De acuerdo con los libros de texto y otros tantos significados que encontramos en las redes, una crisis puede ser vista por muchos como una oportunidad para, no solo ver el vaso medio lleno sino también para, aprovechar la mejora de nuestro desempeño, nuestra gestión y por ende nuestro impacto. Pues, durante el caótico año 2020, el mundo atravesó una de las crisis más devastadoras en cuestión de salud que aún hasta la fecha viene registrando mortales consecuencias en la vida de todos los ciudadanos. Asimismo, esta crisis generada por el COVID-19 impactó de forma negativa a muchas empresas en el Perú, la mayoría de ellas se vieron obligadas a detener sus operaciones, mientras que otras del sector industrial debieron adaptarse rápidamente y activar mecanismos de respuesta para poder seguir trabajando. Es en esta instancia, en la que la gestión de comunicación interna de las empresas cobra vital importancia para mantener y desarrollar activamente la información relevante que toda empresa comparte con sus trabajadores. La presente investigación pretende demostrar el rol fundamental de la comunicación estratégica durante esta crisis sanitaria y la conexión que genera entre organización, líderes y colaboradores. Abordaremos la relevancia de las acciones de comunicación interna, así como las actividades que permitieron generar compromiso y sentido de pertenencia entre los trabajadores a pesar de la distancia. Se evaluará la generación de compromiso y se presentarán conclusiones concretas que permitan mejorar la generación de espacios virtuales de comunicación, campañas de sensibilización y reeducación en el uso de canales internos y externos. / According to textbooks and some important information about this topic we find in the networks, a crisis can be seen by many as an opportunity not only to see the glass as half full but also to take advantage of the improvement of our performance, our management and hence our impact. Moreover, during the chaotic year 2020, the world went through one of the most devastating crises in terms of health that even to date has been registering deadly consequences in the lives of all citizens. Likewise, this crisis generated by COVID-19 negatively impacted many companies in Peru, most of them were forced to stop their operations, while others in the industrial sector had to quickly adapt and activate several mechanisms response to be able to continue working or even operating. At this point, the internal communication management of companies becomes vitally important to maintain and actively develop the relevant information that they share with its workers. This research aims to demonstrate the fundamental role of strategic communication during this health crisis and the connection it generates between the organization, leaders, and employees. We will address the relevance of internal communication actions, as well as the activities that allowed commitment and a sense of belonging among workers despite the distance and the virtuality. The commitment accomplished will be evaluated and some conclusions will be presented to improve the generation of virtual communication spaces, awareness campaigns and re-education in the use of internal and external channels and mechanisms. / Trabajo de investigación

In recent years, remote work has become increasingly common, and many companies are becoming dependent on digital communication platforms to operate. This study investigates how internal communication systems in IT companies cooperate and affect its organizational culture. Two research questions were formulated: Which aspects of the organizational culture can be considered to have a more prominent role in the companies' use of internal communication systems? As well as: What function do communication systems have for the organization's culture? To answer these questions, 14 qualitative interviews were conducted at three IT companies based in Stockholm, Sweden. The study was based on Johnson and Schole's (1992) theoretical framework the cultural web, and was analyzed with an additional focus on terms such as identification and information management. Through an abductive approach the data collection resulted in insights into employee's use of systems and corporate cultures. The conclusion showed, among other things, that routines and rituals, the company's core values and the control systems had a prominent role in the use of internal communication systems. The routines worked to increase employee identification with the company, however limited to the work group. The company's core values functioned as a story, which guided the employees in how they should both work with their customers and colleagues. The control systems had an essential role in the use of communication systems as it maintained the desired behavior despite the digital format. Finally, it emerged that the function of the communication systems for the cultures of the organizations was that it enabled a culture at a distance. With the help of the system, the culture was maintained in a digital format where it was independent of where the employees were located and the physical walls of the office. / På senare år har distansarbete blivit allt vanligare, och många företag blir i högre grad beroende av digitala kommunikationsplattformar för att kunna verka. Syftet med denna studie är att undersöka hur interna kommunikationssystem hos olika IT-företag samverkar med, och påverkar, dess organisationskulturer. För att besvara detta formulerades två forskningsfrågor: Vilka aspekter av organisationskulturen kan anses ha en mer framträdande roll sett till företagens användning av interna kommunikationssystem? Samt: Vilken funktion har kommunikationssystemen för organisationens kultur? För att finna svar på dessa forskningsfrågor genomfördes 14 kvalitativa intervjuer hos tre IT-företag med kontor i Stockholm. Genom ett abduktivt angreppssätt, där studien tog sin grund i bland annat Johnson och Scholes (1992) teoretiska ramverk det kulturella nätet, analyserades respondenternas svar utifrån termer av bland annat identifiering med organisationen och informationshantering. Slutsatsen visar bland annat att rutiner och ritualer, värdegrunden samt kontrollsystemen hade en framträdande roll sett till användningen av interna kommunikationssystem. Rutinerna fungerade för att öka de anställdas identifiering, dock begränsat till arbetsgruppen. Värdegrunden fungerade som en berättelse, vilken guidade de anställda i hur de  skulle arbeta med sina kunder och kollegor. Kontrollsystemen hade en väsentlig roll i kommunikationssystemen då det upprätthöll önskat beteende trots det digitala formatet. Slutligen framgick det att kommunikationssystemens funktion för organisationernas kulturer var att den möjliggjorde en enhetlig kultur på distans. Med hjälp av systemen upprätthålls kulturen i ett digitalt format där den är oberoende av både vart de anställda befinner sig och kontorets fysiska väggar.

Denna kandidatuppsats fokuserar på hur intern kommunikation kan användas av en arbetsgivare på en medelstor organisation samt hur medarbetarna upplever den. Studien har utgått från en kvalitativ metod och empirin har samlats in genom semistrukturerade intervjuer med medarbetare, linjechefer och chefer i ledningsfunktionen. Resultatet visar att den interna kommunikationen kan delas upp i två delar; digitala kommunikationskanaler och fysiska kommunikationskanaler. De digitala kommunikationskanalerna bidrar till att effektivt dela information samt öppnar upp möjligheten för distansarbete. Nackdelarna är minskad dialog och feedback på grund av en envägskommunikation och en minskad social interaktion. De fysiska kommunikationskanalerna bidrar till ökade sociala interaktioner som bygger och stärker relationer. Genom att ses fysiskt och kommunicera i en tvåvägskommunikation ger det möjlighet till dialog och feedback vilket kan leda till engagerade medarbetare. Nackdelarna med de fysiska mötena är att muntlig information kan glömmas bort och att de riskerar att bli tidskrävande. Det blir därför viktigt som arbetsgivare att hitta en balans mellan de olika kanalerna för att tillfredsställa och engagera sin personal på bästa sätt. Avslutningsvis visar studien en övergripande bild över upplevelserna av den interna kommunikationen. / This Bachelor´s thesis focuses on how internal communication can be used by an employer in a medium-sized organization and how the employees experience it. The study has been based on a qualitative method and the empirical evidence has been collected through semi-structured interviews with employees, line managers and managers in the management group. The result shows that the internal communication can be divided into two parts; digital communication channels and physical communications channels. The digital communication channels contributesto efficient sharing of information and gives the possibility of remote work. The disadvantages are reduced dialogue and feedback due to one-way communication and reduced social interaction. The physical communication channels contributes to increased social interactions that build and strengthen relationsships. To meetphysically and communication in a two-way communication provide the opportunity for dialogue and feedback which can lead to engaged employees. The disadvantages of physical meetings are that verbal information can be forgotten and that they risk becoming timeconsuming. It therefore becomes important as an employer to find a balance between the various channels in order to satisfy and engage the staff in the best way. Furthermore, the study shows an overall picture of the experiences of internal communication.

I studien undersöks medarbetarnas syn på den interna kommunikationen om tjänstepension inom ett tjänsteproducerande företag. Utgångspunkten i undersökningen var att genom en enkätundersökning undersöka hur medarbetarnas pensionskunskaper såg ut, hur deras intresse var samt om hur de upplevde att organisationen informerar om tjänstepensionen. Enkäten visade att det fanns ett intresse för pension men att kunskapen var låg samt att medarbetarna upplevde att organisationen inte informerade medarbetarna på ett effektivt sätt. Syftet med studien är att undersöka hur den interna kommunikationen om tjänstepension upplevs utifrån ett medarbetarperspektiv. För att undersöka och öka förståelsen av respondenternas upplevelse valdes en hermeneutisk ansats med kvalitativ metod som innefattade fokusgruppsdiskussioner. Ansatsen har hjälpt oss att gå från en förförståelse om att kunskapen är låg till att ge en större förståelse för medarbetarnas upplevelse av effekterna av organisationens kommunikationsprocess i tjänstepensionsfrågor. Undersökningen visade att det fanns förbättringar att göra i hur organisationen väljer att informera om tjänstepension. För att få medarbetarna att förstå värdet av tjänstepensionen behöver organisationen kontinuerligt kommunicera detta till sina medarbetare. De flesta av respondenterna föredrog en personlig information vid löne- eller medarbetarsamtal eller kontinuerlig information om hur mycket organisationen betalar in till tjänstepensionen. Resultatet visade att det skulle skapa ett värde för medarbetarna om de visste vad organisationen betalar in och individens känsla av tillit och att känna sig värdefulla skulle öka. Resultatet visade även att ett samband mellan generationstillhörighet och pensionskunskap inte kunde påvisas. / The study examines the employees' view of the internal communication about occupational pensions within a service-producing company. The starting point of the investigation was through a survey investigate how the employees' pension knowledge looked, what their interest was, and how they felt that the organization provides information about occupational pensions. The survey showed that there was an interest about pension but that the knowledge was low, and that the employees felt that the organization did not inform the employees in an effective way. The aim of the study is to investigate how the internal communication about occupational pensions is experienced from an employee perspective. In order to investigate and increase the understanding of the respondents' experience, a hermeneutic approach was chosen with a qualitative method that included focus group discussions. The approach has helped us move from a pre-understanding that the knowledge is low, to providing a greater understanding of the employees' experience of the effects of the organization's communication process in occupational pension matters. The investigation showed that there were improvements to be made in the way the organization chooses to inform about occupational pensions. In order to make the employees understand the value of the occupational pension, the organization needs to continuously communicate this to its employees. Most of the respondents preferred a personal information during salary- or employee meeting, or continuous information about how much the organization pays into the occupational pension. The result showed that it would create value for the employees if they knew what the organization pays in and the individual's sense of trust and feeling valued would increase. The result also showed that a relationship between generational affiliation and pension knowledge could not be demonstrated.

Anställdas upplevda användbarhet av intranät som informations- och kommunikationsverktyg  En enkätstudie i samarbete med ICA Gruppen AB om hur intranätet Worknet används och upplevs ur ett medarbetarperspektiv. En organisation ställer höga krav på den interna kommunikationen. Den ska fungera väl, inspirerande och felfritt. En intern kommunikation som är effektiv har förmågan att ge de anställda en möjlighet att kommunicera med varandra. Den förmågan skapar en vi-anda. Detta gäller även om alla inte befinner sig på samma plats.  Syftet med studien är att undersöka hur intranätet upplevs på ICA Gruppen AB från medarbetarnas perspektiv. Vad kan förbättras och förändras? På vilket sätt använder man intranätet och kan intranätet stärka den organisationskultur som lever inom ICA Gruppen AB?  Studien utfördes med ett enkätformulär. Vi valde att lägga 14 enkätfrågor på intranätet som anställda fick möjlighet att svara på.  De allra viktigaste resultaten som kom fram i studien var att majoriteten var nöjda med intranätet. Dock vill respondenterna se en förbättrad sökfunktion, både grafiskt och tekniskt. Intranätets nuvarande utformning bidrog till en viss “vi-känsla” inom organisationen men de fanns synpunkter där bland annat mer lokala nyheter efterfrågades. Man ville bygga ut den interna sidan med mer riktade nyheter. Resultatet visar att intranätet stärker organisationskulturen.

Bakgrund: Ekonomistyrning fungerar som ett verktyg för att stödja chefer och styra medarbetare mot organisatoriska mål. Kommunikation som är kritisk för styrningen, är integrerad i organisationens processer, struktur, miljö och kultur. Intern kommunikation stöder anställdas förståelse för företagets mål, vilket påverkar deras beslutsprocesser och hur de bidrar till företagets framgång.  Syfte: Syftet med denna uppsats är att öka förståelsen för hur ekonomistyrning genom intern kommunikation utformas med hjälp av olika kommunikationsvägar. Dessutom är syftet att undersöka om medarbetare på olika nivåer förstår det som kommuniceras. Metod: I metoden förklaras hur denna studie är genomförd. Studien är en fallstudie på ett medelstort industriföretag i Småland. Forskningsmetoden är kvalitativ genom semistrukturerade intervjuer, datainsamling via direkt observation och från dokument.  Slutsats: I slutsatsen besvaras frågeställningarna. Första frågeställningen är “Hur är den interna kommunikationen för styrning utformad? ” vilket besvaras att den är utformad hierarkisk, med en stark möteskultur samt är transparent för den som vill ta del och lyssna. Den andra frågeställningen lyder “hur väl förstår medarbetarna det som kommuniceras?”. Detta besvaras att kommunikationen inte är anpassad för alla och därmed skiljer sig förståelsen mellan nivå, roll och avdelning. Strategisk och taktisk nivå, som har chefsroller, har hög förståelse medan operativ nivå, med underställda roller, inte förstår all intern kommunikation. De som arbetar på produktionsavdelningen har sämre förståelse än resterande operativ personal på andra avdelningar. / Background: Management control serves as a tool to support managers and guide employees towards organizational goals. Communication, which is critical for management, is integrated into the organization's processes, structure, environment and culture. Internal communication supports employees' understanding of the company's goals, influencing their decision-making and contributing to the company's success. Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to increase understanding of how management control through internal communication is designed using different communication pathways. Furthermore the purpose is to examine whether employees in different levels understand what is communicated. Method: The method explains how this study was conducted. This study is a case study of a medium-sized industrial company in Småland. The research method is qualitative, through semi-structured interviews, data collection via direct observation and from documents. Conclusion: In the conclusion, the research questions are answered. The first question is "how is the internal communication for management designed?" to which the answer is that it is designed hierarchically, with a strong meeting culture and is transparent for those who want to take part in the information and listen. The second question is "how well do employees understand what is being communicated?" This is answered by stating that the communication is not tailored to everyone, leading to varying levels of understanding based on role, level and department. Strategic and tactical levels, which include managerial roles, have a high level of understanding, whereas the operational level, with subordinate roles, do not understand all internal communication. Those who work in the production department have a poorer understanding compared to the rest of the operational staff in other departments.

Abstract in English with Afrikaans and SeSotho translations / Employee engagement is a phenomenon that has gained increasingly more attention in organisational communication studies and also in the postmodern organisational context. In the postmodern organisational environment, employee engagement focuses more on building relationships with employees than on individual performance. However, the value of internal communication practices to enhance employee engagement within a postmodern organisation has still not fully been explored. The study thus investigated, in accordance with what the literature suggests, a single case to test which internal communication practices are perceived as strengthening employee engagement within a postmodern organisation. Consequently, the study adopted a mixed method research approach utilising three research methods, namely a survey, a focus group and semi-structured interviews, to establish which internal communication practices the management of the organisation must adopt to strengthen employee engagement. The worldview adopted for this study was both the positivist and interpretivist research paradigms. Findings indicate that because the organisation’s employees’ views are heard, responded to and even form part of the solution, employees become more engaged. In addition, having too many internal communication tools and implementing them without a strategy in place can lead to employees becoming less engaged. Overall, the findings indicate that having a supportive management style, meeting employees’ needs and providing enough opportunities for employees to participate in problem-solving are deemed important for employee engagement. Interestingly, the findings show no correlation between the importance of establishing a good organisational culture and enhancing employee engagement in the organisation. Although the findings cannot be generalised to the larger population, the insight gained could serve as a heuristic for similar organisations to strengthen their employee engagement. / Werknemerbetrokkenheid is ’n verskynsel wat al hoe meer aandag kry in organisatoriese kommunikasiestudies en ook in die postmoderne organisatoriese konteks. In laasgenoemde konteks word daar meer met werknemerbetrokkenheid gefokus op die bou van verhoudings met werknemers as op individuele prestasie. Die waarde van interne kommunikasiepraktyke om werknemerbetrokkenheid binne ’n postmoderne organisasie te bevorder, is nog steeds nie ten volle ondersoek nie. Daar is dus in die studie, in ooreenstemming met wat die literatuur suggereer, ’n enkele gevallestudie ondersoek om te bepaal watter interne kommunikasiepraktyke beskou word as praktyke wat werknemerbetrokkenheid binne ’n postmoderne organisasie bevorder. Gevolglik is daar in die studie ’n gemengdemetode-navorsingsbenadering aangeneem wat drie navorsingsmetodes insluit, naamlik ’n opname, fokusgroep en semi-gestruktureerde onderhoude, met die doel om vas te stel watter interne kommunikasiepraktyke die bestuur van die organisasie moet aanneem om werknemerbetrokkenheid te bevorder. Die wêreldbeskouing wat vir hierdie studie aangeneem is, is sowel die positivistiese as vertolkende navorsingsparadigmas. Bevindinge dui daarop dat omrede die werknemers van die organisasie se sienings aangehoor word, daarop gereageer word en dit selfs deel van die oplossing uitmaak, werknemers meer betrokke raak. Daarbenewens kan te veel interne kommunikasie-middels en die implementering daarvan sonder ’n strategie daartoe lei dat werknemers minder betrokke raak. Oor die algemeen dui die bevindinge daarop dat ’n ondersteunende bestuurstyl, voldoening aan werknemers se behoeftes en die verskaffing van genoegsame geleenthede vir werknemers om aan probleemoplossing deel te neem, as belangrik geag word vir werknemerbetrokkenheid. Interessant genoeg wys die bevindinge geen korrelasie tussen die belangrikheid daarvan om ’n goeie organisatoriese kultuur te vestig en om werknemerbetrokkenheid in die organisasie te bevorder nie. Hoewel die bevindinge nie veralgemeen kan word om die groter bevolking in te sluit nie, kan die insig wat verkry word as ’n leerproses gebruik word vir soorgelyke organisasies om hulle werknemerbetrokkenheid te bevorder. / Bonkakarolo ba basebetsi ke ntho e hapileng tlhokomelo e eketsehileng dithutong tsa puisano tsa mekgatlo hape le maemong a morao-rao a mekgatlo. Tikolohong ya morao-rao ya mekgatlo, onkakarolo ba basebetsi bo shebana haholo le ho haha dikamano le basebetsi ho fapana le tshebetso ya motho ka mong. Leha ho le jwalo, boleng ba ditlwaelo tsa puisano tsa kahare ba ho ntlafatsa bonkakarolo ba basebetsi kahara mekgatlo ya morao-rao ha bo so ka bo hlahlojwa ka botlalo. Kahoo, phuputso e fupuditse ho latela seo dingodilweng di se supang, tlhahlobisiso e le nngwe ya ho lekola hore na ke mekgwa efe ya puisano ya kahare e nkuwang e matlafatsa bonkakarolo ba asebetsi kahara mokgatlo wa kamora nako ya morao-rao. Ka lebaka leo, phuputso e ile ya sebedisa mokgwa o tswakilweng wa dipatlisiso o sebedisang mekgwa e meraro ya dipatlisiso, e leng phuputso, sehlopha seo ho shebanweng le sona le dipuisano tse batlang di hlophisitswe hantle, ho sheba hore na ke mekgwa efe ya puisano ya kahare eo tsamaiso e lokelang ho e amohela ho matlafatsa bonkakarolo ba asebetsi. Maikutlo a lefatshe a amohetsweng phuputsong ena e ne e le a dipatlisiso a bontshang hore tlhokomelo le lebaka ke mekgwa ya kutlwisiso ya boitshwaro ba batho le a dipatlisiso tsa botoloki. Diphumano di bontsha hore hobane maikutlo a basebetsi ba mokgatlo a utluwa, a arabelwa ebile a etsa karolo ya tharollo, basebetsi ba kakgela ka setotswana le hofeta. Ntle le moo, ho ba le disebediswa tse ngata haholo tsa puisano tsa kahare le ho di kenya tshebetsong ntle le leano ho ka etsa hore basebetsi ba se ke ba sebetsa hantle. Ka kakaretso, diphumano di bontsha hore ho ba le mokgwa wa botsamaisi o tshehetsang, ho fihlela ditlhoko tsa basebetsi le ho fana ka menyetla e lekaneng ho basebetsi ya ho nka karolo tharollong ya mathata ho nkuwa ho le bohlokwa bakeng sa ho nka karolo ha basebetsi. Ho kgahlisang ke hore diphumano ha di bontshe kamano dipakeng tsa bohlokwa ba ho theha setso se hantle sa mokgatlo le ho matlafatsa bonkakarolo ba basebetsi mokgatlong. Leha diphumano e ke ke ya ba tse akaretsang ho batho ba bangata, temohisiso e fumanweng e ka sebetsa e le leano la mekgatlo e tshwanang ho matlafatsa bonkakarolo ba basebetsi ba yona. Mantswe a sehlooho: bonkakarolo ba basebetsi, puisano ya kahare, mekgwa ya puisano ya kahare, puisano ya mokgatlo, tshebediso e nang le sepheo ya puisano / Communication Science / M.A. (Communication Science)

Relationships with internal stakeholders within the organisation (employees) are crucial for organisational survival and success (Hargie & Tourish, 2000:293; Jensen, 2010:32; Koschmann, 2007:12; McDermott & Chan, 1996:5; Van der Colff, 2003:258). Therefore, twoway symmetrical communication with employees in building relationships and relationship management is so important (Bezuidenhout, 2010; Koschmann, 2007:8). The North-West University focuses on maintaining good relationships with their employees through communication, but experience challenges in this regard. The Institutional Office of the North-West University is the main source of information and communication with employees of all three campuses. A consultant (Media Mosaics, 2010) and two other studies (Holtzhausen & Fourie, 2011; Mmope, 2010) identified various problems with the communication and consequent relationships between the Institutional Office and the Potchefstroom Campus employees. Given that good relations between the two business units are a focus of the university and that the outcomes of internal communication are good relationships, it is necessary to determine how the internal communication from the North-West University Institutional Office to Potchefstroom Campus employees are conducted in order to build good relationships. To determine the above a literature study, questionnaire survey and semi-structured interviews were carried out. The systems approach, reflective paradigm, excellence theory, two-way symmetrical communication model and stakeholder relations theory were used as a theoretical framework (Dozier, et al., 1995; Ferreira & Staude, 1991; Grunig & Grunig, 2000:310; Grunig et al., 2002; Ledingham & Bruning, 2001:63; Skinner & Von Essen, 1999:257; Steyn & Puth, 2000; Verčič et al., 2001:382). From the results it appears that the North-West University Institutional Office and Potchefstroom Campus employees do not agree on all aspects of the relationship and communication between them. It appears that the North-West University Institutional Office meets only some of the requirements of communication and relationship building, as it has been set out in the literature, and that there is room for improvement. / MA (Communication Studies), North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2014

Relationships with internal stakeholders within the organisation (employees) are crucial for organisational survival and success (Hargie & Tourish, 2000:293; Jensen, 2010:32; Koschmann, 2007:12; McDermott & Chan, 1996:5; Van der Colff, 2003:258). Therefore, twoway symmetrical communication with employees in building relationships and relationship management is so important (Bezuidenhout, 2010; Koschmann, 2007:8). The North-West University focuses on maintaining good relationships with their employees through communication, but experience challenges in this regard. The Institutional Office of the North-West University is the main source of information and communication with employees of all three campuses. A consultant (Media Mosaics, 2010) and two other studies (Holtzhausen & Fourie, 2011; Mmope, 2010) identified various problems with the communication and consequent relationships between the Institutional Office and the Potchefstroom Campus employees. Given that good relations between the two business units are a focus of the university and that the outcomes of internal communication are good relationships, it is necessary to determine how the internal communication from the North-West University Institutional Office to Potchefstroom Campus employees are conducted in order to build good relationships. To determine the above a literature study, questionnaire survey and semi-structured interviews were carried out. The systems approach, reflective paradigm, excellence theory, two-way symmetrical communication model and stakeholder relations theory were used as a theoretical framework (Dozier, et al., 1995; Ferreira & Staude, 1991; Grunig & Grunig, 2000:310; Grunig et al., 2002; Ledingham & Bruning, 2001:63; Skinner & Von Essen, 1999:257; Steyn & Puth, 2000; Verčič et al., 2001:382). From the results it appears that the North-West University Institutional Office and Potchefstroom Campus employees do not agree on all aspects of the relationship and communication between them. It appears that the North-West University Institutional Office meets only some of the requirements of communication and relationship building, as it has been set out in the literature, and that there is room for improvement. / MA (Communication Studies), North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2014

Despite the fact that Internal Marketing (IM) has emerged to capture the interest of academic researchers and management practitioners, there is a surprising absence of empirical study investigating how IM is experienced in the world of practice. This constitutes an impediment to bridging the gap in the holistic understanding of the IM concept. The big question that remains is how to articulate precisely those activities that can be taken to constitute the structure of IM and those that do not. This study aims to bridge this gap by exploring whether the experiences of managers who are implementing IM in their organisations could provide clarity as to the meaning and the constituents structure of IM. This study first undertakes scrutiny of the extant IM literature in an attempt to clarify the multiplicity of terms often associated with IM. The meaning and the constituents structure of IM was investigated via an in-depth qualitative study guided by the principles of phenomenology. This qualitative study is based around open-ended interviews with participants sampled from the UK private and public sector firms. Data was collected and analysed in line with Giorgi’s descriptive phenomenological research praxis. The phenomenological findings indicate nine overlapping elements, namely, internal communication, employee training, reward, empowerment, employee motivation, interdepartmental co-ordination, understanding the organisation, commitment, and top management support that emerged to constitute the experiential structure of IM. Drawing upon these elements, the study offers a conceptual framework of the IM structure. Systematic analytical steps were utilised to ensure the validity of findings.