How Runtastic Does Internal Communications

One thing that most companies struggle with is how to do internal communications. Or rather, how to best share information to the relevant target group.

Even though we are far from perfect, we have established a few formats that have proved helpful to Runtastic. These methods help us distribute correct information to the right audience on time.

First and foremost, we try to be interactive where possible. We have established quite a few meetings—most of which are voluntary for everyone—so that we all stay informed about what’s happening.

Company-wide All-Hands Meeting

Like many other tech companies, we gather all Runtastic team members once a month to share the most relevant company-wide information. Most importantly, we start by celebrating new Runtastics, promotions and family updates. Each meeting has a focus topic where team members (the experts, after all) share valuable insights. 

Management Q&A 

We have dedicated an additional monthly hour to a Q&A with our Management team. The Management team answers whatever Runtastics have on their heart: be it product strategy-related topics or questions about people-related decisions. 

Apart from these company-wide meetings, a few areas (like Marketing or Tech) also share their most important updates via dedicated Area All Hands meetings. In addition, our Product teams invite everyone to get Sneak Peaks during the bi-weekly Early Eyes and Sprint Demo sessions. 

Internal Communications Tools: Slack, E-Mails and the Wiki

The upside of presentations is that they allow instant feedback and interaction. It is hard to document the info provided or even make it searchable for later use.

Therefore, we try to maintain our Wiki as well as possible. We use Slack and e-mails for important, short notice information and calls to action. Also, we keep our team in the loop about themselves and use emails and Slack to update everyone on New Joiners, Leaving Runtastics and colleagues progressing in their careers. 

Keeping an Overview

As we realized that we have a lot of information to share within the company, the HR team decided to roll out a monthly Newsletter, the HR2 (Helpful Human Relations Report). With the help of Gifs, links to valuable articles and intended puns, we not only sum up what is going on but also have Runtastics share what moves them. This includes personal stories on well-being to how they felt about onboarding. 

Runtastic has Mastered Internal Communications, Right?

While we put a lot of effort into internal communications (especially when working from home), we know that we are far from perfect. Regularly, team members miss out on information, and our suboptimal Wiki search function can be problematic. Since we share so much information, it is sometimes hard for Runtastics to know where they can find what they are looking for, especially when they only recently joined.

Regardless, we continuously improve our internal communications and are always curious to learn how other companies handle them. Feel free to share your experiences in the comments! 

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