came before: employee confusion, a lack of buzz, a lack of buy-in.

If you’re struggling with software adoption, start by getting to know the real issues behind a lackluster launch.  

The adoption gap is a communication problem

Tools don’t tend to fail because the tech is inherently bad. So what gives? Why has adoption of your new tech tool stalled?

The truth is, ineffective internal communication is one of the usual suspects. If the right messaging hasn’t reached all employees at the right time, your adoption rates suffer.

Your communication tools are ignored. Or worse, actively resisted.

This is a problem. Because poor tech tool adoption harms the employee experience and employee engagement. Workers get a disjointed experience and it’s hard to keep everyone on the same page.

When only half the workforce is using a tool, it also kills your ROI. You end up bringing new internal communications tools into the mix to fill gaps. And the digital workplace gets noisy (and expensive!).

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The 3 biggest reasons employees ignore tools

Let’s break it down. When employees fail to engage with a new tech tool, it’s usually down to one or more of the following reasons.

#1. They didn’t know it existed

An obvious one. But also a surprisingly common issue. If your comms strategies aren’t up to scratch, it’s easy for messages (even repeated ones) to slip through the net.

Maybe your tech tool memo got lost in an inbox that was fit to bursting. Maybe managers failed to cascade the information in the way you’d intended. Perhaps frontline employees missed the paper memo on their dash through the depot.

Comms can fail to reach the desired recipient in all sorts of ways, particularly if you have lots of hard-to-reach frontline employees. The result? Employees simply don’t know that your new software exists. 

#2. They didn’t see how it helped them

Let’s suppose the message did get through. Employees were aware that a new tech tool was on the horizon. But your team failed to communicate software benefits to employees.

Will it save them time? Make their jobs easier? Give them greater control over their shift schedule?

When employees don’t get answers to these questions, they fail to understand how your new tech matters to them and their work lives. And when they’re already juggling task management, they’re unlikely to make time to download and learn something new.

#3. They didn’t know how to use it

The final thorn in the side of a new tech tool launch? Employees not understanding how to use your new tech — or how to fit it into their daily workflow.

Tools that feel like extra admin, or that require clunky logins and complex steps, are unlikely to win favor with your workforce.

And, even with the best possible UX for every segment of your workforce, you still need to signpost training and support. Another task for your internal comms team.  

For tools like Workday, which are often built for desktop workflows, employees need support to engage with features like payslips, benefits, or scheduling from their phones. A mobile-native interface like Blink’s helps bridge that UX gap — and makes core functionality feel intuitive, not intimidating.

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How internal comms can get employees on board

Internal comms play a huge role in tech tool adoption. If employees are ignoring your new software, here’s what your comms team can do.

Craft a story around the tool

Don’t just announce the what. Explain the why. Move beyond the benefits the software offers your organization. Put yourself in an employee’s shoes and think about the difference it makes to them.

A new LMS isn’t just a training platform. It’s a way for employees to boost their skills and take another step along their chosen career path.

A new mobile scheduling app isn’t a way for the company to ensure maximum shift coverage. It’s a way for employees to reclaim control over their week.

Build a narrative around the tool that answers employees’ most pressing question: What’s in it for me?

That may mean crafting different stories for different segments of your workforce. By incorporating employee segmentation into your strategy, you can highlight what new tech brings to your drivers or retail employees compared to the benefits it brings to your office-based staff.

It may also mean harnessing the power of an internal creator culture, getting employees who are using and loving your new solution to voice their thoughts as part of authentic, employee-generated content.

Use multiple channels to reinforce the message

Any communicator will tell you. Repetition matters. So does variety.

So push the message across every communication channel your employees use. That might include:

• Manager shout-outs
• SMS reminders
• Push notifications from your employee mobile app
• Instant messaging for quick check-ins
• Video content showing employees using the tool
• Pulse surveys to check in on feedback
• Reinforcing email content
• Video conferencing to troubleshoot issues

Using multiple internal communication platforms and channels increases the likelihood that all employees will see your content, even hard-to-reach frontline employees and those who do remote work.

It takes more effort — and maybe a comms schedule or two! But when you build buzz and understanding through a concerted campaign of communication, the payoff is better reach, stronger recall, and higher rates of software adoption.

Empower managers to model and cascade usage

Managers are the missing link in too many software rollouts. If they don’t understand the tool — or worse, aren’t using it themselves — employees won’t either.

So, give managers early access. Train them on how the tool works and why it matters. Give them talking points and answers to the FAQs they’re most likely to hear from employees.

You need managers who can participate in knowledge sharing — who can confidently say: “Hey — this thing works. Here’s how it helped me. Let me help you get started.”

Use change communication principles

Effective change communications rely on empathy, transparency, and clarity.

So when sharing launch news, sympathize with employees. This is an upheaval. New tech always comes with a learning curve. And until employees are up to speed, it’s a pain they can do without.

You should also communicate transparently and clearly, so employees trust and understand what you’re saying. 

When you approach your software launch as you would any other type of change communication, you’re more likely to get employees on board.

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IT + internal communications = smoother rollouts

Too often, tech rollouts are the responsibility of the IT team.

IT chooses the tool, implements the tool, launches the tool. IT runs the project management overall. And internal comms? They’re asked to throw together a post about it the day before it goes live.

But this sets a new software launch up to fail. Because when the internal comms team and IT teams work together, ensuring a smooth and successful software rollout gets a whole lot easier.

Here’s how you can encourage team collaboration and do things differently.

Bring comms in early — not just at launch

As soon as IT begins the search for a new tech tool, comms should be in the room.

The comms team can facilitate internal communication between IT and the software’s end users — your employees. They can clarify what employees want and need from a new tool, so you’re more likely to find software that fits the bill and get workforce buy-in.

Further down the line, comms is also vital in the process of developing launch messaging — and shaping rollout strategy. When your comms team fully understands the tool and what it brings to the table, they’re much better placed to craft a messaging strategy.

Meetings with the IT are an opportunity to learn:

• What do employees need to know, feel, and do to adopt this tool?
• What comms assets can we build in before the launch date?
• What support will we provide for employees to help them get started?

Plan messaging the same way you plan tech implementation

IT teams build timelines, test cases, and go-live checklists. Your employee communications plan should be just as robust. You need to factor in:

• Pre-launch buzz. Teasers, sneak peeks, and launch countdowns.
• Launch day comms. Announcements, how-to guides, success stories, and FAQs.
• Post-launch support. Nudges, reminders, employee feedback loops, and adoption incentives.

Be consistent with your comms and you’ll keep your new tech tool in the company conversation. That means more people signing up to use it.

Celebrate small wins and usage milestones

Adoption isn’t a one-day event. It’s a process. And people are encouraged to give your new tech a go when they see their peers using it.

So use employee data to help you prioritize employee recognition. Spotlight early adopters. Call out team members that hit usage goals. Share stores from employees who’ve benefited from the tool.

These micro-moments build momentum. They remind everyone that this change is here to stay and that the tech is already helping employees just like them.

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Adoption isn’t just about tools — it’s about strategic communication

Tech rollouts aren’t a launch moment — they’re a behavior change. And behavior change starts with communication.

You need to get strategic, working to build buzz and trust —and planning a comprehensive calendar of comms before, during, and after launch day.

Ideally, you put these principles into practice way before rollout. But if you’re dealing with a stalled launch, you can still skyrocket those adoption figures.

Act quickly (because momentum is hard to get back once it’s lost). And work to reach all employees, telling them what your tool does, how it benefits them, and how they can start using it.

Especially if you’re rolling out a traditionally office-worker platform like Workday, make sure the experience works for every employee — not just those at a desk. Blink gives your workforce one-tap access to all tools, wrapped in a communication layer that builds buzz, drives behavior change, and keeps your investment delivering long after go-live.

Get your software back into the company conversation, get a few more employees on board, and watch adoption — and your company culture overall — thrive.

‍Blink. And bring your tools to life, for every employee, in every moment that matters.

The line that launched a thousand eye rolls — and how to counter it.

“Can you just send this out?”

Six words that send a chill up any internal communicator’s spine.

And a phrase that indicates how many organizations still view the internal communications team. As glorified messengers, not strategic partners.

This mindset is harming the effectiveness of internal communications and the business outcomes that are linked to it. Think employee experience, retention, and productivity.

Because today’s workplace is noisy. And sending out messages without strategy only adds to that noise. Messages get lost. People switch off. It gets even harder for comms to cut through. 

This was a hot topic in Blink’s recent webinar — Human internal comms: Fueling engagement with authenticity. And here, we’re going to dig a little deeper into why the comms function is so routinely misunderstood — and what we can do to fix that.

Internal communications: The most undervalued strategic function

Internal communication (IC) has long been overlooked and undervalued. And too many communicators are still kept on the sidelines. 

According to recent Gallagher research, 27% of internal communicators say they lack leadership buy-in and are left out of decision-making. They’re relegated to a supporting role rather than a strategic one.

But internal communication sits at the heart of company culture, change, and connection. It’s a direct line to employee experience — especially for frontline employees with limited digital or face-to-face contact.

And let’s be clear: It’s about more than churning out information. Internal communicators shape meaning and build trust. They develop effective ways to really reach and resonate with your workforce.

And this is important. Because your people receive a staggering number of employee communications. Over on the webinar, the panel shared the fact that people receive 121 business emails every day and switch between tools and tabs nearly 1,200 times.

“Internal comms […] are fighting against this noise. People don’t want more information, necessarily. They want more meaningful information and meaningful connections.”

— Blink

Simply “sending this out” does a disservice to employees, organizational goals, and the morale of your IC team.

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How we got here: What’s holding comms back?

So why have some IC teams ended up simply distributing messages rather than crafting a narrative? Here’s what’s standing in the way.  

A misunderstanding of the role

In too many organizations, internal communicators are seen as wordsmiths — a team who’ll polish a piece of text before sending it out to employees. This perception can be hard to shake and leaves IC wading through admin tasks rather than forging strategy.  

Lack of leadership buy-in

Without the backing of the C-suite, the comms team is brought in late — often after decisions are made. This leaves little room for IC to shape the company story or influence outcomes. The impact IC has on business objectives is also underestimated so it’s hard for teams to secure the budget and support they need.

Lack of tools to measure strategic value

It’s a catch-22. Comms teams struggle to get investment for modern tech tools. But without these tools — and their data analytics — it’s hard to prove the worth of IC and justify investment. You need data to show how IC supports big business goals.

Too reactive, not proactive

Many IC teams get stuck in a reactive cycle — publishing company news and chasing approvals. They don’t get the breathing room or support they need to step back, align with business objectives, and plan a comprehensive internal communication strategy.

Siloed working

If internal communications is isolated from HR, IT, operations, and line managers, they miss opportunities to align and embed strategy and share employee feedback. Cross-functional collaboration is impossible and teams miss out on the insights others within the organization can provide.

The cost of staying in your lane

Fail to break free from the messenger role and there are a bunch of risks to contend with. These include:

• Information overload. When messages are delivered without strategy — or a sense of the wider narrative — employees become overwhelmed and switch off from internal communications.  
• Poor employee engagement. Messages don’t feel consistent, relevant, or interesting. Employee engagement suffers, along with employee retention, productivity, and satisfaction.
• IC burnout. Communicators struggle to sustain their morale. Those who enjoy collaborative relationships with the C-suite have 2x better well-being than those with transactional relationships.
• Misalignment. Poor internal communications lead to measurable losses for your organization. These include project delays, compliance issues, and lost productivity.
• Frontline connection gap. Without a clear strategy, deskless workers get stuck with paper notices or word-of-mouth comms.
• Missed impact. If you’re treated like a service desk, your influence is capped. So you find it hard to support business objectives in the way you know internal communications can.

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Redefining the role: What internal communications should look like

A tactical internal communicator wears many different hats. Here’s what a new and improved strategic role should look like.

A strategic partner

Comms teams deserve a seat at the table. When you get a say in company strategy, you can better manage company changes and crisis communication. You get greater control over tech tool selection and have the intel you need to drive company-wide alignment.

A trusted advisor

You act as a comms guru for your organization, training leaders and managers to show up in the right way, on the right communication channels, at the right time. You guide them in open communication and empathy, giving them an effective blueprint to follow.  

An EX designer

When comms gets tactical, you can craft the employee experience journey, rather than simply delivering touchpoints. You can connect messages to meaning more effectively, ensuring that EX talking points are backed by policy and action. 

A community builder  

You don’t just send out top-down messages. You develop interactive, two-way comms that spark conversations and fuel employee engagement. Think polls, Q&As, employee-generated content, and content that inspires comments, likes, and shares.

A creative powerhouse

The best internal communicators aren’t satisfied with sending out text-heavy emails and documents. They keep their finger on the pulse of internal comms trends and create attention-grabbing, short-form, social media-inspired content. We’re talking images, photos, videos, graphics, and short snippets of text.

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So what now? How to shift from executor to strategist

Ready to level up? Here’s how you can move beyond messaging to deliver an internal communication plan with real impact.

Say no to being the messenger

Crafting effective internal communications means knowing when to say no. As Tiffin Jernstedt — former chief communications officer and internal communications expert — puts it:

“You have to say: We know everything that’s going on in the organization and your message doesn’t fit today.”

You can’t send everything. Your job is to prioritize. To help people within your business understand what matters most right now — and how messages fit within a broader narrative, that day, that week, and that month.

Need help pushing back? Try one of these approaches:

• Ask: What outcome are you trying to achieve with this message?
• Suggest: I think that message is most suited to this channel.  
• Offer: We can help shape this message to make it land — but we’ll need to rework it slightly.  
• Explain: We track comms engagement closely. Here’s why timing matters.

Bring data to the table

Authentic internal communication doesn’t just inform. It inspires, connects, and builds trust. To prove that, track internal communication metrics, like these ones:

• Content read rates
• Employee response time
• Behavior change
• Platform adoption rate
• Employee satisfaction
• Employee engagement

Then, link these metrics to overarching business objectives. If you can prove the ROI and impact of your employee communications, you can make the case for a more strategic role.  

Build cross-functional allies

Team work makes the dream work. 

Foster positive working relationships with your HR, ops, and IT teams. You can work together toward shared goals and get well-rounded insight into what employees need.

Not sure where to begin? Start small:

• Start a recurring cross-functional meeting to think through EX gaps and opportunities
• Ask key stakeholders what they wish more employees knew
• Help a frontline leader share a success story
• Share data between departments to build a detailed picture of EX

Push for better tools

The best internal communication tools support you to deliver rich, multimedia messages. They provide the channels and functionality you need to win employee attention, craft compelling journeys, and encourage interaction. 

These digital tools also give you reporting and analytics tools that help you make meaningful internal communication improvements, while also proving your impact and justifying a more strategic role. 

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Raise the bar — and your voice

Internal communications deserves better — and whether you’re a team of one or a team of many, so do the professionals behind it.

It’s time to shift perceptions, get strategic, and fight for a seat at the table. Move beyond simply sending out messages and you can make a real difference to internal communication and the business results that rely on it.

‍Blink. And watch the full webinar here: Human internal comms: fueling engagement with authenticity.

There are lots of ways you can up your internal communications game. You can attend courses and conferences. You can work with a mentor or an internal communications expert.

But don’t overlook the free resources you have at your fingertips. The blogs of professionals, companies, and consultancies working in the field of internal communications (IC) often contain a lot of wisdom.

They feature the latest IC trends along with tried and tested employee communication strategies. You can discover what other companies are doing with their comms. You can also find new ways to engage employees, influence leaders, and keep up-to-date with communication technology. 

So how do you unearth this insight? Trawling through the internet to find the best content is tough. So we’ve done the hard work for you. Here, we’ve put together a list of the best internal communications blogs around right now.

Happy reading!

Best internal communications blogs to follow

1. The institute of internal communication

The Institute of Internal Communication has been a go-to for internal communication professionals for over 75 years. The Institute runs training, conferences, and awards. It also issues qualifications.

Its blog is an excellent resource. It covers topics such as visual communication, AI in the workplace, and the importance of developing trust in the workplace.

Some blog posts are only available to IoIC members. But there’s plenty on there to get you started. There’s also a podcast called The Future of Internal Communication, which is available on Apple Podcasts and Spotify.

Must-reads from this blog:

• Engaging and supporting leaders is a vital component in IC
• Getting the measure of your strategy: using data to drive IC’s direction
• ‘I learned the hard way that less is more’

2. Gallagher Communications

Gallagher is an internal communications agency that has worked on 100+ internal communication audits and strategic projects for large and small companies all over the world.

The company believes that real workplace communication isn’t about ticking a checklist. Instead, it’s about engaging workers through strong leadership and incentives. So Gallagher blogs on topics that include leadership, pension communications, rewards and benefits, and workplace culture.

Must-reads from this internal communication blog:

• Three ways communications can elevate recruitment strategies
• Prioritizing your wellbeing as an internal communicator
• Toxic positivity: when good vibes go bad

3. Alive with Ideas

Alive with Ideas is a creative internal communications agency. They provide brands with strategy and engaging internal content.

The Alive with Ideas blog provides lots of creative comms inspiration. It covers topics like storytelling, the benefits of illustration, and tips for unleashing your creativity. There are lots of fun pop culture references and beautiful visuals, too.

If you’re looking for ways to liven up your employee communications and improve employee engagement, this is definitely the place to go.

Must-reads from this internal communication blog:

• Ted Lasso’s Positivity Playbook
• Diving into communication differences
• SNACKABLE SNIPPET: Transforming disagreements into opportunities

4. McCann Synergy

McCann Synergy is an employee communications company focused on improving employee engagement across the entire employee lifecycle. It helps organizations develop a strong employer brand and a positive employee experience. It also offers support with employee engagement and workplace communications.

The McCann Synergy blog is filled with reports, whitepapers, and best practices on useful topics related to engagement and communication. These include crisis communications, employee experience, and behavioral science.

Must-reads from this internal communication blog:

• How to put reward and recognition center-stage
• Breaking the cycle of distrust in the workplace
• 10 best internal communications and employee engagement case studies

5. Redefining Communications

Redefining Communications is another internal communications consultancy. The team runs workshops and offers project support. They support global companies with comms, engagement, and organizational change.  

Over on the Redefining Communications blog, you’ll find a ton of IC news and insight. The blog provides lots of great advice on the topic of employee communications, with some posts focused on improving comms in frontline organizations.

Dig a little deeper into their content and you’ll find some great podcasts, along with IC reports that you can download for a fee.

Must-reads from this internal communication blog:

• Is the staff magazine making a comeback?
• Line manager cascades for deskless workers: how to get them right
• The power of influence and persuasion in internal communications

6. All Things IC

Rachel Miller is the ex-journalist and comms professional behind All Things IC. She’s been working in the IC industry for over two decades — and her company offers training and 1-2-1 support for internal communicators.

Over on the All Things IC blog, you’ll find lots of up-to-the-minute resources. There are summaries of newly released workplace communication research reports — and blogs on topics including AI and neurodiversity.

Must-reads from this internal communication blog:

• Understanding and engaging Gen Z employees
• Building a culture of inclusivity: effective internal communication for diversity, equity, and inclusion
• Communication-related words people hate

7. Blue Beyond

Blue Beyond is a consulting firm with expertise in the human side of business. Its impressive client list features many Fortune 500 brands.

With the Blue Beyond blog, the company shares internal communication trends and insights based on real IC experience. It also provides useful resources for both small and large companies. Recurring themes include change management, talent management, and workplace culture.

Must-reads from this internal communication blog:

• How to have courageous conversations in the workplace
• Quiet quitting is a cry for help; here’s what you can do about it
• 7 best practices for reaching non-wired employees

8. Brilliant Ink

Brilliant Ink designs employee experiences that lead to positive business outcomes and high employee engagement.

Its blog spans a vast selection of topics — all related to employee engagement. So articles on employee communications are a regular feature. You will find insights on internal communication data, intranet platforms, and company values.

Must-reads from this internal communication blog:

• 10 employee engagement & internal communications trends
• 5 comms tips to boost employee retention
• 5 essential steps to prepare your organization for AI

9. Comms Rebel

Comms Rebel is a communications consultancy founded by comms professional and confidence coach, Advita Patel. The Comms Rebel blog covers a wide range of topics surrounding workplace communication, with a particular focus on leadership, bias, and inclusion.

As you’d expect from the company name, Comms Rebel approaches workplace communications from a unique angle, highlighting overlooked issues and underrepresented employee groups. 

Must-reads from this internal communication blog:

• The 5 secrets of inclusive language
• Empowering women in the workplace through internal communications
• Four things to consider before adopting AI in internal comms

10. Local Wisdom

Local Wisdom is a digital communications company with expertise spanning UX design, content development, and communication strategy.

Its blog offers lots of incredible content related to employee communications. It also looks at the technology, design, and development IC involves.  

Must-reads from this blog:

• Encourage Employee-Created Content on Your Internal Social
• Lights, Camera, Confidence! Video Interview Prep 101
• When employees are “too busy” for internal comms

11. Changing the Terms

Mike Klein is a consultant and strategist who helps organizations and communications leaders create sharper, more effective messages. He believes that people can say more by saying less.

Mike’s blog is packed with useful insight for comms professionals. He challenges conventional thinking and looks at internal communications measurement, technology, and strategies.

Must-reads from this internal communication blog:

• Internal communication: What’s the “tipping point” for small and medium-sized businesses?
• “It’s all about the managers.” Really?
• Herd virality? Why focusing on internal influence beats “100% engagement”

12. Inspiring Change

Inspiring Change is an internal comms agency that supports companies with organizational culture and employee engagement. The company’s founder, Scott McInnes, is on a mission to make internal comms clear, memorable, inspiring, and authentic.

Over on the Inspiring Change blog, you’ll find lots of useful articles. There’s advice for comms professionals wanting to connect employees with company values and culture. There are also tips on navigating organizational change.

Must-reads from this internal communication blog:

• Bridging the gap: connecting employees with the organization’s vision
• The role of senior leaders in creating values-led organizations
• Creating psychological safety at work

13. Ragan Communications

Ragan Communications has been training professionals in internal communications, public relations, and social media for over 50 years. So, as you’d expect, the Ragan blog offers some great resources.

There are real-world internal communication case studies, round-ups of IC news, and interviews with IC professionals. You’ll also find lots of workplace communications advice, on topics ranging from manager comms, discussing social issues, and data analysis.

Must-reads from this internal communication blog:

• 6 steps to humanize, personalize, and maximize your employee comms
• ‘Supercommunicators’ author Charles Duhigg on fostering deeper virtual connection
• Lessons from Nike’s layoffs and employee change comms

14. Leader Communicator 

One for the leadership team. The brain behind this blog, David Grossman, is a leadership and communication expert and the founder of The Grossman Group. David is passionate about leadership communication and publishes articles on a bi-weekly basis.

Recent topics include empathetic leadership, change management, and building trust with employees.

Must-reads from this internal communication blog:

• Great communicators share these 7 essential characteristics
• Internal communications plan: 7-step strategy and template
• Setting employee expectations as a leader: a how-to guide

15. The IC Citizen

The IC Citizen is penned by Martin Flegg, an IC expert with more than 20 years of industry experience. He specializes in internal comms, employee engagement, and change communication.

Martin has a knack for sharing strong opinions on debatable topics. You may not agree with everything he writes, but you’ll certainly get fresh perspectives.

Must-reads from this internal communication blog:

• No good advice
• Igniting change
• What’s that got to do with internal communication?

16. Blink intelligence

Yes, this is us. Blink is a modern intranet software provider.

Our platform is built with frontline workers in mind. Traditionally, deskless employees have been left out of the company conversation. But we’re changing that with a user-friendly, mobile-first employee app.

Our blog reflects our passion for frontline communication. There’s in-depth guidance and actionable strategies you can use to improve workplace communication, employee engagement, and employee retention across your frontline and desk-based teams.

You can also read the latest internal communications news on The Shift, Blink’s bi-monthly newsletter — or get the lowdown on frontline communication tech by watching our live and on demand webinars.

Must-reads from our internal communication blog:

• 6 ways to create an intranet your frontline workforce will love
• Doomscrolling detox: How to uplift your people through internal communications
• 12 metrics and KPIs for effective internal communication

Using internal communication blogs to improve comms at your organization

The way we collaborate and communicate is changing. So staying up-to-date with employee communication insights is a great way to boost the effectiveness of your comms.

Start by making the most of the IC information available online. The internal communication blogs on this list provide fresh ideas, practical strategies, and creative inspiration. They offer guidance on IC tech and communication trends.

So add these articles to your reading list. You’ll find new ways to share messages, engage employees, and improve the employee experience.

Want to delve deeper? For in-depth resources on frontline employee experience and engagement, take a look at Blink’s whitepapers and reports. 

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