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Strategic Communication Plan

Dameron Rendell

Strayer University

Assignment 1: Strategic Communications Plan

April 27, 2018

Strategic Communication Plan

Among the essential questions in communication is the question as to how someone can become a strategic communicator. A strategic communication plan is the most applicable solution to the question. A good communication plan must cater for all the necessary components that come with communication. Different topics and fields may require different strategies of communication to be effective, as this prevents the possibility of redundant strategies from one project or operation to another. A strategic communication plan finds its relevance from the opportunity it provides in the development of communication capacity between different research partners (South, 2011). The main goal of a strategic communication plan is in promoting the people wishing to apply it to become results-oriented strategic communicators, even though this may take up for several years and hands-on experience at work. The strategic communication plan will be including several sections that have to be included in the plan. These include a strong strategic foundation, the right set of tools, a development process, and a team that has the spirit and set of skills.

1. A Strong Strategic Foundation

It is a common phenomenon for organizations to look at their communication teams as service resources or as those tasked with the responsibility of enabling processes. However, communication needs to be handled as a strategic imperative for growth and high performance.

The management or involved leaders need to set the stage for the relevance of communications with a statement of purpose, a clear mission, and the objectives that should be conveying the benefits that come with a communications capacity that is integrated. The benefits include those plan users being able to communicate in a more effective manner that saves time and money. However, it can also get better than that. For example, in the first year of building the set-out communications capability, the leader may state something that can be regarded as being less expected, yet highly valued, with some of the benefits being alignment and improved decision-making for the leadership team and, ultimately, good outcomes. The management of communications in a system-wide and integrated manner can also need a new set of features at all the different levels of the organization. These include the behaviors facilitating the set-out communication process and application of the set standards for all the communication efforts (South, 2011). Behavioral promotion in communication can prove to be a challenge, and one may require a strong foundation of an executive-level communication alignment that endorses the goal of going where one hopes to go.

2. The right set of tools

The next step is in developing tools that will be sued in guiding the communication plan, as well as the creative efforts of your internal team and the external partners, with the use of the What/How/Who model (Les Potter, 2012). There can be an alleged simplicity in What/How/Who Model and making it visible as well as mapping the initiatives against it is proof of the complexity that can come about and may also build on the case for integration.

The What/How/Who Model needs that plans be developed at every level:

For the What of your communications, it needs Category Plans. It may capture decisions on the nature of the different product and corporate messages. For example, the reasons consumers find in buying one’s product in their business. Another example is that an involved leader may challenge his team in creating a consistently-integrated content brand. Category plans are the best way such content can be made precise (Reynolds-Wittman, 2015). The How of the communications needs Channel Plans in the evaluation of strengths and the weaknesses of alternative channels of delivering the message. For instance, social media can be favored over traditional media, particularly when one hopes to reach an audience belonging to, say Generation Y. The Who of the communication strategy may need Audience Plans for the targeted audience.

Also, the communications plans should also go together with calendars giving an overview of marketing and corporate initiatives, as these are vital for good coordination. For instance, a leader may describe it as his capability of air traffic control. With these put in place, the benefits that come with integrated planning will become clearer (Reynolds-Wittman, 2015). These include increased ability to resolve conflicts, an increased ability to leveraging opportunities when combining efforts for cumulative impacts, as well as an increased ability in generating a higher return in investment.

It is also necessary to use a toolkit of standards of communications which set the bar for creative excellence for team members, regardless of function or location, and also regardless of whether, there is a responsibility for external or internal communication (South, 2011). The tools may vary depending on factors such as the organization’s size, the degree of brand management is embodied in the decisions made, as well as the number of individuals who are involved in the development of communication.

3. A development processes

Making plans and using the involved tools alone may ensure the best results. The process embraced in the company should ensure that each initiative is in the target, are off to a good start, and gets reviewed at the main points during its development. Departmental launch initiatives, enterprise-level initiatives, and personal projects may all benefit from a disciplined launch and communications development process. Such can include explicit tollgate phases such as project initiation, plan approval, the creation of development, project initiation and distribution and production.

Requirements in making the budget, cross-functional scope, performance metrics and governance metrics can also be woven into the process (South, 2011). These will allow one to prioritize in the utilized efforts, in keeping them in line with the set-out strategy, as well as in the reduction of costs through cutting down the wasted efforts. Tools and processes may also enable the team to work well together, ensure that talents are developed, as communications professionals increase their ability in materially contributing to the success of the company.

4. The subject team with the right spirit and skill set

As the final and most significant requirement, assembling the correct team with the passion and knowledge of doing the job in an exemplary manner. Often, communications leaders are no miscast. There may be a possibility of them being high-performers in some other roles, although they may not necessarily be experienced in the strategic communication plan, either through education or professional background.

One can begin by appointing an individual who may bring such a type of leadership, one with the heart to understand the very essence of the company, as well as the people who can mentor and motivate the team (Les Potter, 2012). It is important to give the team an executive position that signals the significance of such a role in the organization. Recruiting external partners and new players will help the plan user to have better chances of integrating the latest strategies, technologies, and methods in the communication plan, as well as those with the zeal of creating communications that will be able to make the company proud and helping them to achieve the set-out goals.

It is also necessary to conclude the strategic communication plan through a summative (also evaluative) research. As the user of the plan, one can start off with research through knowing what needs to be done. Afterward, one can set the objectives and goals as a way of achieving the expected outcomes. The next step is in ending with research to ensure the strategic communications efforts can accomplish the set objectives and goals (Les Potter, 2012). The way to go is in concentrating in the measurement and evaluation of the failure and success of the set-out objectives, as the drivers of strategic communication. Also, strategic communicators may not always wait until after the communication plan has been evaluated. Afterward, it may prove to be too late to do anything about it but learn from mistakes.

References

Les Potter, 2012. The Strategic Communication Plan: An overview. [Online] Available at: https://www.iabc.com/the-strategic-communication-plan/ [Accessed 27 April 2018].

Reynolds-Wittman, C., 2015. Strategic Communications Planning: Why it's Important. [Online] Available at: https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/strategic-communications-planning-why-its-important-carol-e-wittman [Accessed 20 April 2018].

South, A., 2011. Designing and implementing a communications strategy: lessons learned from HIV and Sexual and Reproductive Health Research Programme Consortia. Health Res Policy Syst, 9(1).