Effective Communications: How to Develop a Communications Plan
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The document outlines key components for developing an effective communications plan, emphasizing the importance of understanding stakeholders and utilizing strategic communication tools. It highlights that companies with effective communication enjoy significant advantages, including higher market premiums and employee engagement. The document also provides recommendations for continuous communication strategies and upcoming webinars focused on enhancing communication skills for IT leaders.
Effective Communications: How to Develop a Communications Plan
- 1. © 2016 Gartner, Inc. and/or its affiliates. All rights reserved. While you are waiting for our webinar to begin - A few housekeeping items to check out: Have a Question Click the Question tab and submit your questions to our analyst and host. Presentation Dial-in information if you are unable to attend via VoIP If you have any difficulties, please email gartnerwebinars@gartner.com. ? To keep up to date on Gartner’s webinars follow @Vickier0729 on Twitter and Vickie Romanchuk on LinkedIn. For a broader insight into Gartner you can find us @Gartner_inc on Twitter and Gartner on LinkedIn. Visit our Attachment Tab and Download:
- 2. © 2016 Gartner, Inc. and/or its affiliates. All rights reserved.
- 3. Effective Communications: How to Develop a Communications Plan Heather Colella Research VP for Gartner’s Office of the CIO 9 years at Gartner, 34 years Industry experience For a broader insight into Gartner you can find us: @Gartner_inc on Twitter and Gartner on LinkedIn. @HeatherColella https://www.linkedin.com/in/heathercolella
- 4. 3 © 2016 Gartner, Inc. and/or its affiliates. All rights reserved. Enterprises with effective communications: Have a 19% higher market premium Experience 57% higher shareholder returns Are 4.5 times more likely to report high levels of employee engagement Are 20% more likely to report lower turnover The Sky is the Limit for Companies Who Communicate Effectively Source: Watson Wyatt Communication ROI Study
- 5. 4 © 2016 Gartner, Inc. and/or its affiliates. All rights reserved. 11 types of communications commonly used by CIOs and IT leaders The importance of understanding your stakeholders as part of the communications process How to develop a communications plan In today’s webinar we will explore… Great communication inspires action and commitment and drives better business outcomes.
- 6. 5 © 2016 Gartner, Inc. and/or its affiliates. All rights reserved. There is a proven strategy used in an effective communications process Organizations that get the full benefits of effective communications have their people consciously manage this communications strategy each and every time they communicate—this applies to the policy process as well
- 7. 6 © 2016 Gartner, Inc. and/or its affiliates. All rights reserved. STEP #1 Start with the end in mind
- 8. 7 © 2016 Gartner, Inc. and/or its affiliates. All rights reserved. The communications core consists of 11 tools 1. IT Strategy 2. Performance Dashboards 3. IT Policies 4. Satisfaction Surveys 5. IT Updates 6. Transformation Management 7. Portfolio Reprioritization through Governance 8. Board Updates 9. Major Project Failure 10. Security Breach 11. Changes in Leadership The Communications Core Specific Events Difficult Communications
- 9. 8 © 2016 Gartner, Inc. and/or its affiliates. All rights reserved. Other outcomes include…. • Improve how IT is perceived in the enterprise • Engage the board in a meaningful conversation about strategy • Mature the IT organization in its processes • Forge a tighter relationship with the CMO • ….and the list goes on
- 10. 9 © 2016 Gartner, Inc. and/or its affiliates. All rights reserved. IT Strategy: The Single Most Powerful Tool in Your Arsenal Is Your Strategy A Great Strategy: Is Visionary Is Clear Is Succinct Tells a story Uses your industry as the IT analogy Brings the unknown into focus
- 11. 10 © 2016 Gartner, Inc. and/or its affiliates. All rights reserved. Opportunity: - Display a trailer list to the mobile app. - Add the capability to “like” trailers or add trailer to a movie watch list. - Notify the customer when tickets go on sale for movies on their watch list. This trailer is great! I want to share with my friends. Can someone bring me popcorn? Box office lines were really long! Opportunity: - Add “movie mode” to the mobile app. - Send a notification to the mobile app asking the guest to activate “movie mode”. Opportunity: - Add native ticketing to the mobile app. - Streamline the mobile transaction. Opportunity: - Add the concession purchasing to the mobile app. - Send order to the guest’s reserved seat. Example
- 12. 11 © 2016 Gartner, Inc. and/or its affiliates. All rights reserved.11 © 2016 Gartner, Inc. and/or its affiliates. All rights reserved. STEP #2 Stakeholder communication can be complex, consciously manage the complexities
- 13. 12 © 2016 Gartner, Inc. and/or its affiliates. All rights reserved. Map desired outcomes along a continuum, then plan the interactions
- 14. 13 © 2016 Gartner, Inc. and/or its affiliates. All rights reserved. A formal stakeholder analysis provides important insight into what ‘like groups’ need
- 15. 14 © 2016 Gartner, Inc. and/or its affiliates. All rights reserved. A formal stakeholder analysis provides important insight into individual needs and preferences
- 16. 15 © 2016 Gartner, Inc. and/or its affiliates. All rights reserved.15 © 2016 Gartner, Inc. and/or its affiliates. All rights reserved. STEP #3 Create and work a communications plan
- 17. 16 © 2016 Gartner, Inc. and/or its affiliates. All rights reserved. Communication plan components Goals What needs to be accomplished? Communicator Who is going to say it? Stakeholder Targets To whom? Message Content What exactly will they say? Delivery Method How? Delivery Frequency When? How often? Feedback Did you achieve your goal? Measures How do you know? Communication Plan Components
- 18. 17 © 2016 Gartner, Inc. and/or its affiliates. All rights reserved. Communications Plan: IT Strategy
- 19. 18 © 2016 Gartner, Inc. and/or its affiliates. All rights reserved. Communications Plan: Performance Dashboards
- 20. 19 © 2016 Gartner, Inc. and/or its affiliates. All rights reserved. Communication Type: IT policies. Purpose: IT policies help create consistent action within the IT organization. They provide a framework for daily decision making that enables the organization to continually deliver to excellent standards. To achieve these goals, those impacted by the policies must have a clear understanding of what they are supposed to do relative to each policy. Communicator: The announcement of policies can be made via the service desk. Policies can also be announced and stored within the project management office (PMO). The most important policies should be reinforced during IT updates, by either the departmental leader who owns the policy or the CIO (See "Effective Communications: IT Updates" ). Stakeholders: Stakeholder targets should include IT personnel who will be impacted by the policies and the IT organization overall in order to inform all involved about changes impacting end users relative to service-level agreements. (See "Effective Communications: Stakeholder Analysis" ). Messages: Present a clear definition of the policy — who will use it, when and where it applies, and how results will be measured. This will help to establish consistent performance boundaries and lead to improved operational performance. Helping people understand why the procedural changes are being made and explaining any related exceptions are critical to enabling great performance. Ongoing monitoring of the policy is key to ensuring it is consistently followed and still meets business needs. Delivery method: Policies can be delivered as part of service desk packages or through tools such as Microsoft Office SharePoint Server. Push out changes via IT update meetings and summaries to reinforce their importance and ensure that those impacted are hearing the same message. Also, consider posting policy changes in a common location so the entire IT organization can access them. Delivery frequency: IT policies are time-sensitive and should be immediately communicated to those who will be impacted. They should also be reviewed on a regular basis by impacted department members to ensure they are continually reminded of their responsibilities. Wherever possible, build the review of IT policies into IT processes to create "just in time" application of relevant policies. For example, prior to implementing a change to the network, have network administrators review relevant policies. Feedback: During the development of policies, solicit feedback from a core group of individuals who will be impacted by them. Include the people you are developing to become future leaders; this is an opportunity for them to demonstrate their leadership skills and thought processes. Consider rolling out a draft version to all impacted for review and input, as well as auditing where appropriate. Measures of success: Over time, the consistent rhythm and style of delivering policies can improve the ability of the IT organization to incorporate changes because personnel know what to do and when. Organizational performance should therefore improve as measured in the performance dashboards. Communications Plan for IT Policies
- 21. 20 © 2016 Gartner, Inc. and/or its affiliates. All rights reserved. Communications Plan: IT Updates
- 22. 21 © 2016 Gartner, Inc. and/or its affiliates. All rights reserved. The communications core consists of 11 tools 1. IT Strategy 2. Performance Dashboards 3. IT Policies 4. Satisfaction Surveys 5. IT Updates 6. Transformation Management 7. Portfolio Reprioritization through Governance 8. Board Updates 9. Major Project Failure 10. Security Breach 11. Changes in Leadership The Communications Core Specific Events Difficult Communications Communicate regularly to demonstrate IT’s ability to be great with the basics. “Don’t wait for a crisis to communicate—there will be more questions about who you are than about your message.” Be proactive and tie everything to the strategy/vision.
- 23. 22 © 2016 Gartner, Inc. and/or its affiliates. All rights reserved. Recommendations Adopt a strategy for continuous communications Know the outcome you want to achieve Formalize a stakeholder analysis Develop a vision for the organization — vision is the CIO's signature Create an integrated IT communications plan that addresses the who, what, when, where, how and why for every interaction
- 24. 23 © 2016 Gartner, Inc. and/or its affiliates. All rights reserved. Recommended Research Effective Communications: A Strategy (G00170328) Effective Communications: Stakeholder Analysis (G00170514) Effective Communications: How to Develop a Communications Plan (G00170368) The Art of the 1-page Strategy (G00281842) Effective Communications: Performance Dashboards (G00171034) Effective Communications: Lead Through Storytelling (G00201635) Effective Communications: Policies (G00213993) Effective Communications: IT Satisfaction Surveys (G00227558) Effective Communications: IT Updates (G00171069) Effective Communications: Difficult Communications (G00212849)
- 25. 24 © 2016 Gartner, Inc. and/or its affiliates. All rights reserved. Upcoming webinars from the Effective Communications series • Learn How Policies Improve Overall IT Performance View On Demand • Creating the Communications Core View On Demand • Stakeholder Analysis View On Demand • How to Develop a Communications Plan View On Demand • Portfolio Reprioritization through Governance Register Now: Aug. 11 • The Art of the 1-Page Strategy Register Now: Sept. 14
- 26. 25 CONFIDENTIAL AND PROPRIETARY I © 2016 Gartner, Inc. and/or its affiliates. All rights reserved. Below is a piece of free research you might find of interest: The Art of the One-Page Strategy Strategy can be an art or a science. Most CIOs and IT leaders experience more personal and organizational success when they demonstrate how IT contributes to business success using an artful approach to strategy development. Thank you for attending Gartner’s webinar today: Effective Communications: How to Develop a Communications Plan by Heather Colella Link: https://www.gartner.com/doc/3092222?srcId=1-7199395386&cm_mmc=pres-_-RMGI-_-slide-_-inwebinar Free until 12/31/2016
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