Ways to Improve Your Internal Communication

Public relations is the art and the science of communications. Everyday PR pros communicate in many ways to many people; yet, a forgotten aspect of this thing we call “our life’s work” is internal communications.

As a current corporate communications intern at Aramark Corporation, I have discovered just how closely internal communication is tied to everyday PR work within a corporate environment. However, focusing on internal communication should not be limited to just corporate PR. How can an agency or help its clients if they aren't teaching that account team to speak to one another, share the brand, discuss improvements or simply brainstorm together? How can a non-profit get their message out externally if they aren't on the same page internally? The key to these questions is to shift the attention to how your organization is communicating internally before the focus is put on external communication.

Here are 5 tips to enhance better internal communications within your organization:

1. Silence is not Always Golden.
Have you ever noticed the places people don’t enjoy working are the ones where the minions don’t have a voice? Open and transparent communication is appreciated because everyone has been blessed with a brain full of ideas. Encourage senior management and executive leadership teams to listen to those ideas.

2. Get Straight to the Point. 
Employees who enjoy their work crave one thing, almost above all, direction. With clear direction, they understand what to do to earn brownie points. Stress direction and watch movement happen.

3. Aspire to Inspire. 
 Many employers don’t like to think outside the box, draw outside the lines or dare try something different. Employees want inspiration. They want to see their managers, directors and executive leaders doing something that can bring about change. Want a team to follow you? Inspire them to do something differently and with purpose.

4. Create a Company Voice. 
Anyone in HR or internal communications will tell you the chief reason for gossip in the workplace is ignorance. Most employees don’t really know what’s going on, so they tend to gossip and complain. A monthly or bi-weekly newsletter would suffice. Let them be heard by listening and then acting.

5. Lead by Example.
Bosses “boss.” Leaders “lead.”  Words only mean so much. Without action behind those words, employees will follow.

Director of PR: One Year Later

It's been almost one year to the day since I became PRowl's Director of PR. As the Director of PR I was responsible for monitoring and managing PRowl's Twitter, Facebook, Gmail and, most importantly, this very blog.

When I first became the Director of PR, I was afraid. I was just finishing my freshman year here at Temple and felt like a little fish in a big sea of senior PRowl staff members. I worried that I wouldn't be able to do a good job managing the blog and that it would end up going downhill. Fortunately, that didn't happen. In fact, this year we were named #17 of the top 50 blogs for PR students! 

I didn't expect that in just one year of being Director of PR that I would learn so much. Part of my responsibilities included revising and scheduling two guest blog posts from staff members every weekend. The challenge was making sure that the blog posts stayed true to PRowl's mission statement and goals, while reflecting the voice and testament of the staff. This, in combination with blogging on a weekly basis, has made me into a better writer and editor, something that has only helped me in the PR world. 

It's been a long year of learning with PRowl PR, and I wouldn't have traded it for anything. It's because of being Director of PR that I can honestly say that I feel prepared to move on not only as an Assistant Firm Director, but also as a PR student. 

So thanks everyone for a great year as PRowl's Director of Public Relations, and good luck to the new Director of PR, Amber Burns! :)

You're Hired!

No successful company has reached the top without the support of a great team. But hiring a quality team to help you reach your goals isn't as simple as putting out an ad in the Classifieds. Below are a few tips to guide your employee search via "5 Hiring Tips From the NFL Draft":


Are you filling a hole or drafting the best player available? The saying that power comes in numbers is sometimes true; but be careful that you aren't settling just to make a hiring quota. Remember: quality, not quantity. It's more important to hire one fantastic, driven employee than to settle for two that aren't in for the long run.


Make sure they are coachable. It's one thing to hire someone who is inexperienced, but eager and open to learning new things. A rookie with the drive to take things into his/her own hands or to be the best they can be is more valuable than a seasoned employee who is unwilling to adopt new ideas. Part of hiring an employee is getting a sense of not only who they are, but who they can be.


Find someone that loves your game. Passion is often underrated. Passion excites and encourages people to be creative. Creative team members will take your company far and create an atmosphere of success. 


Don't be afraid to trust your gut. Part of the reason for holding an interview is to get a sense of what a person is like and they will fit into your organization. If your gut is telling you that this person belongs, the great. If you're getting an off feeling, then maybe you should think twice about hiring them. But be weary about trusting your gut, because an interview is only a sneak peak and you may have caught them on an off day.


Look for players who can play multiple positions. A renaissance man is someone who is strong in multiple realms. This is someone you want to hire. A potential employee who can speak French, has knowledge of Photoshop and is qualified for the job will be the person who can jump in at any given time and lend a helping hand. 


What do you look for in a potential employee? Do you value one quality over another? Let us know!

Landing on Fortune’s “Best Companies to Work For” List

Last week Fortune announced its annual “Best Companies to Work For” list. The morning the rankings were announced, it is safe to say that the PR staff for those who made the cut were buzzing with joy and excitement.

Being on the “Best Companies to Work For” list is a huge deal for a company’s reputation. A simple ranking can help generate positive attention towards an organization, which in turn will attract the best and brightest to want to work there. A company known for treating employees well is often a company well-liked by the public.

However, attaining recognition on this list cannot be something a company’s PR staff simply sets out to achieve. The top ten workplaces all are known for having great communication and trust among employees. These two characteristics cannot be obtained rapidly by doing a quick PR fix.

For Zappos, the online retailer, company-wide initiatives such as the Zfrog program were essential to landing on the list. This program gives all employees the opportunity to pitch new business ideas. 14 other companies stood out for paying 100% of their employees’ health care premiums.

Google topped the list for 2012 with its innovative and diverse company culture definitely playing a role in the ranking.

Here are the top ten workplaces of 2012:
1. Google
2. Boston Consulting Group
3. SAS
4. Wegmans Food Markets
5. Edward Jones
6. NetApp
7. Camden Property Trust
8. Recreational Equipment (REI)
9. CHG Healthcare Services
10. Quicken Loans

Do you work for any of these companies? Does it help for you to feel supported in your work environment? Let us know!

This guest blog was written by PRowl Public Relations staff member Kyra Mazurek.