Change communications is tough.
Foggy business plans; aloof/petrified senior leaders; hard-to-pin-down project plan; resistant employees (of all levels!) – us communicators brave/silly enough to work in change management have seen it all.
And, for the most part, we love it (I know I do). But sometimes, the volatile and hectic nature of change environments can really get you down.
Of course, life is always better when you’ve got a strong comms tribe who understand and are willing to come to your aid via GIFs…
But not all heros send GIFs. I got some great advice from comms pros via regular tweets:
‘Hey Annique, it’s worth following @AllthingsIC and @HelReynolds if you don’t already. Both absolute rock stars in the world of comms – internal, external, change etc’ – Hayley Lewis @Haypsych
‘I actually love working on change! But totally recognise all of this too. Last minute changes to messages, no brief, no business plan, leaders giving ‘development opportunities to others’ when they don’t want to deliver the message themselves etc’- Bea Buckley @bea_at_work
‘The hardest bit is getting leaders to participate and not just ‘leave it to comms/PR’ to ‘sort’’ – Laura Sutherland @laurafromaura
I’m pleased to say I’m still very much in love with change comms (and my job!) – thanks to my comms tribe and a good night sleep. Long may it continue!
Hey you!
Do you:
Work in PR and comms and of African and Caribbean descent? Come along to our free intro session for the new UK Black Comms Network (25 August). I’m a Founding Member of the Network and will be doing a bit of presenting on the night!
Want to explore practical ways to help people managers motivate and inspire their teams? Get a ticket to Ragan’s Empowering Leaders across Shifting Workplace Landscapes webinar (9 Sep, 6-7.30pm UK time). I’ll be taking part in panel convo on line manager communications in the wake of COVID-19.
Want to brush up on your comms skills and learn from 30+ PR and Comms experts in your own time? Grab a ticket to #CommsHero Week (28 September – 2 October). I’ll be talking employee burnout – what is it and how can we prevent it.
Annique Simpson 
The kitten gif made me giggle. This blog post was fun – just like comms is supposed to be like (ideally)!
LikeLike
Thank you Fred. Glad it made you chuckle. We’re a funny bunch, us IC lot!
LikeLike
Yeah, for sure you are! Thanks for replying to my comment and keep up the great work! 🙂
LikeLike