Who’s protecting your staff from internal spam?

Every organization needs internal plumbers to unclog the information pipeline

Doesn’t it make sense for the internal communications function to take on protecting employees from internal spam and managing communication overload? So why isn’t that happening?

The lack of case studies and best-practice writings, combined with the number of communicators who’ve told me that they struggle to get employees’ attention due to internal overload, makes me think no one’s doing it. Very few seem to be taking action beyond gatekeeping e-mail distribution lists, consolidating the news and publishing an e-mail etiquette guide that nobody reads.

I’d also wager that most internal communications departments focus primarily on what comes out of their department and don’t get around to investigating communications overload. They often have low visibility and/or influence over what hits employees from other departments, divisions, segments, etc. Few have the big picture on whether communications overload is occurring and to what extent.

Here’s what they don’t know: