Employee Communications & Culture Conference Wrap-Up Newsletter

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Hundreds of internal communicators gathered in Chicago, IL for Ragan’s Employee Communication and Culture Conference. Together, we gathered to learn, connect and grow.

Let’s look back at what we covered….

1. Couldn’t Attend? Here’s what you missed

Our biggest takeaways from the event included topics around AI and automation, the importance of thawing the “frozen middle” of managers to arm them with that they need, and why crisis comms planning continues to be critical in the chaos of an election year.

A sampling of what you missed:

Effective comms strategies: Being proactive in communications goes a long way. It’s about building relationships, being embedded with leaders, and understanding their goals. We have the ability to connect the dots.

Culture, strategy, leadership: Culture trumps strategy. Meghan Boyer, head of internal communications, GE Healthcare, said you can have a great strategic approach but if they’re missing the culture and the feeling behind it, you’re going to lose your employees.

Storytelling: “Numbers help you speak the language of leaders. Tie in your results with strategic business goals.” said Chrstine de la Huerta, director of internal communications, marketing & communications at Baptist Health South Florida.

Employee experience: “We are allies to the employee experience. We are their voice, and we can own and control that,” said Nicole Neal, vice president of internal communications, Zurich North America.

Go deeper: The top takeaways from Ragan’s Employee Communications and Culture Conference

Thanks to our sponsors and partners!

2. Keynote: Move from ‘Yes, but’ to ‘Thank you, because’

To kick off the festivities, The Second City improv legend Kelly Leonard entertained the crowd of hundreds with star-studded stories and an interactive keynote that demonstrated how many of the same skills that improv performers use can help comms pros do their jobs more flexibly and effectively.

“Nothing is fun or funny because it’s vague,” he said. “How do you fill spaces with specific things that people want to listen to?”

Go deeper: Ragan Employee Communications & Culture Conference kicks off with a lesson in improv

3. The journey from journalism to internal comms

One common thread throughout the event was how many in the audience had transitioned out of journalism.

Verizon’s Andy Choi spoke about how he navigated the shift from representing a broadcast station to communicating to internal stakeholders.

“It’s a little less about you,” Choi explained. “You feel a tremendous honor, but also a responsibility to think about what the brand represents and what you can do to represent the team.”

Go deeper: Verizon’s Andy Choi on transitioning from journalism to internal comms

4. How to reinvent culture while retaining brand purpose

To close out the conference, Kate Barton, chief growth officer at The Honest Company, shared suggestions on…

How to navigate organizational change.

How leaders can put employees first in their comms strategies.

How she sowed the seeds of a positive employee experience by going back to the brand’s founding principles.

“I’m never going to win on my own; my employees are never going to win on their own,” she said. “We’re either going to all win together, or we won’t win at all.”

Go deeper: Honest to goodness: How to navigate change through purpose and culture

Recap brought to you by Axios HQ

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Thanks for taking the time to catch up. A few additional upcoming events to have on your radar:

August 12-14: The Employee Experience Conference

September 19: AI Virtual Seminar for Communicators

October 16-18: Internal Communications Conference

November 13-15: Future of Communications Conference

👤 Contact:

For general questions: Shallon Blackburn

To sponsor an event: Hannah Lavelle

For speaker opportunities: Alyssa Smith