Do you have what it takes to be an Internal Communication Black Belt?

Melcrum’s Internal Communication Black Belt program, executive training aimed specifically at internal communicators, launched in 2005 and demand for the training continues to grow.

Over 700 communicators around the world have now completed the program and this year sees the launch of additional modules in the UK to broaden the offering.

"We ask participants to look at the purpose behind their work, what difference it's making to performance and how they might refocus their approach to make sure their communication plans actually deliver measureable business results," says course developer and trainer Sue Dewhurst in the latest issue of Strategic Communication Management.

And what do participants think? Kim England, from UK awarding body Edexcel, says, "the course was especially helpful in influencing my boss, explaining where I could add value and why measurement was important. I was able to advise senior leaders more confidently, as well as put the templates and tools I received into practice."

Read on to find out more about how Kim and her team benefited from the course.

Kim says: I chose to go on the Black Belt program in January 2008 because I was at a crossroads in my career. I was in an internal communication role reporting to a business leader, I had very little contact with other internal communicators and apart from my common sense and knowledge through trial and error, I knew very little about how to be as effective as possible in internal communication. The course gave me some structure in which to approach my job and opened up a network of people just like me.

The Black Belt program reminded me that I do have the right skills and knowledge to be an effective internal communicator – I just needed to know how and when to use them. It also armed me with templates, tools and tips on how to be even better in my role.

When I returned to the office the Black Belt folder became my bible and I was able to refer to it when I was faced with challenges. It was especially helpful in influencing my boss, explaining where I could add value and why measurement was important. I was able to advise senior leaders more confidently, as well as put the templates and tools I received into practice.

A different world
Sue Dewhurst the program developer and trainer mentions on the course that after attending, people often see the world differently, and this can open up the opportunity to change roles; in my case she wasn't wrong. In May 2008 I left BP and joined Pearson - Edexcel. This was a fantastic opportunity to put my Black Belt skills to the test.

In my new role, I firstly audited all the communication channels to measure which were the most effective in order to make the right changes. I then used some of the Black Belt templates to build my communication strategy.

Professional development for the team
One of the most important things for me was to get one of our team members, Andy, on the Black Belt program too. I knew this would be invaluable to him, but I was hoping he wouldn't become one of the people who move on to another job after completing the course!

Andy completed the program in May 2009 and since then our function has gone from strength to strength. You might not learn a magic formula for internal communication, but the course enables you to be more confident in your ability, and gives you some handy tools to keep up your sleeve.

Having my team thinking and approaching internal communication in the same way has been powerful in helping us remain consistent to our customers.

Helpful templates
We've adapted the internal communication framework, designed by Sue Dewhurst and Melcrum, to make it work for us. We use this to look at which areas we need to develop and grow.

We also use the ARROW model and message builder as a template for every conversation we have with our customers. We've now got into the habit of sending the template ahead of the initial consultation meeting so that they've had an opportunity to think about their answers to the questions. This is working particularly well with the facilities as they're now starting to understand the process and how we think, which means they rely on us less and less.

Building communication capabilities
We believe it's important to build the internal communication capability in the business. In an ideal world this will allow Andy and me to focus on the value-adding side of what we do, as well as looking at developing the internal communication strategy for the business.

For example, the stakeholder analysis session was actually one of the most enjoyable on the Black Belt program, and at the change management session we went into a lot of detail about understanding how individuals feel about change, depending on what kind of person they are and how they think. So, we're planning an away day to do some stakeholder analysis ourselves.

At the moment we don't have this sort of detail about every employee, but we do have the demographics in graphs and charts on the wall. In the future it would be great to go to our customers with a detailed description of our stakeholders so that we can really target our communications accordingly.

Black Belt has given us the tools and framework to be an effective communication team. I believe it's about continual improvement. We've adapted and changed the models according to the needs of our business but the fundamentals have stayed the same.

Until next time,

P.S. Sally Hinder, one of the UK Black Belt trainers, will be helping delegates at the UK SCM Summit in London deal with the difficult topic of sustaining engagement during the downturn. Book your place now!

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