Energizing comms at National Grid
Sarah Larvor explains how she has reshaped the communication function at National Grid to add greater value to the business, and why the little moments of truth mean so much.
Given her background of reading Experimental Psychology at Oxford University, which attempts to unravel the complexity of human behavior and cognition, it's somewhat surprising when Sarah Larvor insists she hasn't applied any radical communication theories during her time at National Grid.
In fact, it's the tried and tested methods of communication that are most effective at the FTSE-listed international electricity and gas company based in the UK and northeastern US. The majority of its workforce are engineering field workers - in vehicles, up poles, down holes or, quite literally, standing in fields. For them, face-to-face remains the prime channel.
"Face-to-face is the fundamental building block of human communication. Everything we do as communicators is about trying to get a proxy for face-to-face where you can see the individual, read the body language and pick up on non-verbal cues," she says. "As communicators we are trying to reach that ideal scenario of everybody feeling like they are having a personal chat."
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This article was originally published in Strategic Communication Management.
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