News from FEIEA - Issue I/2011
BELGIUM ANNOUNCES ITS OWN GRAND PRIX
The ABCI (Belgian Association for Internal Communication) is currently presenting its own national Grand Prix competition, using the same categories established by FEIEA. The call for applications was sent out at the beginning of March and ‘Les Grands Prix’ themselves will be awarded in May. The Grands Prix will be awarded this May during a ceremony organized for the occasion in the workshops of the famous Belgian chocolatier Marcolini. This year, it is hoped that there will yet again be a large number of participants.
 
The ABCI is particularly active in coordinating training for its members, with subjects ranging from ‘Generation Y’ to copyright. It also participates actively on the social network LinkedIn, where it initiates regular dialogue between experts in internal communication.
 
A video introduction to the ABCI has just been produced, which will be used to present the association during training sessions and trade fairs. The number of new ABCI members is constantly growing, which is certainly a satisfying development.

» For more information contact Alain-Pierre Meeus
[apmeeus@gmail.com]


Advanced level delegates with Steve Doswell (right)
FIRST INTAKE FOR UK INSTITUTE’S ADVANCED LEVEL QUALIFICATION
The first intake of students for the Institute of Internal Communication’s advanced level qualification started work in January 2011.

Students from organisations including Chevron, RBS, the Home Office, Ernst and Young and Manchester Airport, have signed up to complete this qualification aimed at practitioners in management or on the threshold of managerial roles.
 
Key components of the Advanced Level of Proficiency in Internal Communication include: completion of an experience portfolio; participation in a group project; and a final assessment event when students are interviewed by a panel of senior practitioners.
The qualification runs over a six-month period, and is designed so that much of the activity is undertaken in the workplace.
The Institute’s qualification programme is monitored by an independent panel of Institute Fellows and other acknowledged industry experts.

Sheila Parry, IoIC director of education and accreditation, said: “The establishment of recognised standards in the practice of internal communication is what the sector has been waiting for and this has been validated by the range of organisations represented on this first intake.
 
“Our vision is that, within a few years, employers will regard Institute accreditation as a key differentiator in the selection of candidates and that accredited practitioners will be recognised for their core skills, knowledge and experience.
“This is an important step in delivering a qualification framework for internal communication that will meet the needs of practitioners at all career stages.”
 
The qualification is a key element of the UK Institute’s focus on raising practitioner performance levels and standards of organisational internal communication across the UK – through professional accreditation, being advocates for internal communication and building and maintaining a strong network of communicators.

» For more information contact Alison Ochiltree
[alison@ochiltree9650.freeserve.co.uk]
 
 
NEW TRENDS IN BANKING COMMUNICATIONS SYSTEMS IN ITALY
The last decade has been a crucial period for internal communications in the banking system, as changes in media technology spread though society combined with large-scale mergers and the recent global economic crisis, have had a great impact on company workforces. These phenomena have led to the emergence of new links between internal communications and social responsibility initiatives launched by banks.  Research conducted by ABI (Association of Italian Banks) and Universita’ Cattolica of Milan studied the impacts of those changes and the rise of new trends in the banking communications system.

» For more information contact Maurizio Incletolli
[m.incletolli@abi.it]
 
 
DANES DISCUSS INTERNAL TV
On 9th March the Danish association FIK held an event for all members at the Danish bank Jyske Bank, on handling internal television. Jyske Bank was the class winner for Best Audiovisual Communication at the FEIEA Grand Prix 2010. At the end of the event, FIK presented other FEIEA awards and diplomas to Danish recipients, including the FEIEA Diploma of Honour for Poul Erik Larsen.  “He has shown outstanding leadership of the Danish association for internal communication. As a member of the FEIEA Executive team, he had also put a lot of energy into networking among business communicators throughout Europe. Poul Erik has a huge knowledge in most kinds of communication and a continual reputation of keeping things on track.” said Kenneth Wilson, president of FIK.
 
» For further information contact Kenneth Wilson
[kenneth@clips.dk]
 
 
PROGRESS FOR NEW CZECH INSTITUTE
The aim of the recently-founded Czech Institute of Internal Communication (IIK) is to create an informal discussion group of professionals who are involved or interested in internal communications (IC). Tomas Poucha, independent consultant and Dana Poulova, Head of Global Comms, DHL IT Services decided to found the Czech Institute of Internal Comms to support networking among internal communicators and to encourage the exchange of best practices and professional research. IIK is an independent nonprofit organization. IIK strives for continuous improvement in internal communication within companies, and to implement and maintain professional standards and exchange of information in this field.  The objective of IIK is to position internal communications as a prestigious and important business discipline to support the creation and sharing of knowledge and best practice. IIK arranges professional events and informal meetings for the exchange of experience and knowledge with leading experts. Working with the professional media, it publishes articles focusing on varied perspectives, lessons learned and best practices within internal communications and about topics presented and discussed at IIK events. These include social media, corporate social responsibility (CSR), top  management and IC, and creativity in internal campaigns. IIK’s recent research on the status of internal communication in the Czech Republic involved 18,000 respondents from companies with more than 150 employees. IIK’s website provides an online networking platform for members.

» For more information contact founders of IIK Tomáš Poucha - Independent consultant, mentor and lecturer  focusing on effectiveness and Dana Poulová Head of Global Comms in DHL IT Services.
[tpoucha@institutik.cz | dpoulova@institutik.cz]
 
 
AN AUSTRIAN SPRING
This spring, ViKOM began its event programme with member-lounges in February and March. In February Thomas Huemer, Head of Communications of the Meinl Bank AG offered some impressions about litigation PR - a relatively “new” business segment of professional public relations which comes from the US and is increasingly prevalent in the German-speaking countries. As of April 2011 Christoph Neumayer, ViKOM’s Vice President, will become Secretary General of the Federation of Austrian Industries (IV), one of the most influential NGOs in Austria.
 
Thomas Huemer gave an overview of essential characteristics and differences from conventional PR activities. He outlined his experiences of working with lawyers, strategic discrepancies and the opportunities of benefiting even from negative public attention. Thomas Huemer has been Head of Communications at the Meinl Bank since 2009, following eight years as press officer of Austrian energy business OMV.
 
In March ViKOM welcomed Hannes Jagerhofer, the Austrian Pioneer of event-Marketing. Hannes Jagerhofer is known as a businessman, event manager and author and is rated as one of the most successful and popular promoters in Austria. Clients of his agency, ACTS, include companies like Apple, Sony, Mercedes et al. He also hosts the A1 Beach Volleyball Grand Slam, which ranks among one of the most successful European sports events. Hannes gave a lecture on how to initiate and realize successful event marketing.
 
FEIEA is delighted in joining ViKOM to congratulate Christoph Neumayer, ViKOM’s Vice President, on his latest career step. From April 2011 Christoph Neumayer will become Secretary General of the Federation of Austrian Industries (IV), one of the most influential NGOs in Austria. Since 2001 he has been leading the IV’s marketing & communication division. After graduating in communication studies and history with honours, Christoph began his career as press officer in politics and worked as journalist for the Austrian Broadcast / ORF. Christoph Neumayer has acted as Vice-President of ViKOM, the Austrian Association of Business Communicators, since 2002. We wish him well in his new role.
 
» For more information contact Theresa Schmidt
[vikom@iv-net.at]
 
 
CONTINUITY IN SLOVENIA – NEW MANDATE FOR ‘OLD’ BOARD
The new executive board of the Slovenian Internal Communicators Section (SIK) was elected at the start of 2011. After successfully leading SIK last year Elizabeta Biluš, Brane Janjič,  Marijana Jazbec, Katja Kek, Tina Lazović, Polona Pibernik, Anja Potočnik and Stanka Ritonja were appointed by SIK-members for another one-year mandate. Stanka Ritonja remains president. The 'new old' SIK executives confirmed this year’s programme which includes stepping up cooperation with Slovenian Public Relations Association and FEIEA.
 
» For more information contact Stanka Ritonja
[stanka.ritonja@gov.si]
 
 
Internal Communications in Slovenian International Companies Run by the Locals
The complexity of internal communications on an international level was the main topic of the IABC Conference in Ljubljana held at the beginning of March. The conference hosted representatives from international businesses with headquarters or branches in Ljubljana  - among them the head of internal communication for Telekom Austria Group Patricia Been Frgacic; Vesna Petkovšek, head of internal communication at Gorenje, the biggest Slovene manufacturer of high quality domestic appliances; Renata Lovrak, the director of corporate communication at Slovene dairy Ljubljanske Mlekarne; Marijana Jazbec, executive director for strategic human resources and corporate culture at leading Slovene retailer Mercator; and Martina Merslavič, director of corporate communication at Siemens Slovenia. A round table discussion, entitled “The art and secrets of internal communications management in the global business environment”, was chaired by Katja Kek, an internal communications expert for the agency Pristop and member of SIK Executive Board (Slovene Internal Communicators Section).

The participants agreed that adapting communication to the specific needs of employees is a complex process, since these often come from different cultural and social backgrounds. Effectiveness is also dependent on the detail dedicated to the internal communication process itself.

Round table participants agreed that in employee communication, whether on an interpersonal, local or global scale, the consideration given to diversity is vital, since the meaning of the spoken language is often implicit, and highly dependent on the environment and culture. 

Each branch has its own unique ways of communicating with its employees, yet they all follow global guidelines accepted by their companies. Communication is still at its most effective if it is adapted to local circumstances, since the local language has the highest level of effectiveness, despite the developments of new tools in communication on an internal level. The significance of the local language is symbolic – it is a symbol of national identity, which is especially significant for those nations where national pride is high.

» For more information contact Katja Kek
[katja.kek@pristop.si]
 
 
Competition for the Papirus award to be published
On 4 April SIK will publish the competition for the best Slovenian internal publications. The best publications will be awarded the Papirus award which has been bestowed since 2006.

» For more information contact Anja Potočnik
[anja.potocnik@sij.si]