Why internal communication needs a new operating model
Lee Smith
Minutes
13th November 2025
Employee Experience
Internal Communication
People First
Internal Communication
People First
Only 13% of employees say their organisation’s internal communication deserves top marks (IC Index 2025). And on the practitioner side, Gallagher’s State of the Sector 2025 shows that more than half of communicators see themselves as “Strivers” — working hard but constrained by outdated systems and perceptions.
The verdict is clear: internal communication is broken. Not because practitioners lack talent or effort, but because the operating model we’re working within was designed for a different age.
The verdict is clear: internal communication is broken. Not because practitioners lack talent or effort, but because the operating model we’re working within was designed for a different age.
For years, IC has been measured by outputs — how many emails we send, how polished the intranet looks, how full the campaign calendar is. But employees don’t measure us this way. They judge IC by whether it makes their work clearer, builds trust, and helps them feel valued.
The research shows we’re falling short:
The research shows we’re falling short:
- Employees switch tasks every three minutes, and it can take 30 minutes to regain focus (Mark et al., 2016). More comms means more distraction.
- Cognitive overload leads to anxiety, fatigue and avoidance behaviours (Zhou & Fu, 2023). In other words, the more we flood people with content, the less they engage.
- 51% of employees struggle to discern what’s truly critical in their organisation’s communication (Axios HQ, 2025).
Relevance, not volume, is the real issue. The IC Index 2025 stresses that employees want care, connection and clarity. Generic, jargon-heavy updates feel irrelevant, not reassuring.
Poor communication isn’t just inconvenient - it actively undermines performance.
- When communication fails, trust breaks down. Only half of employees believe leaders understand the challenges they face (IC Index 2025).
- Change falters. Communicators in Gallagher’s report cite fatigue from successive transformations as a major obstacle - 44% say it’s a critical barrier.
- Employees disconnect. The IC Index finds a 51-point uplift in employees feeling valued when difficult change is communicated with care. That shows how much is at stake in how we communicate.
- IC itself is devalued. Too often we’re still seen as tactical “delivery teams.” Gallagher’s segmentation - Survivors (11%), Strivers (55%), Thrivers (34%) - underlines how many are still battling for strategic influence.
Meanwhile, AI is accelerating disruption. Algorithms can draft copy, segment audiences, and automate distribution in seconds. Yet fewer than 36% of organisations have clear guidelines for AI use in IC, and 38% have no governance at all (Gallagher 2025). That’s a glaring risk, and an opportunity for communicators to step up as trusted guides.
The cracks in the old model create an opening to build something better. In our upcoming Kogan Page book, People-First Internal Communication, we argue for a fundamental reboot: a new operating model designed for today’s world of constant change, hybrid work, and AI disruption.
That shift looks like this:
- From Broadcast → Belonging. Communication isn’t about pushing out content; it’s about creating connection.
- From Channels → Experiences. Channels are tools, not outcomes. What matters is how people feel.
- From Expert → Enabler. IC isn’t about controlling the message; it’s about equipping leaders and managers. Improving line manager communication has jumped from fifth to second place among IC priorities this year (Gallagher 2025) — a signal that the field is waking up to this shift.
- From Vanity Metrics → Outcomes. Moving from clicks and opens to trust, alignment, and belonging.
And underpinning all of this: the IC Index’s triad of care, connection and clarity. These aren’t soft add-ons. They are the new north star for internal communication.
This reset doesn’t make communicators less relevant — it makes us more vital than ever. But it requires courage:
- Courage to move beyond the tactical hamster wheel.
- Courage to challenge leaders who want to broadcast, not listen.
- Courage to define our value in terms of outcomes that matter — trust, belonging, and clarity.
The evidence is compelling. Only 13% of employees rate IC as excellent. Nearly half of communicators say change fatigue is their biggest barrier. AI is reshaping the mechanics of our craft faster than we can adapt.
We can’t afford to patch a broken system. It’s time to build a new one!
The People-First IC operating model is that blueprint. When we put people first, communication stops being about messages. It becomes about meaning. And that’s what organisations — and employees — need most.
👉 Learn more in our upcoming book People-First Internal Communication, and join the People-First IC Movement to learn more about our new People-First IC Masterclasses.
