15 lessons for internal communicators from event control
- christinearmstrong0
- May 1, 2023
- 2 min read
I've often worked in Event Control on large scale events such as The Coronation and Velothon Birmingham with all the radios going, the WhatsApp groups buzzing and the phones ringing. It's a crazy, intense few hours where things can change in minutes.
Recently, while working at one such event, I was struck by the correlations between the ‘capsule internal comms’ of an event (a short-burst intense campaign if you will) and wider IC practice.
Here are 15 lessons for internal communications that can be learnt from the event control room:
If your people aren’t on the same channel as you, your message won’t get through to them when it’s critical.
If you’re not listening to the channel that your people are using, you won’t hear what they have to say and could miss vital information
Sometimes, people don’t know that they’re on the wrong channel. They might need to be advised on where to listen for critical messages to ensure that they hear. However - you need to know where they’re listening before you can redirect them.
Business critical messages (eg medical calls) need a clear route to cut through. It could be a life or death situation. This channel might be less frequently used, but you sure as hell better be listening when it goes off.
You might have all the right tools. But if you don’t know how to use them in the right way, it won’t work. There needs to be a balance between the tool and the teaching. And sometimes, simple is better.
You can be sitting in an office listening to the silence and think that everything is okay. But is the silence golden, or are you not listening?
Mis-information and half-information easily spiral out of control – know your facts, and anticipate follow-on questions before you share them!
Communication is a two way thing.
Without an overview of the channels, you can’t see what’s happening. There might be outliers who are sitting in a channel on their own wondering why they’re not hearing anything, or feeling frustrated because nobody is answering when they ask for help. Understanding where people are means they can be picked up and redirected.
Sometimes, you need to mute a channel to cut the chatter – what’s happening in the group (eg sports operational) might not be relevant or useful to hear across all channels.
Keep an eye on your battery life – everyone needs a recharge now and then, or access to a spare battery.
It’s okay to take a break, just make sure that people on your channel know that you’re away so that they don’t call for you while you’re out.
If a comms channel isn’t working (eg Radio), try a different type of channel (eg Whatsapp group, direct phone call…)
If something isn’t clear, gain clarification
The channels that you monitor might only be a smaller part of a bigger machine. It’s useful to have an ear on upwards channels too so that you’re armed with correct information and context.
Love to hear your thoughts.
Comments