Ghostbusting Your Way Through Internal Comms
Growing up, I loved Halloween. It wasn’t so much about the candy for me—I was never big on the sugary stuff. It was more about the thrill of dressing up and going on an adventure around the neighborhood. My all-time favorite costume? Queen Amidala (Star Wars fans, IYKYK). The La-Z-Boy in our living room became my throne. My dad, dressed as a Jedi knight, joined me, using a plastic lightsaber instead of a flashlight to light our way. It was a vibe!
As an adult, Halloween fun—and the frights—can take on a different twist. It’s less about the ghosts haunting a spooky house and more about the ghosts you encounter at work. Specifically, I’m talking about the ghosts of internal communication (IC) teams past.
Comms is rarely, if ever, a clean slate. If your IC predecessor wasn’t exactly a success story, you could be inheriting a legacy of poor execution or inconsistent messaging that left behind confusion, distrust, or disengaged employees. When IC fails to deliver, it can be seen as less important or less effective.
Or maybe your predecessor was great at their job, and you have big shoes to fill. Either way, it’s essential to:
Learn from History—Acknowledge both past communication challenges and successes to gain valuable insights
Balance Continuity and Evolution—Build on what came before while adapting strategies to meet changing organizational dynamics.
Undertake Respectful Transitions—Honor the work of previous communication teams by seamlessly transitioning and building upon their legacy.
Innovate and Progress—Embrace new ideas and innovations to evolve internal communication practices.
The spooky season might be full of jump scares, but the lingering ghosts of past comms teams don’t need to haunt you year-round. Address those ghosts with smart, system-oriented action, and you’ll scare them into submission.
