1. Integrated Communications Session 1 Unit 1: Internal Marketing: Cross Functional Relationships and Internal Communications
Welcome to the module on Integrated Communications. It is important that marketers are able to communicate effectively both with internal stakeholders and with customers. This module is designed to give you the skills to assist in developing communications both within the organisation and externally with the aim of building sustainable relationships.
The first two sessions of this module form Unit 1: Internal Marketing. So it looks at how to use communications to build relationships with people inside the organisation. Session 1 looks at cross functional relationships within the organisation and internal communications that support this.
Reading: Chapter 12 and 13 Fill, C. (2013) Marketing Communications: brands, experiences and participation. 6th edition. Harlow, Pearson

2. Know how to build cross-functional relationships
Relationship types and forms
Internal stakeholders
Organisational culture
1.1 Identify types of cross-functional relationships in organisations
Role and benefits of internal communications
Internal communications in: corporate vision and branding, cross-functional relationships, developing customer focus, creating and understanding internal marketing
1.2 Describe the importance of internal communications
Internal communications: auditing and planning
Internal media: intranets, , conferences/video conferencing, staff training, newsletters, social media
1.3 Outline appropriate methods for internal communications
Employee branding and engagement
Internal and external boundaries
Flexible workforce
1.4 Outline the relationship between collaborative working and meeting customer needs
External stakeholders (customers, intermediaries, suppliers, the media, financial institutions etc.) have traditionally been the focus of marketing communications. However, more recently the importance of internal stakeholders as a group who should receive marketing attention has been recognised and with it the concept of internal marketing has emerged.
In this first session we will explore the different types of cross-functional relationships in organisations, look at the importance of internal communications within the organisation in supporting the corporate vision and brand, outline the methods available for internal communications and explore the relationship between collaborative working and meeting customer needs.

3. Types of cross-functional relationships in organisations
Lose, organic network
Think of an organisation like a family tree.
The responsibilities are spread, and there is always both formal and informal systems of communication.
There is also a relationship between the upper and lower levels, plus the teams will have some overlapping groups
Organisational structure affects:
The way work is organised, co-ordinated and managed
The relationships that develop between people and groups
The formal and informal communications between these groups

4. Potential structures Functional
Activities organised by function, e.g. Finance, Marketing, Operations, Distribution and HR
Activities organised by product, category or, in a much larger company, division or business unit, e.g. domestic and business services groups
Product (or divisional)
Brand
Similar to a product structure but organised by brand – typical of major fmcg companies such as P&G, Unilever, or Nestle
Organised along geographical lines, e.g. EMEA, Americas & Asia-Pacific, or even regional, e.g. Scotland, NE England etc. Often used along with another form, e.g. Products or Functional.
Territory
Organisational structures are many and varied. Organisations can follow one of these structures or be a hybrid i.e. a combination of these structures.
Welch and Jackson (2007) identify four dimensions upon which internal communication can take place:
Internal line management communication – at manager/supervisor level
Internal team peer communication – at peer or team colleague level
Internal project peer communication – project group colleagues
Internal corporate communications – strategic managers to employees
Matrix
Combination approach, often used in creative industries or for cross-functional projects and activities
Virtual
Very little formal structures that work through loose mechanisms such as partnership, collaboration and networking

5. Internal stakeholders
Board of Directors/Trustees
Management
Other parts of the Value Chain, e.g. Human Resources, Production
Sales Staff – Call Centre, Field Sales staff
Service staff – Customer Relations, Administration
Agencies such as creative, web design, research
Outsourced suppliers, such as IT, Finance
Internal stakeholders are those individuals who reside inside the company as board members, executives, managers, employees, and trade unions and who benefit directly from their contributions to the growth of the company.
For a definition of stakeholders see:
The role of the internal stakeholder has changed significantly in recent years. No longer are they just an employee of the organisation but their role has developed into becoming brand ambassadors of the company for whom they work. The actions of employees can have a powerful influence over how the organisation is seen externally. It is especially so in service environments where the attitudes of staff towards customers can create a long standing impression of the business. We can all call to mind instances where we have been treated poorly by customer-facing staff and the lasting impression that has given us of the firm; poor service in a shop; or waiter/waitress service in a restaurant.

6. Organisational culture
Academic Charles Handy (1993) says about culture: “Organisations are as different and varied as nations and societies of the world. They have differing cultures - sets of values, norms and beliefs - reflected in different structures and systems. And the cultures are affected by events of the past and the climate of the present, by the technology of the type of work, by their aims and the type of people who work in them.”
Internal marketing is shaped by the culture of the organisation and it is the culture that provides the context within which the internal marketing is carried out (Fill 2013).
To learn more about culture see:
June 2014

7. The importance of internal communications
Internal marketing: “The application of marketing internally, including programmes of communication to motivate, inform and develop a common understanding of the business”
Improving staff commitment to the organisation (reducing staff turnover and increasing commitment levels)
Improves motivation levels and achieve a higher level of productivity
Staff members become advocates for the organisation – selling it to customers and employees.
Internal marketing is defined as “The application of marketing internally, including programmes of communication to motivate, inform and develop a common understanding of the business”.
The objectives of internal marketing are based around development, reward and vision - Foreman and Money (1995). Internal marketing is focused on improving the commitment of employees to the organisation and in doing this it should lead to reduced staff turnover as employees are happier and more committed to their work. As a result motivation levels should be higher leading to greater levels of effectiveness and efficiency.
Ultimately, if employees are committed and motivated they become advocates or brand ambassadors for the company selling it to other stakeholders - for example colleagues, customers and others such as friends and family.
Underpinning all this is the need for effective communication internally. Internal stakeholders who are motivated and involved with the brand present a consistent and uniform message to other stakeholders. Additionally, it will reinforce messages that are communicated externally.

8. Internal communications: auditing
Analysis of internal communication methods
Research into attitudes and perceptions of employees and stakeholders
Resource capability audit – financial, human and physical
Internal audit
Analysis of external communication methods
Competitors’ communications
External audit
Just like any external communications, internal communications needs to be planned if it is to support the external communications effectively.
As with any planning the starting point is the audit: the ‘Where are we now?’ part of the plan. The communications audit needs to cover both internal and external communications. An analysis of all the current internal communications from official documents such as financial reports and accounts, through internal newsletters, intranets to less formal methods such as notices on information boards and SMS messaging need to be included. Research into the attitudes and perceptions of employees and other stakeholders needs to be gathered. In addition an audit of the financial, human and physical resources available to support the communications activities needs to be completed.
For the external audit all forms of communication used externally need to be audited including all forms of advertising and promotion, direct communications through websites and social media along with point of sale materials, signage, vehicles, and uniforms etc. Alongside this competitor communications need to be assessed to provide a benchmark.
The communications audit needs to focus on the totality of messages transmitted with a view to determining the consistency of the messages, whether they are logically related or confusing and conflicting, is the message being transmitted the intended one and what is the total impact on the corporate image?

9. Internal communications: planning
‘SMART’ communication objectives
Objectives
Cultural fit, message development, target audience identification, branding
Strategies
Internal communication tools
Tactics
Timings, budget, resource allocation
Implementation
Monitoring and measurement of objectives
Monitoring and control
In terms of planning, SMART objectives need to be set for the internal communications, specific, measureable, achievable, realistic and time-constrained.
Strategies will look at the cultural fit of the proposals, the message development, who the target audience is for the plan and brand development either on a corporate or at a product level.
Internal communications tools need to be proposed taking into account the criteria for selection (see next slide). Care needs to be taken that the tools are integrated. Implementation of the plan needs to be set out detailing the timings of the activities, the budget and any resources required to implement the plan. Finally, metrics need to be set in place that will measure the achievement of the objectives.

10. Methods for internal communications
Internal presentations
Training programmes
Staff meetings
Team projects
Social activities
Bulletin boards
Intranets
Social media/Blogs
Open-door policies
Consultations
Direct mailings
s/SMS messaging
Newsletters
Appraisals
Annual reports
Conferences/video conferences
Ideas/suggestion boxes
Management interviews
Wikis
There are many methods available for communicating internally. Think about your own organisation and the communication methods used on a day to day basis. Also think about how important information is communicated to staff.
What is key is selecting the communication methods that are the most appropriate. With the communication methods used in your organisation which ones have worked well and which haven’t – what is the reason for this?
Criteria that can be used to assess the effectiveness of the communication might include the ability of the medium to deliver the message e.g. if the message is complex then texting staff will probably not be suitable - its reach and timing, the source of where is comes from as this can affect the credibility or believability of what is being communicated; the costs involved and the degree of control over the message i.e. is the message the same as when it was first given or has it changed as it has been circulated – remember that game of Chinese Whispers you played as a child?

11. Using social media in the workplace
The use of social media in the workplace is growing in disseminating information on a formal and informal basis. This creates new opportunities for communication within the workplace and the involvement of staff in this. It can create a sense of community and belonging that is far more immediate and dynamic than through other communication methods. It creates opportunities for collaboration across new and distant communities which in turn can lead to changes in the culture of the organisation in positive ways.
June 2014

12. Employee branding and engagement
Employer Branding - improving the image and positioning of the brand through a commitment to the quality and dedication of employees.
Employee Branding - Employees are typically the most valuable assets of an organisation. As the real representation of your brand in the marketplace, employees must be living examples of your brand values and promise.
Fill (2013) states that employees are an integral and crucial part of the corporate brand. Their behaviour is said to help to minimise the gap between the way external stakeholders perceive an organisation and the perception the organisation want stakeholders to hold.
Furthermore, it is now recognised that employees are an important market in their own right forming an internal market. This comprises all employees, functions, divisions and strategic business units (SBU). Employees and units throughout the organisation contribute to the effectiveness of an organisation's marketing to its external customers through areas such as customer service and communications.
For more information on employee branding follow this link:

13. Internal and external boundaries
Part-time workers
Outsourced workers
Temporary or contracted workers
Virtual teams
Becoming less distinct
Internal and external boundaries of the organisation are now becoming less distinct. New, more flexible workforces are emerging using part-time workers, outsourced workers and temporary workforces. There has been a growth in virtual teams, defined as work done outside of the traditional physical office or workspace. This may mean that individual workers or teams are based physically away from the organisation’s office, either at home or in different departments or countries, or in a virtual (3D simulated) environment.
For more information on virtual working see:
Virtual organisations are said to be a way of making an organisation appear ‘greater’ and is often the output of a loosely coupled network.
It is felt that by redrawing or even collapsing boundaries with customers, competitors and suppliers, organisations are better able to create new identities and use internal marketing communications to better effect. (Fill 2013)

14. Flexible workforces
Technology Informational Networks help far-flung companies and entrepreneurs link up and work together from start to finish.
Opportunism Partnerships will be less permanent, less formal and more opportunistic. Companies will band together to meet all specific market opportunities and, more often than not, fall apart once the need evaporates.
Borderless Digital technologies mean that location is irrelevant, e.g. UK companies outsourcing software development to India
Trust because the parties are not rigidly bound together, the relationship is based on trust. If this breaks down, the organisation will not perform as effectively as it might
Excellence They can bring in all the best providers for all services, i.e. specialists, meaning they can focus on what they’re really good at.
Flexible workforces are defined as : A group of employees that understand how to perform a variety of different jobs and functions within a company. Many companies desire a more flexible workforce to avoid having the loss of any particular staff member damage its prospects for success, and so they might implement an extensive cross training program for employees. Read more: 
Flexibility in the workplace is growing for a number of reasons and this puts the role of communication under greater pressure. An increase in the flexibility of the work force e.g. part-time workers, consultants, outsourced workers, temporary workforces and virtual teams adds to the complexity of internal communications.
No borders. This new organisational model redefines the traditional boundaries of the company. More co-operation among competitors, suppliers and customers makes it harder to determine where one company ends and another begins.
Trust. These relationships make companies far more reliant on each other and require far more trust than ever before. They'll share a sense of 'co-destiny', meaning that the fate of each partner is dependent on the other.

15. Summary and next steps …..
This tutorial has covered:
Types of cross-functional relationships in organisation
The importance of internal communications
Appropriate methods for internal communications
The relationship collaborative working and meeting customer needs
You have now completed the first section of Unit 1: Internal Marketing, where we looked at the different types of relationships within organisations, the role of internal communications, various internal communications methods and collaborative working and meeting customer needs.
Section 2 looks at the resources required to implement marketing solutions.