Jan 11, 2022
The Building Better Cultures podcast starts out the new year with a lively conversation featuring Ray Walsh, a communications and internal localization consultant whose professional background and years of living in various European markets have given him unique insights into the power and nuance behind effective messaging. The author of “Localizing Employee Communications: A Handbook” shares thoughts about the challenges unique to global organizations that want uniformity of messaging but not at the expense of effective penetration among the employees those internal corporate communications must reach.
Ray reflects on the responsibility of leaders to collaborate and co-create communications by taking an active role in the process. The most effective internal communications understand and incorporate local culture. English works as the global language of business to a large degree, but not in all instances, which is why Ray has developed a framework for tackling the thorny problem of reaching across business units and teams in markets of varying sizes and cultures with variable norms. This podcast offers concrete tips for building (and co-creating) compelling content that will resonate among individuals while preserving central corporate culture and messaging.
Click here to read more about Ray’s approach through his handbook, “Localizing Employee Communications.”
To learn more about the Building Better Cultures podcast and related services, visit www.buildingbettercultures.com
If you’re struggling with communications while adapting to a hybrid workplace model, click here to explore Workvivo, a collaboration platform that offers seamless digital integration.
KEY TAKEAWAYS
KEY QUOTES
“In regional offices here in Europe I see physically that we have gaps – gaps in understanding, gaps in motivation, business conditions, culture. More of us that work in home offices need to know that we have these gaps.”
“People are more likely to act on content that speaks to them.”
“We have to rely on (a cascade approach) a lot and I think we should. Unfortunately information isn’t like water. It doesn’t flow naturally like a cascade, so it has its problems.”
“I don’t think we can simply put out a campaign and say, ‘Let’s cascade this’ and just assume that they’re going to do it effectively and in a fully engaged way.”
“If you’re going into too much detail, you’re underestimating what your mature communicators can do for you. And if you don’t give enough detail, then you’re really encouraging … just flipping it forward.”
“It’s really important wherever possible to connect communications with (leadership’s) desired local outcomes.”
“Anything that connects abstract, global concepts to local examples, we consider a story; anything that grounds lofty concepts into the specifics of the workday.”
“When we’re trying to motivate or persuade, that’s where I think it’s much more effective to speak to (local employees’) guts; to use their mother tongue, to make it easier for them.”
“If you want to change behavior – or, more likely, prevent misbehavior – trainings coming from us in the Anglosphere may not be so effective.”
“We have to from the very beginning build a mindset for global-ready content. Global readiness, I believe, should be built into almost everything we produce.”
ABOUT RAY WALSH
Ray Walsh is an American
communications consultant based in Prague. For 20 years he has
supported global clients in a variety of industries and managed
employee communications in-house for companies including UPS and
DXC Technology. He has lived in his native US, and in Germany,
Belgium and the Czech Republic.
Website: www.raywalsh.net
@LinkedIn
ABOUT
SCOTT MCINNES