The holidays are coming up! Raise your hand if you’re excited to explain to your family (again!) what it is that you do as an internal communications professional.  

Chances are that all 1000+ respondents from the 2022 Internal Communications Industry Salary Report would heave a collective sigh and eventually launch into 1000+ different answers.  

Why? Because internal communication is complicated these days! And the role of internal communicator – day-to-day responsibilities, activities, team sizes, reporting structures, technologies, and yes, the salaries – varies WILDLY from company to company.    

So, if explaining to your family what you do and why it’s important feels hard – what happens when it’s time to explain to your manager the value you bring and why you deserve a higher salary? Harder. What about advocating for more resources from your leadership team? Hardest.

With so many wild variations in our industry, finding relevant data to help you benchmark yourself and build a strong case is – well, for lack of a better term: hard.    

ENTER THE SECOND ANNUAL INTERNAL COMMUNICATIONS INDUSTRY SALARY REPORT.   

We were thrilled to team up once again with Kyla Sims from Staffbase (formerly Bananatag) to help get some reliable and relatable data points for internal communications professionals. The best part? Salary is only one part of what we learned.    

Below, you’ll find three of my favorite takeaways from the 2022 report:     

1. DAMN, INTERNAL COMMUNICATORS DO A LOT. 

As IC pros advance in their careers (additional years of experience, senior job titles, higher salaries), they tend to have oversight over more and more communications-related activities. 

📣 Fun Fact: In 2008, Brilliant Ink was founded as an internal communications agency, with a supporting team of brilliant writers. Today, supporting internal communications projects requires writers, strategists, graphic designers, DEI experts, data analysts, project managers, photographers, videographers, technology specialists, event planners, and more.  

With all those roles and responsibilities falling under the IC purview, is it any wonder why it’s so hard to benchmark internal communication salaries?! 

‍2. INTERNAL COMMUNICATION JOB TITLES ARE GROWING IN LENGTH.   

Job titles in internal communications have a traditional hierarchical component that correlates with years of experience (from junior-level specialists and coordinators to senior-level VPs).

But in keeping with the growing list of responsibilities under the IC purview, we found that job titles in internal communications are also getting longer.    

To the Senior Manager of People Change Management, Communications and Cultural Transformation who filled out our survey, our heart goes out to you!

3. INTERNAL COMMUNICATION TEAMS RUN LEAN. 

Small and mighty describes most internal communication teams. In fact, one out of four IC professionals is on a team of one, regardless of company size. 

Once again, we found that team size tends to stay relatively flat with companies with less than 5,000 employees. And you know what?

‍THIS IS TOO MUCH FOR ONE PERSON‍

With all those day-to-day responsibilities, you need more than benchmarks – you need some help to keep up the brilliance! Here are some resources and ideas to help lighten your load: ‍‍

🧹 Clean up your IC channels!  

Understanding our communication channels inside and out is one way to gain control over our time, enabling us to focus our efforts on what matters and what really reaches the employees we serve. 

If you feel like your channels are getting out of control, or you’re not exactly sure where to prioritize your limited time, an internal communications channel audit is a great place to start. 

• Post: 4 steps for a Brilliant Internal Communications Channel Audit 
• Toolkit: How to Audit Your Internal Communications to Reach Your People + Free Templates

📅 Plan ahead!  

When you’re busy with so many pressing needs, I know it can feel impossible to find the time (and headspace!) to think and plan.

However, it’s crucial to carve out mental space now for strategic planning for the new year to avoid a gap in coverage or support. Ensure success with a 2023 internal communication plan.  

Want help with any of the above? You can call on us. We’re happy to chat with you about the year ahead, share some insight into how to approach your plan development, and recommend any support or partners within our network that might be helpful to you in the future.   

DAMN YOU’RE GOOD! NOW GO GET THE REST OF THE DATA!    

This is only the tip of the iceberg. The full salary report and accompanying deep-dive webinar are full of perspectives, insights, and benchmarks just for you. Get the rest of the data today!  

• Download the Report: 2022 Internal Communications Salary Report (via Staffbase) 
• Webinar: 2022 Internal Communications Salary Report Deep Dive  

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