A common management tactic in internal communication is to create a network of facilitators. Many times, this network ends in nothingness, produces demotivation and a lack of commitment for future calls. Can it be prevented?
When the company has a large number of collaborators, or its location is dispersed, we usually advise three movements so that internal communication flows:
- the installation of listening, the systematization of channels, the formation of a network of facilitators.
Regarding the first two there are no doubts. Listening is an element that nobody discusses as fundamental in a communication process, be it in the individual habit of each person or in the search for information - at a general level - in the company. In sync with a good listening habit, point 2 is combined, a battery of channels. Well managed, with relevant, massive and segmented content; on this point there are no doubts either.
The third element is the network of facilitators, and here there may be some controversy.
A jump without a net
There were few cases in which the project of building a network was quickly “bought”: its initial benefits are evident. A network of allies, (better if they are from different areas) receives communication instruction and -in periodic meetings- information up to date. And it favors, by this mechanism, a kind of virtuous circle of communication: it works against rumors because it knows a little more about communication than the rest and because it has more information than most.
Clearly, the launch and initial call are not a problem. The problem occurs within the first year of management. When the initial energy - achieved by the novelty, by the training - drops, the members stop attending the meetings, and the network stops working. Instead, demotivation appears, and the known comments when other calls are made: "if I already know that this also ends in nothing."
Two Simple Ideas for Network Success
The definition of functions. At the time of raising the network, an obstacle is that it does not have clear functions: neither for its members, nor for those who called it. Should they notify if the billboards are old or empty? Should they report if a topic is the subject of rumor? Is it your task to receive complaints and suggestions, to raise them? Should they make proposals for improvement, so that they can be implemented? Answering these questions helps to think about development paths for people, and helps in managing the area.
Cycles. When we call to participate in a network, it is best that it has a predetermined period of action. Let's say one year, well communicated from the start, from the call. It allows us several movements: on the one hand, convene, instruct, dialogue with its members during a relevant time.
It enables us to close the cycle with a balance of what has been done, without feeling of loss at the end of the year. It makes it easier to "launch" onto the general circuit to people who have had a positive experience. And, above all, it prepares the way for us to summon another group of people again, to live the same experience. This, yes, enriching.
