Internal Communications MeasurementLearn how to conduct a successful internal communications audit to promote your internal communications strategy. Discover tools, tips, and an invaluable template.
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Poor internal communication drives misalignment and disengagement and increases turnover. Internal communications audits are a proven way to diagnose and address the root causes. They are also vital for boosting engagement, clarity, and measuring effectiveness. However, they remain underutilized and there is evidence that both professionally executed and in-house audits are on the decline.
Gallagher’s 2024 Workforce Trends Report, based on their 2023/24 State of the Sector survey, gathered insights from 2,300 professionals and identified audits as one of the most valuable listening methods. While 81% of respondents agreed that independent audits are effective, only 8% use them.
A 2024 report by VMA Group, published by the Institute of Internal Communication (IoIC), found that although 73% of organizations have a formal communications plan,the frequency of plan reviews is declining — with 8% never reviewing, and 21% doing so only annually. This decline suggests internal comms audits are still falling behind.
The Internal Audit Foundation’s (IIA’s) 2025 Pulse of Internal Audit report for professional auditors, highlights some relevant trends:
These trends support the case that if internal audit teams are successfully leveraging tech in‑house, internal communications teams can equally harness audit tools (like Cerkl Broadcast) to conduct effective internal comms audits.
Ultimately, whether you invest in professional internal auditors or use your organization's resources, an internal communications audit is a powerful tool to measure the effectiveness of your organization’s internal communication strategy. But how does it work, and why invest resources in conducting one?
An internal communications audit is an extensive evaluation conducted within an organization to assess the efficacy and usefulness of its current communications strategies, channels, and tools. This type of audit systematically collects and analyzes datapoints like email open rates, anonymous comments on internal messages, document capture extraction, and engagement data. This enables internal communicators to understand how information is circulated throughout the organization, how it’s received by the employees, and how it affects the workplace experience.
More than just an assessment, an internal communication audit offers deep insights into the organizational culture, empowers employees, and encourages active dialogue and meaningful communication.
An outstanding internal communications audit will involve an intensive review of the organization’s internal communications plan. It will evaluate the performance of different communication tools including the office intranet, employee newsletter, and interactions among various departments and levels within the organization. Commonly, the approach also includes the assessment of various aspects such as employees’ understanding of the organization’s internal communications strategy. The reach and impact of internal emails and the effectiveness of the internal communications team are also evaluated.
Widely used in larger organizations, an audit into internal communication doesn’t only serve as a diagnostic tool to identify any potential communication barriers or gaps. It also assists in building a stronger sense of community, ensuring message consistency, and aligning communications with the company’s overall strategic objectives.
For this reason, an internal communications audit is an excellent example of taking proactive measures to enhance ongoing internal communications processes and systems.
The results, insights, and revelations obtained from a well-executed internal communications audit can be invaluable. They serve as a basis for internal comms to improve and adapt, keeping the organization’s communication vibrant, engaging, and effective. They can also be used to establish a strategic communication planning process.
Jennifer Hirsch, an internal communications specialist who is VP at The Grossman Group, presents a convincing argument for internal communications audits in Internal Communications Audit. In this post, she emphasizes that conducting an audit in-house allows you to identify which platforms, messages, and delivery methods resonate best with your employees, without relying on external agencies or tools.
“An internal communication audit helps you take a step back and assess how well information is flowing across your organization. Audits can highlight what's working, pinpoint areas that need improvement, and offer clear insights to make your communication strategy more effective.”
Jennifer Hirsch
Here are some more compelling reasons to consider when conducting an internal communications audit. You will be able to:
One of the primary reasons to carry out an internal communications audit is to identify areas of weakness or opportunities for improvement. This might include elements including messages not reaching the intended audience, lack of engagement with company announcements, or poor email open rates. In turn, you will be able to use these insights to enhance the company’s internal communication strategy.
With an internal communications audit, organizations can quantify the success of their communication strategies. Metrics such as response rates to internal communications surveys, employee feedback, or a star rating system can help determine whether the company’s methods of communication are effective.
When done the right way, an internal audit allows organizations to gauge the level of employee engagement. They can see who’s reading, responding, and interacting with company communications. This data is extremely valuable in planning future communications efforts.
A comprehensive internal communication audit can help ensure all messaging is coherent, consistent, and aligned with the company’s overall objectives. It allows for clear visibility into whether messages from senior leadership truly reflect the company strategy and if they reach all employees effectively.
Moreover, a thorough internal communications audit can lend a strategic edge, providing valuable insights into how employees perceive, interpret, and engage with company communication. It helps take the guesswork out of internal communications, driving improvements based on actual data, as opposed to assumptions or guesswork.
Now that we have looked at the essence of an internal communications audit and why it’s crucial in an organization, the next logical query is how to conduct this audit effectively. For that, we move on to the key considerations to take when preparing for the strategic communication planning process of an internal communications audit.
Upgrade your company’s internal comms to enhance employee communication
An internal communications audit reveals integral details about how effectively your company communicates internally. Its success revolves around clear planning and, more specifically, careful consideration of certain vital elements. These include the frequency of audits, scope and research methods, audit resources, team composition, and the crafting of effective internal communications audit questions.
Gauging the frequency of an internal communications audit depends on many factors and the answer varies from company to company. However, it is generally accepted that a full audit should be conducted annually. This will allow your internal communications team to monitor significant changes and modifications over a reasonable period.
In between annual audits, consider conducting mini-audits or at least regular pulse checks. This is particularly important after implementing significant changes, launching new internal communications channels, or detecting fluctuations in your engagement data.
The scope of your internal communications audit should directly correlate with your overall corporate objectives and specific internal communication strategy objectives. When determining the scope of your audit, consider reviewing all existing employee communication software, tools, and channels that you use and have available.
A variety of quantitative and qualitative research methods can and should be employed. Quantitative research, such as analyzing email open rates and responses to internal surveys and polls, offers concrete evidence of performance. Qualitative research, which can include focus groups or anonymous comments, provides a richer context and will allow you to include employee sentiment toward internal communications.
Running a comprehensive internal communications audit necessitates the use of superior tools and resources. Using an internal communications audit template as a starting point can help ensure that you cover all the vital elements. Additionally, it makes sense to leverage an internal communications tool or platform that offers in-depth analytics such as email open rates, engagement on internal messages like the employee newsletter, or a star-rating system for different communication types.
When conducting your own audit, it is crucial to involve a small group of individuals who understand your company’s internal communication system and processes. Beyond the internal communications team, consider including representatives from senior leadership and the HR department. These people can bring valuable insights into various aspects of the internal communications process from different organizational perspectives.
Upgrade your company’s internal comms to enhance employee communication
Excellent internal communications audit questions are indispensable to a successful audit. They should be designed to probe and understand current internal communications performance and employee perception of the same. Ground your questions in your strategic objectives and aim to identify if messaging matches objectives, if the tone is consistent and appropriate, and how well channels and tools are performing.
If an internal communications audit is going to be meaningful, it needs to be systematic and well-planned. Here are seven key steps to ensure a successful audit:
The first step involves clearly defining your audit’s strategic outcomes. These objectives will form a kind of road map for your audit and will affect everything from how you structure your questions to the specific communications you review. Ensure your objectives are aligned with your overall internal communications strategy to make your findings actionable and relevant.
Compiling a comprehensive inventory of all available internal communication channels and tools is next. This list needs to encompass everything from company-wide emails and intranet updates to team meetings and social platforms. This inventory will enable you to monitor usage patterns, identify redundant tools, and uncover potential gaps in your communications infrastructure.
Once the inventory is ready, you’ll need to check that your content aligns with your internal communication plan’s goals. Review several samples from your various channels to ascertain whether they reflect the defined objectives, corporate values, and desired communication tone.
This step involves eliciting employee feedback through methods such as internal communications surveys, in-depth interviews, or suggestion boxes. Ensure that your materials invite and welcome anonymous comments to encourage candid responses when evaluating what works and what needs refinement. Feedback matters more than ever at this important stage.
Consistency is key in any internal communications strategy. Measure whether the tone, branding, messaging, and frequency are consistent across all channels. The goal is to ensure that all employees, regardless of their location or seniority, receive the same core message from the company.
An inclusive and accessible internal communications system will address the needs of all employees and departments. Review your tools and channels to ensure they are accessible to employees with disabilities, special needs, and any other differences. It is critical to ensure that your communications are inclusive and respectful of the diverse backgrounds and experiences of every single person in the organization.
The final stage involves crafting and executing strategies based on your findings. These initiatives should directly address any weaknesses you have identified and built utilizing areas of strength, propelling your internal communication toward greater success.
In an increasingly digital and complex world, an internal communications audit is essential to ensure effective and efficient communication within your organization. Here are some best practices and tips for conducting a great internal communications audit.
Every organization has its own unique communication dynamics. So, running a successful internal communications audit requires a tailored approach. Below are tips to help make your audit impressive.
A successful internal communications audit is not a one-off process. It should be continually revised and updated based on the audit reveals to ensure your internal communications plan continually aligns with your ongoing strategic objective.
Despite the best intentions, many organizations fall into traps that can hamper the effectiveness of an internal communications audit. Here are a few common mistakes to avoid.
Steering clear of these common pitfalls will significantly improve your internal communication audit’s efficiency, ensuring that you get the most out of the process.
We’ve emphasized the importance of an internal communication audit and stressed the usefulness of using an internal communications audit template to streamline the process. To simplify what is often a daunting process for internal communicators, we have put together a flexible interactive internal communication audit template that provides both foundational and advanced options for you to use absolutely free. It will enable you to gain employee insights and focus on your department’s internal communications strategy with minimal effort.
Between the content you manage via email, intranet, social media, print, and digital signage, it’s good to capture a snapshot of employee experience and look at each channel’s visibility. We all know that employees have individual delivery preferences and consume their content in different ways. Cerkl Broadcast’s omnichannel capability takes care of this.
If your content output is high but your open and click rates are low, it may be because you’re not hitting the right people at the right time. Could it be your content strategy to make your channels, like your intranet, more engaging?
Please just remember that we recommend you conduct an audit regularly — at the very least annually, but preferably quarterly or even monthly.
Our audit template will help you and your team identify which channels your employees enjoy the most and which types of content they’re consuming. You will then assess your employee communications and build a solid internal communications strategy.
Upgrade your company’s internal comms to enhance employee communication
What is an internal communication audit? An internal communication audit provides a systematic evaluation of an organization’s internal communication processes and channels. This enables internal communicators to assess their effectiveness in conveying information, fostering collaboration, and achieving organizational goals.
What is an example of a communication audit? An internal communications audit typically includes an analysis of communication channels, content, audience engagement, message clarity, and feedback mechanisms. It also assesses the effectiveness of messaging and evaluates the consistency of brand communication across various platforms. This makes it possible to identify areas for improvement and enhance overall organizational communication strategy. Ultimately, it provides an overall alignment with organizational objectives so that internal communicators can identify areas for improvement.
What questions does a communication audit ask? Questions included in an internal communication audit will depend on the specifics required from every single communication audit. They may address the clarity of communication and effectiveness of channels by asking employees how clear and effective they think communication is. They often question employee understanding of organizational goals, feedback mechanisms, and employees’ perceived transparency and openness of communication within the organization.
What methods are used for audit communications? Methods you can use for auditing internal communication commonly involve surveys, interviews, focus groups, and an analysis of content. They commonly examine communication tools and platforms to gather data and insights into the strengths and weaknesses of an organization’s existing internal communication practices.
Upgrade your company’s internal comms to enhance employee communication
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