Change Agent Tip #2: Communicate Using Multiple Channels

Change Agents seeking to plant key messages about their change in the minds of stakeholders must compete with a growing cacophony of information being fed to their target audience. A great way to be heard is to deliver consistent, clear messages using many different channels.Here’s a short list of stakeholder channels I’ve seen or used on past projects:

1. Websites (decide if it’s for internal or external stakeholders).
2. Emails or memos to stakeholders (keep them short).
3. Town Hall Meetings to share progress & expectations.
4. Online Meetings using tools like WebEx, Mikogo or GoToMeeeting*.
5. Road Shows where team members visit field locations to share information, listen and gather feedback from front-line stakeholders.
6. Tag-Alongs where your change is included on the agenda of staff meetings or other gatherings.
7. Newsletters (…not exactly green, but I still see them used…)
8. Bulletin boards / posters around the work area.
9. Facebook pages (especially if you need to engage external stakeholders long after the project).
10. Twitter handles or project-specific hash tags.

For more on these topics, check out these earlier posts here on theBigRocks:

1. Six Rules for Communication
2. Team Websites
3. Effective Virtual Meetings

-Steve

Question for Chatter:

• What other innovative communication methods have you used?

Disclaimer: I wasn’t compensated for mentioning Webex, GoToMeeting or Mikogo.

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