Communication Solution: the Internal Blog March 20, 2009
Posted by Blair Garka in internal blog.Tags: Catherine Cummings, communication, Federal Reserve Bank, internal blog
trackback
In my previous post, I discussed tips for developing an internal blog. Now I will explain why an internal blog should be used and the benefits it brings to companies.
A private, internal blog could be a company’s solution to improve communication within their organization.
Internal blogs make it possible for a team to collect and share advice and ideas. Different departments can sometimes find it hard to collaborate, and an internal blog could be the solution. Blogs can also have information available at any time and keep it private, only allowing access with a log-in password. This solution is inexpensive and can be set up very easily.
In the video below, Catherine Cummings, Assistant Vice President at the Chicago Federal Reserve Bank, shared her experience and success with creating an internal blog for her company.
Cummings’ bank needed improved internal communication. An internal blog was created that allowed anonymous bloggers to leave anonymous comments. This decision was made to create “buzz,” because most companies do not allow participants to remain anonymous. The goal of the blog was to have employees check it regularly for news and updates. The blog was loosely regulated and moderated, which I think was a good idea to show how confident the company was in its employees.
Cummings offered advice for other companies who are interested in creating an anonymous blog. She was very adventurous and said to “just do it.” She thought it was better to “beg for forgiveness rather than ask for permission.” Cummings has gained credibility through this internal blog, and the communication team’s credibility has also increased.
This post is puts a neat spin on the idea of CEO blogging. Internal blogging is less of a “top-down” model of communication than the typical CEO blog. The CEO plays a different role when they are participating in a blog geared directly to employees. The Chicago Federal Reserve Bank was right in allowing comments to be anonymous in this situation. It sounds like they have started a genuine dialog with their employees, who appreciate being able to voice their concerns.
You mention the way that employees are using this internal blog as a means of collaborating on projects. I just read Jackie Albright’s blog with a new post on collaboration using wikis. http://albrigja.wordpress.com/2009/03/20/intels-insight-into-collaboration/
Different companies have found their own solutions for interacting, whether it is a blog, a wiki, or even social networking tools.
I hadn’t really given much thought to an internal corporate blog before reading your post. Although I do believe it is important for corporation’s to use a blog to communicate to all their stakeholders, it seems that having an internal blog for just a corporation’s employees is a great way to communicate. This way the blog can get important information just to the employees without letting others in on corporate news. In an internal blog the employees may feel more comfortable voicing their opinions and asking questions.
I found an article in Business Week that talked about McDonald’s Chief Operating Officer creating an internal blog for his employees. He uses his blog to reach employees all around the world. He wants to know how operations are running and what issues arise. He is allowing communication to improve his corporation. Here is the article…http://www.businessweek.com/technology/content/feb2006/tc20060214_402499.htm
I think it’s great that HR really began listening to what employees were saying on the internal blog. Anonymous comments really allows people to say what they want, without fear of retribution. It also allows the company to see how people are really feeling and if the company acts on what people are saying, then the company will increase their credibility. I agree completely with Cummings when she says that it is just better to try something and beg for forgiveness than to ask for permission. I think that people get more from trying and failing than not trying at all. And like she said, usual senior management is afraid of Web 2.0 and won’t try it. Communications practicioners such as ourselves, are going to be the people who convinence management that social media is the way to go and open communication is only going to help internal communications.