As you embark on your DEI strategic planning journey, you must literally go tell it to the mountain! Seriously, I cannot stress the importance of creating an effective communications plan so leaders, project managers and teams will understand why you’ve embarked on this journey and how it will impact your company. Last week, I posted the first in a series of articles on effective strategic planning. This week, we turn to the role that you and your Comms team play in getting the message out about your project.
1. Create a high level Comms plan
Meet with your Comms team to create a high level plan. If your organization/firm does not have an entire Comms department, take the lead by collaborating with leaders and project managers to develop the plan. As you develop your plan, answer the following questions:
a.What is the purpose of this project?
b.What are 1-3 main goals this project hopes to achieve?
c.How will the project impact the organization?
It’s important for all Comms messaging to be aligned with project goals and for messaging to repeat these objectives throughout the project for clarity of vision.
2. Identify your audience
It’s important at the outset to identify your target audiences. Messaging ought to be modified to appeal to different audiences as well. For example, are you asking HR leads to communicate project details to their teams? Are you asking senior leaders to partner with you or to support the project with financial or human resources? Are you sharing launch details with employees? Depending on your audience, the tone of your message changes as well.
3. Craft key messaging for different phases of the project
Develop a series of massages for different phases of the project. For example, your messaging for project launch will be slightly different from updates or reminder messaging. Be sure to clearly state what you need your audience to do or know with each message and to provide a clear CTA (call to action).
4. Determine How and How Often
Your Comms schedule will identify the various ways in which your messaging will be communicated, including in-person meetings, via Zoon, email, mass media and project management software. It’s important here to determine which formats will best suit the needs of your project, as this is not a one-size-fits-all scenario. For DEI projects in particular, I find that in person meetings where leaders and employees can ask questions and provide immediate feedback are best for discussing the start of a large scale project such as a DEI strategic plan.
- meetings/face-to-face
- Zoom/Teams
- presentations
- mass media
- message board
- project management software
Creating a scheduled timeline for sending messages at different phases of the project is critical. After launch, you may also need to modify your timeline. For example, if there are project delays, leaders collaborating on the strategic plan would benefit from an updated timeline. This ensures that all stakeholders are on the same page.
5. Define Roles: Who Will Send What?
While you may be responsible for some messaging for the project, there may be times when it’s more important for your CEO or Chief Talent Officer to relay certain messages. Your high level Comms plan will clearly identify leaders needed to collaborate on your messaging and will provide all partners with the tools to make their jobs easier. For example, you could work with your CEO’s office by sending along a draft message, providing time to ask questions or to discuss items that may come up.
6. Launch & Measure
After project launch, especially for larger projects, it’s important to measure which channels were most effective in communicating your message. For example, you may be able to gauge uptick from a particular email or attendance at an open Q&A meeting about the project. Don’t forget to gather informal data from leaders, project managers and employees by creating feedback loops such as surveys.
Communications is a major driver for any project, and is even more pronounced for DEI projects where leaders and employees are asked to take on specific roles and responsibilities that may be new to them. Let me know if you found these steps helpful. I would love to hear from you.