In our previous article, CAKE Communications Associate Chrissi Harcourt-Wood looked at the key takeaways for 2026 for internal communication and engagement professionals, through the lens of the IoIC’s 2025 Index.
You can read the full article here.
Delivering the best IC experiences in 2026
If you haven’t had the chance to read it yet, in summary the report highlighted activities to focus our energy on to make the most positive impact on engaging our people:
1. Champion human connection: Make empathy and authenticity the cornerstone of leader communication.
2. Close the feedback loop: Show employees their voice matters through visible action.
3. Handle change with care: Be there from the start, to communicate thoughtfully and inclusively during transitions.
4. Get AI clarity on the agenda: Provide transparency and guidance to build trust in technology and address concerns.
5. Upskill for the future: Invest in your own coaching, data, digital, listening and change capabilities as IC professionals – but don’t overextend! Collaborate with others from a range of disciplines to get capability breadth and depth.
Building on our previous article, Chrissi has expanded on these ideas to explore five key focus areas that we believe internal communications professionals can’t ignore.
5 Key Focus Areas for Internal Communications Professionals to Prioritise in 2026
The list of skills expected of internal communicators continues to grow, and we need to be mindful not to set expectations that stretch us too thin. As the demands on internal communications evolve, it will be increasingly important to partner with people and organisation development professionals to ensure authentic communication, particularly for leaders and managers, is embedded as a core capability within organisation development programs.
Equally important is strong collaboration across disciplines and functions to design and deliver effective change communication and engagement programs. Working together in this way will be essential to ensuring change programs truly succeed.
Here’s Chrissi’s take on the key focal points IC professionals should prioritise developing.
· Leader coaching and development: we can guide and coach leaders to develop authentic, empathetic communication styles – however there’s a wider piece of work to be done in collaboration with people professionals to ensure leadership recruitment, development and reward programs focus on the right communication styles and skills to deliver on employees’ expectations (more on this below).
· Data storytelling: Get familiar with gathering and using insights to influence strategy and demonstrate the impact of what you do. Most digital communication platforms and tools have built analytics these days. Teams and SharePoint for example give you data on audience activity across the last 90 days – so build a habit of pulling down the data, pulling out what’s relevant and presenting it back to the business in a meaningful way. There’s much potential for AI assistance in the ‘making sense’ of the data too – and a good opportunity to expand our own understanding of it’s application in business.
· The human / emotional side of change: There’s an increasing focus on the neuroscience of change – with new certifications emerging to address the need for a deeper understanding of how humans react to change and why. Delve into some of the latest research and reading on the subject – or bring some behavioural science expertise into the team. The CAKE team have attended training sessions with Deborah Hulme so any insights from their work would be a great place to start.
· Digital & AI Literacy: Be part of the conversation around AI use and adoption in your organisation – or get it started if it has yet to. Don’t let an AI communication void swallow up all your hard work building trust and transparency. You don’t have to be the technical expert – just understand the business leader’s thinking about it and be able to translate that for their people.
· Listening facilitation: So that you can support regular, intimate spaces for dialogue between leaders, managers and non-managers; and ensure the feedback you gather not only informs action but is also reflected back to your people to close the loop.
Equipping Leaders and Managers to Support Internal Communication and Engagement
With so much emphasis on leadership communications as the magic ingredient, there is a burning need to ensure our leaders are fully equipped, motivated, and rewarded for getting it right. The IoIC research showed that 94% of leaders think they’ve got what it takes to communicate effectively – quite a way off what their people say. So, there’s some work to do for many organisations on this. IC and people professionals / teams need to work together to make sure that organisations set out clear expectations for leaders that address self-leadership and awareness, communication and the human dynamics of change.
This can then give clarity and direction to:
· leadership recruitment briefs and activities
· development frameworks and succession planning programs filling the pipeline of future leaders
· reward and recognition systems offer positive consequences for leaders that get communications and change right.
When you take a holistic view of change, these boxes get ticked as a matter of course.
Ready to strengthen your internal communications or upcoming change? Let’s talk.
Find out more about Chrissi and the CAKE Communications team here >
Context, Credit & About This Post:
This post reflects our own interpretation and analysis of the IoIC 2025 IC Index. It’s intended to share insights and spark discussion, not to represent official advice or the views of the IoIC or any other organisation. This commentary is based on publicly available information and is provided for general information purposes only. References to this report are for context only and do not imply endorsement or affiliation.
All trademarks and content referenced remain the property of their respective owners.
