3 Ways a Comm Plan Creates Career Success — (and a template!)
We have big expectations for ourselves. As communications professionals we’re here for business, and we mean business.
So, what we do and how we do it absolutely matters. Our tools and the process we follow are important to our success. When presented with a project we have an opportunity to plan for our success and, ultimately, do work that matters.
How we start this planning work is important. A few weeks ago, I had the pleasure of talking through the “why” and strategy behind planning in a webinar with internal comms pro Mike Klein, hosted by Happeo’s Jonathan Davies.
It was an honor to share the stage with Mike and Jonathan and talk about a topic that I’m passionate about.
Communication plans are much more than a document to organize our work. Sure, they capture what we do and what we hope to accomplish. Plans provide opportunities for us to have collaborative dialogue with our leaders and clients. Communications plans do three important things – each critical to our success.
Plans define what we do.
Plans connect us to the business and organizations we serve.
Plans illustrate our strategic strength.
Plans show the “how” of the work we do and illustrate our approach. This is a crucial point. We want our clients and leaders to understand our work. When they understand us, they know what we bring to the table, know when to call us for help and know how to include us in the core functions of the organization.
As I shared in the webinar, consistency is the secret sauce. If educating our clients about our strength is key, each plan is a working case study and an opportunity to demonstrate a consistent and disciplined approach to our work. Each plan is an opportunity to educate our clients and leaders and demonstrate our capability.
Watch the Webinar
Want to learn more about my approach to communication planning and the kinds of practical information and insight you can learn through my guided, online training on communication planning? Check out the webinar below while it’s still available online.
A Template to start your Plans
On the hunt to improve your communication plan template? Get the exclusive two-page Executive Brief template shared during the webinar by requesting it below.
Use the Executive Brief as you kick off a communication planning effort with your client or leader. The two-page template ultimately becomes to first two pages of a communications plan and the start of an important process.
Maybe you just need a chat to nudge you forward
I’m always up for a conversation that can help move you forward.