The production of an Engagement Chart enables projects to identify the best means of communicating with the various stakeholder groups; i.e. challenging the go-to medium of emails and meetings. By challenging the one-size-fits all model – or indeed reaching for the ‘emails and meetings’ option – an Engagement Chart tailors communication plans in order to meet the needs of each audience; ensuring messages are delivered with greater effect.
Why is it used?
It broadens the selection of communication tools at a teams disposal, enabling the selection of the most appropriate medium for each audience; for example, if a change impacted a distributed network of office-based colleagues, a visual campaign in the foyer of each office might be a more appropriate option, over that of a mention in a newsletter.
When is it helpful?
Where a catalogue of changes will impact a range of stakeholder groups, either by division or geography, an Engagement Chart can reduce the cost of mis-aligned communications.
How is it applied?
Begin by compiling a list of all channels available to the team; a typical set may include town hall events, team huddles, productivity/notice boards, physical locations around an office, poster areas, lunch and learn events, video and promotional merchandise.
Using the groupings identified through the Stakeholder Matrix[1] , identify which groups will need communicating to.
Through research and group knowledge, identify which channels will best-serve the purpose of raising awareness of the change or project.
It may be appropriate to use an alternative lens – based on the size and complexity of a project or change – by considering the correlation between the Scale of Impact and the Mean of Communication; for example, a highly complex change would require multiple channels to ensure messages are received and embedded, while low-impact changes could rely on relatively few channels.
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