Inside: Personal update, $100k+ salaries, storytelling
Insider Comms for internal comms
Greetings and happy holidays!
Heads up: This is the last edition for 2021 (phew!), but I’ll still occasionally check email. Just hit reply to connect. While I have you here, check out the Mister Editorial bookshop for great ideas on what to read over the break, and consider gifting a Mister Editorial subscription to your favorite comms elf.
Personal update: I’m so happy to report that my chemotherapy is working! Recent test results show that my cancer is retreating. It’s not gone, though, so I’ll undergo chemotherapy through March—oof! But I’m on the right path.
Thank you for all of the support and encouragement these past two+ months. Y’all have no idea how much it means to me. I’m humbled and grateful.
And now on with the show.
💰 Show me the money
What does it take to earn $100k+ in internal comms? 25 IC pros from around the globe provide candid and practical advice on how they increased their salaries to earn six figures. They also share salary histories throughout their career.
This ebook from Bananatag (now Staffbase) is gold for anyone looking to benchmark their “value” in internal comms.
The Secrets of IC Professionals Earning $100k+ comes on the heels of Bananatag’s Salary Report of 2021. Worth the money. (It’s free 😉 )
Value storytelling is imperative
To keep employees engaged with company news, Internal Comms must report on real people doing real work that has perceived and actual value, and do it in a way that is inclusive and doesn’t ignore what’s happening outside the company’s walls.
That doesn’t mean that every intranet story or executive video needs to address racial injustice or climate change or gun violence or cultural topic du jour.
It means that some stories should indirectly address hot issues by subtly weaving in your organization’s values. You’ll succeed most when the message isn’t blatant or explicit.
Read more on Mister Editorial.
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3 organizations share their internal updates
Fortune 100s and startups alike are elevating their comms with Axios HQ — intuitive software that helps teams communicate more concisely.
Among them:
JPMorgan Chase, sharing its economic recovery plan
GLG, touting its team's nonprofit work
Utah State, sharing news across its business school
Editor’s note: I’m a big fan of Axios HQ’s use of Smart Brevity®, which I saw firsthand as a pilot partner during my tenure at BlackRock.
Got skillz?
After tallying and analyzing the 40 interviews she conducted this year, Julia Levy created a top 10 skills list for internal comms pros. (My favorite—being a systems thinker—landed among the honorable mentions.) The collection is a treasure trove of advice for anyone starting their internal comms career. (The Switchboard)
Spotted on Twitter
Provocative reads
Organizations need IT. But they almost certainly don’t need an IT department. (Wall Street Journal)
For the word nerds: On 16th-century business jargon (Lapham’s Quarterly).
Insider Comms™
This week Vox Media announced it was acquiring Group Nine Media. Before the deal could be made official, news of the merger was leaked.
Were the executive teams at Vox and Group Nine prepared for a possible leak? They should have been. Media companies leak like sieves.
In a memo to Vox Media employees, CEO Jim Bankoff:
Explains the unanticipated leak
Describes the acquisition target (Group Nine)
Extols the benefits of the merger / provides the business rationale
Explains what to expect in the coming months
Alludes to but does not directly address whether there will be org changes and/or layoffs
Lets employees know an all-hands meeting is in the works and provides a way to submit questions in advance
Read the memo (Mister Editorial)
Happy holidays everyone!
Thanks for making this an exceptional year for Mister Editorial. And, seriously, thanks for all the professional and personal support. You raise me up.
See you next year! 👋 🥂 🥳
This edition is sponsored by Axios HQ.
Connect with me on LinkedIn and Twitter | Mister Editorial archive | editorshaun@gmail.com
Disclaimer: Besides running Mister Editorial, I work in employee comms at Splunk. The views in this newsletter are my own.