Change and Communication: An Investigation of the Roles of Internal Communication in Organisational Change

Abstract

This thesis is a study of internal communication during organisational change implementation at two distinct organisations: a tertiary institution and a professional services company. Adopting a qualitative research methodology, the case study focused on exploring the roles of internal communication in organisational change management and the effectiveness of applied internal communication approaches, frameworks and tools during organisational change. The study also examined the relationship between internal communication and employee engagement during organisational change implementation, as well as the ways in which effective change communication is measured and subsequently defined within an organisational context. Interviews were conducted with internal communication professionals and employees directly involved in managing change at the two case study organisations. The collected data included participant interview transcripts and organisational materials that were analysed to address the key research areas of this study. The study demonstrated that the involvement of internal communication in change implementation has a direct impact on the success or failure of major change programs. Further, the study proposed a revised framework based on the strategic employee communication model developed by Barrett (2002). This indicated that the presence of specific frameworks and tools, structural positioning of the internal communication function, the presence of supportive management, effective media channels and targeted messages contribute to effective change within organisations. The study also found that internal communication efforts that focus on fostering employee engagement to support change lead to more effective change implementation. Finally, the study supported the view that effective internal communication during organisational change reduces employee resistance to change by influencing the factors that contribute to its acceptance.