Cuttlefish Communication

Crisis comms planning is not a 'new' thing, and it's been part of smart business planning for a long time ... and it's usually quietly happening in the background.

Case in point: while visiting Ottawa this week, we went for a tour of the Deifenbunker, a Cold War-era bunker built for the Canadian Government back in the late 1950s / early 1960s.

The tour guide mentioned that after the facility was turned into a privately-run museum, they found a stack of tapes that turned out to be pre-recorded messages intended to play over the radio in the event of a nuclear attack.

Like any good crisis comms plan, there were pre-planned messages for several different scenarios. As chilling as they were to hear, it was also a reminder of the work comms pros do every day behind the scenes that people may never be aware of (in some cases, we hope they never have to).

I also appreciated the section educating people about propaganda ... but that's a discussion for another day!

[Image descriptions: (1) Photo of the inside of an old radio room in the bunker, featuring old radio equipment including tapes; (2) a photo of the long, metal-clad tunnel leading to the bunk; (3) a poster showing some of the propaganda used during the Cold War; (4) a poster talking about propaganda today, including the use of 'fake news'.]

Do you know who asks the best questions about change?

Toddlers.

Why is this happening? Why now? Why do I have to do it?

Funny thing is, adults aren’t all that different. In workplaces, those questions become: Why are we changing systems? Why are we restructuring? Why are we introducing AI?

Yet organisations explain what is changing and how it will happen with project plans, timelines and launch comms… while forgetting to explain why. Then we wonder why people resist; the reality is most resistance is just people trying to make sense of what’s happening around them.

So, explore why the strongest change communication doesn’t just explain the mechanics of change, it answers the question people are actually asking, right here: 👉 https://heymelcomms.training/blog/navigate-change
[Image description: An image of four people chatting in the bottom left. The background is green, with an overlay of near transparent circular shapes. At the top is the title in black: "Why people resist change and how to navigate it with communication" and the Cuttlefish logo is in bottom right.]

Your inbox needs less noise, more signal.

The latest edition of the Less Chatter, More Matter newsletter has landed and this one’s for communicators who are tired of being seen as “the people who send the emails” and ready to step into a more strategic role.

Plus communication insights, trends and tools designed to help you do better work and create more impact…. for freeeee! 👉: https://mailchi.mp/heymelcomms/22-6-26

So sign up for more free stuff here: https://training.us6.list-manage.com/profile?u=a4e0f5f80596568d857875e0d&id=89b2354fad&e=%5BUNIQID%5D&c=742f306292.
[Image description: A green envelope opened with a white card showing in it. The card has a photo of Mel with people, and the words under it say: "What's changing for comms in the age of AI?". On the envelope bottom is the subtitle: "Less Chatter, More Matter Newsletter" and at the top of the envelope is the Cuttlefish logo. The background is an obscured landscape.]

I'm the first to admit that for many years, inclusive design didn't even cross my mind when working in corporate comms.

But these days, I'll shout about it until people are sick of listening to me!

Why? Because inclusive communication isn't a "nice-to-have" add-on; it’s a fundamental part of effective leadership and change. 🏗️

When we talk about DEI in communications, we often focus on the "what" (ie, the specific words we use).

But true inclusion starts with the "how" ... how we design our messages to be accessible to everyone from the very beginning.

To move beyond tokenism and towards genuine inclusion, there's three things we can do:

1. Acknowledge the "Who" before the "Why": Before you craft a single message, understand the diverse needs, backgrounds, and digital capabilities of your audience.

2. Design for accessibility: Use clear, simple language and ensure your content is compatible with screen readers and other assistive technologies (for example, if someone doesn't use a mouse, can they easily tab through your website or intranet page?).

3. Seek out diverse perspectives: Don't assume you know what will resonate with everyone; actively involve people from different backgrounds in your planning and review processes.

When we design for inclusion, we create a culture where everyone has an equal opportunity to contribute and succeed.

What is one small change you’ve made to your communication style to make it more inclusive?

[Image description: Pale green tile with a white circle in the middle with black text that reads: Inclusive design makes communication better for everyone.]

Communicators have always been rewarded for output: more campaigns, more content, more channels, more messages.

But AI is forcing us to ask: is value created by producing communication… or by shaping outcomes?

The uncomfortable truth is that if our role is only seen as creating content, technology can now do a lot of that work faster and cheaper. That doesn’t mean communicators become less valuable. It means our value shifts.

The future isn’t in being the fastest content producer. It’s in being the person who asks better questions… so, find out how here 👉 https://heymelcomms.training/blog/comms-skills-now
[Image description: An image of a man walking into the right side of the screen. In the middle of concrete wall is a white poster with the words that say: "The communication skills that matter most now" in black writing with green underlay on the font. The black Cuttlefish logo is in the bottom middle.]

There's very few people who could get up and facilitate a four-hour session after 40+ hours of travel to get there ... is one of them!

This morning I had the pleasure of co-facilitating with Zora and Bonnie Caver for the IABC Change Management SIG (Shared Interest Group).

We facilitated an 'unconference', where the participants in the room drove the agenda and the discussion that followed.

All the conversations I sat in on were so full of ideas, shared challenges, and diverse experiences. It was brilliant just to listen to the expertise in the room!

Now that's done, we've got two more Change Management SIG events coming up (head to iabc.com for info), plus you can also enroll in the Certified Change Communication Practitioner program through the Centre for Strategic Communication Excellence (see more here: https://cuttlefish.group/public-workshops).