22 April 2009
Downturn drives internal comms demand
Industry much quieter than a year ago, however recession has meant British business is increasingly calling on interim IC change professionals.
The global downturn has made internal communication more visible and valuable than ever before and created a new set of niche change roles that could alleviate some of the slowdown the profession has faced in recent months, one of the industry’s largest recruiters said yesterday.
“The internal communications market is much quieter than before and we are receiving less job briefs, but the recession has helped in a way and made the profession much more visible externally, said Charlotte Butler (pictured, right), associate director at VMA Group, recruiters for the PR, corporate communications and investor relations professions.
“There are new niche roles being created due to the huge changes and change programs being carried out across the country,” she said. “There's more change work but also more interim work in IT, communications and HR,” Butler added.
The recession has helped in a way and made the profession much more visible externally.
Butler’s comments came at a special event organized a day before today’s UK Budget due to be announced by the Chancellor, Alistair Darling, at 12.30pm. Entitled ‘When the going gets tough, the tough get fitter’. It brought over 100 of the internal communication industry’s most senior practitioners, from both the public and the private sector, together to discuss how the ongoing recession was affecting the profession.
New comms roles hard to come by
Delegates were warned that despite the media and the corporate communities increasingly viewing internal communications as a core function during a downturn, that less new jobs were being offered, more candidates were choosing to stay with their current employers and that job interviews now involved five to six rather than two to three stages.
“The IC job market is much quieter, there has been an increase in direct and internal placements and there are less vacancies that are being immediately refilled and instead being taken by interim placements,” she said.
Attendees were then taken through the six key attributes of internal communications and reminded that in such a tough job market, they should “constantly demonstrate their worth” and have “concrete examples” of how valuable and successful they have been.
“Because of the recession, having or gaining skills that highlight your gravitas, and the credibility and presence you have is one of the most important areas right now. We have been told by chief executives this is one of the key skills and attributes they look for in an internal communicator.”
Six key attributes of internal communicators
Tenure and background
- Experience from other communications backgrounds is valuable but you must be able to demonstrate transferability.
- Moving jobs every one or two years can be a positive sign for employers.
- The public sector, along with charities and not for profit organisations, is hiring far more than the private sector at present.
Relationship building skills
- Forge great relationships – this industry is relatively new and still small in size. People talk, in both a good and a bad way and having a great reputation and forging great relationships is key.
- Networking and presentation skills, as well as sales skills, are becoming increasingly valuable.
- Not working in a silo but seeing the bigger picture.
Gravitas
- Business acumen, commercial awareness, being more of an advisor and a coach.
- Body language and self-awareness.
- Warm up your voice before an interview or presentation.
- Prepare your script well in advance.
- Attitude – have a mantra.
Writing skills
- This is the third biggest deficit among internal communicators.
- A strong journalistic or writing background is now one of the most valued skills requested by employers.
Change (is the only constant)
- Demonstrate change programmes or mergers you were involved with, demonstrate that your started the process.
- Become an advisor, coach and consultant for change.
- Write some of your own case studies to take with you to interview to show how highly you were involved.
Professional development
- Keep your skills sharp.
- Swap tips.
- Join forces with colleagues and/or counterparts to develop industry standards.
- Develop a common internal communications vocabulary.
- Meet the competition.
Have your say
Have you suffered or benefited during the worst economic downturn since the 1930s? Has your line of work changed completely since the beginning of the year from one permanent role to a series of interims positions?
Recommended resources:
Top Tips: A six-step engagement process
TOOL: a strategy map for engagement
Ensuring engagement while avoiding burnout
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