Each week in this newsletter I answer a question from a reader. This week's question comes from a reader in Singapore:
I've been asked by my boss to prove the ROI of our internal communications. But I am stumped and not sure where to start. I do collect data, things like newsletter open rates and engagement scores and townhall attendance but I can’t seem to make the link between this and ROI. What should I actually be measuring, should I think about this differently?? Please help!
I can actually hear the slight panic in your voice as you typed this out so first things first, no need to stress! I can absolutely help you with this. And you should know, by the way, that measurement is probably the number one thing I get asked about by clients in workshops and on coaching calls. So you are absolutely not the only person trying to figure this out.
The truth is, most of us were never taught how to measure internal comms effectively. We learned to track what was easy to track, things like opens, clicks, views, attendance rates, NPS scores. But do these things really matter to the business? Probably not. We need to think differently about measurement.
Now this is a topic I’m very passionate about and I am quietly working on something big this year to unlock all of this for you and make it super simple 👀
But I don’t want to make you wait until my secret project is completely ready, let’s talk about this NOW. I’m joining a panel of experts to talk about measurement in internal comms with our pals at Workvivo on 18th March and I’d love you to join me.
This event will be a candid, conversational and advice-packed session where we talk all things measurement, value and ROI of internal comms. You can expect us to deep dive into topics like:
- How do you measure what matters in internal comms? How do you even figure out what it is that actually matters?!
- Can internal comms influence business decisions and company success?
- Are there different measures you should collect for leaders vs for your own comms team?
- What kind of metrics are pointless and not worth collecting?
- Are there practical steps we could take to get better at measuring what our leaders care about most?
I'm an absolute nerd for this kind of discussion so I’m looking forward to this a lot. On the panel I’ll be joined by people who bring very different perspectives and expertise which is what makes this event so exciting and genuinely useful.
The other speakers include:
Idris Mustafovski, Head of People & Culture at Bounce Inc
Bounce Inc is an Australian indoor adventure brand (think trampolines, obstacle courses, high-energy venues) with 49 locations globally and over 3,000 team members, most of them frontline workers. Idris leads people and culture in the company and is highly tuned in to what his people need, what their work experience is like, how comms can play a huge role in culture and retention.
Megan Ford, Training and Internal Communications Coordinator at Fishbowl
Fishbowl is a fast-growing Australian food brand on a mission to change fast food. Megan has been there for six years and has built their internal comms and training from scratch as the company has grown. She knows a thing or two about connecting metrics to business priorities and she will give us rich insights into what useful comms measurement looks like in a frontline business.
If you want to learn about:
- The metrics that your leaders care about (and the ones they don't)
- How to connect your comms work to strategic business priorities
- How to frame ROI in language that lands in the boardroom
- Real examples from people in the trenches doing the work
Then this event is absolutely for you. And did I mention that it’s free?
The details:
📅 March 18th
🕐 11am AEDT / 1pm NZDT / midnight GMT
This event is in the Australia/ New Zealand time zone so if you’re reading this in Europe then don’t fear, you can still register and get the recording to watch it back the next day. This one will be worth it, plus you get to watch with your morning coffee and possibly a cat if you have one.
If you've ever sat in front of your leadership team feeling like your metrics aren't landing, this session is going to help. As ever, bring your questions and I will answer as many as I can!
Thanks for reading and stay curious,
Joanna
PS Did you make it this far without signing up yet? You need this!
Find me on YouTube, TikTok, LinkedIn and check out my book
Want to work together?
- Join The Curious Tribe. This is my membership community for ambitious, curious communicators who want to achieve more in their roles and have fun at the same time. Membership allows you to work directly with me for 12 months, make deep connections with other communication pros who 'get it' and improve your skills through training and learning. More info here.
- Ready to review your channels and content but don't know where to start? Download my practical Internal Comms Audit Playbook to guide you through a DIY audit - no expensive consultant needed. This has ready-to-use templates and checklists to give you a systematic way to do your own audit which you can repeat every single year. Get it here.
- Take a shortcut. I've developed a collection of tried-and-tested templates, checklists and how-to guides for the key processes you'll need in your role as an internal communicator. You can download my Internal Comms Cheat Sheets here.