If you asked public relations professionals to point out the hip and sexy practices in the field, internal communications would probably not come to mind. Nevertheless, the field is essential to keeping organizations gelled, providing valuable information inside the company and effectively communicating company goals and visions.
As companies become more global and technology driven, experts in this subset of public communications will only become more valuable.
Although internal communications doesn’t get the attention it deserves, there are many great communication leaders that provide top-notch insights on the fast-changing field. Many of these people are very active on Twitter, sharing content and engaging in critical dialogue throughout the day.
If you want to find these nuggets of information, here are 10 leaders in the practice you should follow.
Many of these individuals are thought leaders beyond internal communication and are considered experts in public relations and marketing more broadly:
- Shel Holtz (@shelholtz): Holtz is a long-time leader in the field of internal communications and the founder of Holtz Communication + Technology, which has been working with organizations to effectively utilize the online space for communications since 1996. In addition to his tweets, you might want to read The Shel Holtz Daily and listen to the podcast For Immediate Release, co-hosted by Holtz and Neville Hobson.
- Gini Dietrich (@ginidietrich): Dietrich is an avid speaker, writer and a Twitter-aficionado on a variety of communications topics. She is the CEO of Arment Dietrich, which, among other practices, specializes in providing strategic communications counsel to build internal communications teams. She is also the author of the blog (and book) Spin Sucks, which focuses on professional development for public relations and marketing professionals.
- Mark Ragan (@MarkRaganCEO): Mark Ragan is a machine. His account has delivered a whopping 106,000 tweets and counting on a whole host of communications issues. Ragan is the CEO for Ragan Communications, which publishes PR Daily, Health Care News, HR Communications and Ragan Training, providing valuable insight into the field of internal communications.
- Rachel Miller (@AllthingsIC): Miller is the founder of All Things IC, a blog on just about everything related to internal communications. She is also one of the three co-founders on this list of The IC Crowd, which connects and provides a forum for industry professionals to share valuable information. Miller is based out of London and her tweets provide a valuable non-U.S. perspective to the internal communication conversation.
- Gary Grates (@GaryGrates): Grates is an active thought leader in the field of employee engagement and organizational change, two very important aspects of internal communications. He is a principal at marketing and communications firm W20 Group, and a former communications executive with Edelman and General Motors.
- Oscar Suris III (@OscarSurisWF): Suris, the head of corporate communications at Wells Fargo, provides a valuable in-house perspective to conversations related to public relations. In addition to tweets on internal communications, he often provides valuable content on topics such as employee engagement, community relations, sustainability and content development.
- Ron Culp (@CulpWrit): Culp has done it all. He went from newspaper reporter, to political press secretary, to corporate communications, to agency executive and finally to solo practitioner and adviser to the DePaul University communications program. For those looking to break into the public relations field, Culp’s blog Culpwrit offers tips and lessons straight from the veteran himself. His tweets center on a wide-range of communications topics, but provide a focus on internal communications that many other PR pros gloss over.
- Jenni Wheller (@jenniwheller): Wheller is the group head of communications at UK-based restaurant company SSP Group, the Chartered Institute of Public Relations chair and a co-founder of The IC Crowd. In addition to following her on Twitter, people should read her blog, Confessions of an Internal Communicator, which provides a first-person account on the trends, issues and conversations taking place in the field.
- Dana Leeson (@danaleeson): Leeson focuses much of her energy in the field of corporate intranets and how to best utilize them in the workplace. She is currently a digital workplace architect at information technology firm BSI and is the third co-founder of The IC Crowd. She also blogs for Intranetizen, a resource centering on corporate intranets and digital workplaces.
- Elizabeth Lupfer (@socialworkplace): Lupfer, director of communications at BAE Systems, tweets valuable content regarding internal communications, specifically relating to employee engagement and human resources. Her blog, The Social Workplace, focuses on the intersection of building high-performance organizations and engaged workforces. Many of her posts contain easy-to-read infographics, providing valuable, data-based information to a field that has sometimes struggled to quantify areas of success and struggle.
I realize no list is all-inclusive. Who do you follow? Please share your suggestions in a comment or via social.
Amee Kent
Red e App Marketing Director
