A communication strategy refers to a set plan that is designed to promote an organization’s core values in order that its objectives and milestones may be achieved.
Internal and external parties must be considered in the strategy such that the discussion of interests with the relevant stakeholders is streamlined, efficient, and mutually beneficial. Moreover, this allows organizations to adapt to an ever-changing industry and professional climate. Through a clear and structured communication plan, leadership strategies can be implemented so that tasks are managed and run smoothly, and key stakeholders, partners, and donors are involved in the decision-making and execution processes.

An organization must showcase that it is invested in its own services and mission. An effective and clear communication strategy prevents misunderstandings between the organization and other parties, in addition to mitigating the spread of misinformation or the mishandling of tasks. The organization then avoids creating a bottleneck in its operations, thus forming a sustainable business model.

External stakeholders especially benefit from a structured communication, as they will be able to access the organization’s interests, services, and resources. Internally, the organization benefits from a cohesive and systemic workflow, the efficacy of communication being a priority.

A communication strategy is not to be confused with an action plan—the former is a long-term roadmap designed with the organization’s overall direction in mind, while the latter is a short-term focus plan to complete a specific task or project. While action plans are desirable for such cases, they alone are not sufficient to keep an organization running. A communication strategy aligns the values of the organization, its activities, and its relationship to external parties, thereby permeating all aspects of the organization’s structure, and guides the formation of action plans accordingly.

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