Using the intranet for CEO communication

Using the intranet for CEO communication

The following question was recently posted to The Communicators' Network:

Q: What's the best direct channel (via intranet), other than a letter or a blog, which encapsulates simple, direct and personal communications from the CEO?

A: Two suggestions, both very simple at heart.

1) An 800 number: The equivalent of an all-employee voicemail, but accessible from any phone in the world, or through the company network. In this format you can script and rehearse the (really short) message from the CEO to give it urgency and make sure it's jargon-free. As a high-tech add-on, you can also make the message available on the internet as a Pod-cast.

2) Stand up video: Again, both high-tech and low-tech. You travel with a little video camera and do stand up reports from various locations. You can then drop it almost straight onto your intranet (after saving it as low resolution).

A lot of this will depend on how adventurous and comfortable your leaders are. While the fear of self-exposure is high, the risk is low. And the effect and rewards in terms of employee engagement are really high.

David Ferrabee