A week of firsts…
This week has been a packed one with lots of highlights and firsts. I was the other side of the camera for a secret photo shoot (can tell you more in a few weeks) and met some really interesting people there. I went to my first station opening and my first batch of newly branded […]
Read more >On the right track for communication
Doing routine work, it’s easy to get complacent. How do you make sure that safety is uppermost in people’s minds? How do you communicate with them in ways that stick and change behaviour? This was the driving force behind Network Rail’s Safety 365 campaign, aimed at a “tough, cynical audience of frontline workers” across the industry. Head of Marketing at Network […]
Read more >Monday musings
This week I’m looking forward to the launch of Imperial Wharf station, which opened its doors on Sunday and is the latest to be added to the London Overground network. After what seems like an eternity, my personal mobile contract is nearing the end and I can upgrade to an iPhone, hurrah. It’s due to arrive […]
Read more >Diary of an internal communicator… continued
Back in August I was asked by Melcrum to keep a diary of the first four weeks in my new role as Head of Communications for London Overground Rail Operations Ltd (LOROL). The four weeks whizzed by and before I knew it, the end of my first month had arrived and the diary was over. […]
Read more >I'm in… are you?
How good are you at prioritising? Does your ‘to-do’ list change every month, week, day, hour or minute? It seems that in today’s fast-paced world the amount of people who would like a piece of your time as a communicator can be overwhelming. Making time to effectively plan rather than reactively creating communications campaigns is […]
Read more >Casting the net
One of the most valuable lessons I’ve learnt during my career so far is the value of networking. Nowadays there are so many choices and easy ways to keep in touch with past friends, colleagues and acquaintances that I don’t think there is much excuse for not keeping the lines of communication open. Whether you […]
Read more >Dear diary…
I’ve been asked by Melcrum to keep a diary of the first month at my new job – which you can read here. I’ve not kept a diary since I was a teenager (slightly different content now!) and I hope it will provide an insight into the role of internal communicators and also help me see […]
Read more >Comms in a nutshell
How do you describe corporate communication to people who have never encountered it before? Do you quote reams of statistics about how it can boost motivation, help retention and generally increase productivity of your workforce, or do you let people discover for themselves by providing effective two-way channels and let the benefits unfold? I’m mulling […]
Read more >Caught up in the crunch
Research published by Melcrum this week shows the credit crunch has been taking its toll, with more internal communicators than ever before being forced to prove their worth. From talking to comms professionals I know, it seems at a time when comms functions need to continue doing what they do best, they are being asked […]
Read more >Engagement, engagement, engagement
– and not the diamond ring type… Engagement has been around for a while now as a buzzword; it appears on lots of conference schedules and is subject of many a journal and article. But what does it mean in reality? Whose definition is correct? Why does it matter and what is the role corporate […]
Read more >What do you think of Internal Comms qualifications?
Huge congratulations to everyone on my post-graduate diploma in Internal Communications Management course. A year of study has finally come to an end and I’m the very proud owner of a PGDip. Well done to everyone in my class for surviving and coming out the other side. For me, the opportunity to meet Internal Comms […]
Read more >CiB awards success!
The annual Communicators in Business (CiB) awards took place in Birmingham, UK, last Friday night and I’m chuffed to bits to say that our team (Internal Communications) was honoured. We won Awards of Excellence for our monthly employee magazine at Tube Lines, platform, and for the online news site our team produced in-house to publicise […]
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