Good communication doesn't just happen

It matters not that an idea, vision or strategy is clever, good or beneficial if it is not communicated effectively.  So, good communication is essential. But it does cost money - not only in the materials required but in implementation and management time.  And it is rarely given the importance its role and value deserves.

But finance is managed, people are managed, services are managed, production is managed.  Communication must be managed too.  It must be disciplined and structured and every company should have a Communication Plan.

Without this, people in an organisation may have widely differing views about the importance of particular audiences and messages which can result in:

• under-communication with some groups and over-communication with others

• too much guesswork about how, with whom and when to communicate

• consequent waste of effort and time and therefore money

The key requirement is that all messages are relevant and tailored to their intended audiences and that they are written in a way that connects with the audience and creates understanding.

The Public and Not-for-Profit Sectors

Government organisations, charities and social enterprises often have a more complex communication task than private sector - as they have to balance the needs of many different, and sometimes very influential groups of stakeholders.

PHC has worked for public sector organisations for over 10 years to help them identify, understand and meet the needs of all their stakeholders including projects to help districts and towns with marketing and communication factors associated with regeneration and revitalisation.

We are particularly concerned with ensuring that communication genuinely engages with, and influences, its audiences and is monitored and measured effectively - which we have found to not always be the case in some public sector (and private sector too) programmes.