HR Change Management and Communications Strategy

Problem:

The company I was working for had a two-fold business challenge requiring my leadership and strategic insight: multiple key executive departures and loss of their largest client. I was brought in to develop an internal and external communications strategy. This involved leading cross-functional teams (executives, human resources, IT, etc.) as well as external partners (PR firms, clients, media) to ensure the communications strategy rollout was successful.

Action:

I first understood the changes happening within the company, identified each of the impacted audience groups and developed a detailed messaging guidebook to set the foundation. This was a living document that internal and external teams used to create individual communication plans for their respective audience groups. Time constraints posed challenges because it was important for the internal strategy to roll out first, while avoiding the risk of an external leak to the news media.

Result:

The keys to success were ultimately threefold: 1) to have a strong, trusted relationship with the executive team, 2) to have a plan that included key messaging and timing for each team, and 3) to have engaged the right partners to help execute the plan.