We have already covered several aspects related to corporate internal communication here on the Blog. We talked about its importance, the main reasons to invest in it, listed some essential tools to use on a daily basis, and even how to align internal communication with the company’s strategy.
There are several articles that reinforce the importance of having good corporate internal communication and present some ways to structure a truly efficient communication plan that keeps employees engaged with the company’s purposes.
However, one of the major questions readers still ask us is:
How to measure the effectiveness of corporate internal communication?
Unfortunately, most internal communication (IC) professionals do not measure their campaigns. A study by the International Association of Business Communicators (IABC) points out that:
Only 40% of IC professionals do some type of measurement of the sector’s indicators. And of those, only 16% are satisfied with the data they are able to gather.
Measuring the effectiveness of corporate internal communication is a challenge in practically all companies, and this makes it difficult for the area to be seen with strategic potential for the business. Therefore, we have listed some essential KPIs to measure the effectiveness of your communication plan and, with that, plan, adjust, and prove the effectiveness of internal campaigns. Shall we look at them?
Performance indicators: which ones to use
The results obtained from corporate internal communication campaigns are not always tangible or directly related to financial gains. To know if the defined objectives of internal communication are truly being achieved, it is important to define key performance indicators. Check out some indicators that can be tracked to evaluate the success of IC in your company.
1. Return on Investment (ROI)
This calculation seeks to define what financial return was obtained from a given investment, and whether or not it aligns with what the company desires. Corporate internal communication is an investment, so it is possible to calculate whether it has brought positive results to the organization.
Also known as ROI (from English, return on investment), this metric has a relatively simple methodology. See how to set up its formula:
- ROI = Return Obtained – Investment Made / Investment Made X 100
Consider an example. Imagine you invested 10,000 reals in a corporate TV system for a retail store chain. Afterward, you noticed that your sales increased by about 30,000 reals. Thus, the formula is as follows:
- ROI = 30,000 – 10,000 / 10,000 X 100
In this case, you obtained a 200% return. A great investment for any company.
2. Employee Satisfaction Index (ESI)
If corporate internal communication contributes to improving employee satisfaction, then tracking this indicator in your company is essential. It is also known as ESI (from English, Employee Satisfaction Index).
To measure employee contentment, three questions must be asked:
- How satisfied are you with your workplace?
- How well does your current workplace satisfy your expectations?
- How close is your current work environment to your ideal environment?
All questions must be answered with a score from 1 to 10, with ten being the highest and best value. Afterward, apply the following formula to find the ESI level.
- [((total value of responses ÷ 3) – 1) ÷ 9] x 100
The ideal ESI value is 66 points. Below this number, it is recommended to evaluate what has been interfering with employee satisfaction. It could be, for example, some flaw in internal communication itself or other issues, such as internal relationships, benefits, and working hours.
3. Net Promoter Score (NPS)
The contentment level of end customers can also be an important metric on the subject. Known as NPS (from English, Net Promoter Score), this index is relatively simple. On printed paper, by phone, or via the internet, ask your customer the following question:
- On a scale of 0 to 10, how likely are you to recommend us to a friend or acquaintance?
Responses from 0 to 6 represent detractors, who speak negatively about the company. Responses from 7 to 8 represent passives, who find no differential in the company. Responses from 9 to 10 represent promoters, that is, customers who advocate for the brand.
After gathering as much feedback as possible, apply the following formula to find the NPS:
- Net Promoter Score = percentage of promoter customers – percentage of detractor customers
The quality zone is represented when the NPS level is between 50 and 74 points. The excellence zone is when the NPS is between 75 and 100 points. Track this indicator and see if your employees are truly serving customers well.
Reasons to measure results
It is essential to measure the results of corporate internal communication. It is not enough to simply invest in new tools; the results must be identified and shared with all leadership and other employees in the company. Check out some of the main benefits of doing this.
1. Contributes to making more agile and assertive decisions
A lack of agility is a major problem for companies. With an increasingly dynamic external environment, making decisions slowly can be a major risk for business continuity. However, there is a major dilemma here: you cannot just think about agility without the strategic information to back it up.
Thus, the first major benefit of measuring internal communication results is: being able to make decisions in an agile and assertive way. Indicators reveal many things that, at first glance, appeared to be completely different. Thus, the results serve as a systemic basis for decision-making.
By making the right choice, the manager optimizes the company’s chances of success in the market, increases internal results, and raises the engagement of their own employees.
2. Helps identify potential communication flaws
One of the main roles of any manager or executive is precisely to identify potential flaws and, with the right tools, eliminate or correct them. Every flaw represents a weakness for the company, or rather, a competitive disadvantage.
In this sense, key performance indicators have another great importance. With them, it is possible to know what has been going right or wrong within the company, enabling the manager to identify most of the problems related to the subject under analysis.
However, it is not enough just to know how to identify problems; that is only the first step. It is also important for the manager to act as a problem-solver, seeking to annihilate any disadvantage that puts the success of the business or, in this case, internal communication, in doubt.
3. Contributes to prioritizing the most important projects
Not every company has the opportunity to rely on millions upon millions to invest in new tools. In fact, the vast majority of corporations do not have this privilege. Therefore, it is up to the manager to prioritize the most profitable tools, but how do you know which ones they are?
Here is another benefit of measuring results. Performance indicators contribute to defining which tool represents or will represent a higher return on investment for the company. In this case, the ROI calculation gains prominent spotlight.
By measuring results, it is possible to prioritize the ideal tool for your business. Thus, saving time and money, two paramount things in any enterprise.
4. Offers realistic data for work meetings
Few things can be worse for an executive or manager’s reputation than starting a meeting without truly clear and reliable information on the subject to be addressed. In such cases, it might be better if the meeting didn’t even happen.
This is because a large part of meetings serve to make important decisions, but without sufficient information, this becomes impossible. Furthermore, a company’s decision-making process is not based on intuition, but on empirical analysis of facts.
Thus, in addition to everything already mentioned, result measurement serves to provide relevant information and reliable reports for meetings within the organization. Consequently, the meeting overall will flow better, and the results will be epic.
PDCA Cycle and the company’s internal communication
One of the best-known techniques is the PDCA cycle. This is a globally recognized management method. The name comes from an acronym of four English words: Plan, Do, Check, and Act. In Portuguese: planejar, executar, checar e agir.
Its relatively simple and highly efficient methodology has made the tool gain great popularity. Now see how to implement a corporate internal communication tool with the help of the PDCA cycle:
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Plan
The first step involves planning what will be done. At this stage, it is important to choose the tool to be used and define which people will be involved in the activity. As seen, there are many tools, and the choice will depend on three main factors: employees, culture, and available budget. Having good planning is the basis for the entire process to succeed.
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Do
Now is the time to execute what was planned, or rather, implement the initially chosen tool. The execution process is just as important as the planning process. So make sure everything is going the right way, that people are truly committed to the results, and that they know how the new tool works. At this stage, you can create a small activity schedule.
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Check
The third step is to check the results achieved. Here it is essential to have the help of the key performance indicators mentioned earlier. Based on them, evaluate whether the outcomes truly align with the desired results. If not, then it will be necessary to understand what has been preventing the achievement of the desired goals.
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Act
The final aspect relates to acting correctively. Based on the identified results, action must be taken to optimize the internal communication process. So first diagnose what has gone wrong in the planning and look for potential solutions to the problem.
With these four main steps, it is possible to improve internal dialogue: by planning, executing, checking, and eliminating any and all weaknesses.
After acting correctively—the final step of the PDCA cycle—it is recommended to start over at the first step. Go back to planning and looking for better tools and methods to optimize internal communication and measure results.
Now you know how to measure the effects of the company’s internal communication. Take the opportunity to keep learning and read our post: 5 tips to optimize your company’s internal communication.
