Building a Career That Moves the Needle: Elevating Your Impact in Internal Communications  

Practical insights to help IC professionals grow their voice, their value, and their career.

In my role as Poppulo’s GM for Employee Communications, I work closely with internal comms professionals across sectors and industries all over the world.

Over the years, I’ve gained a deep appreciation for just how vital—and demanding—this function is. It’s fast-paced, always evolving, and frequently under-recognized, despite the essential role it plays in shaping employee experience and business outcomes.

One pattern I’ve noticed stands out: many of the communicators I meet are so focused on delivering for their organization that they rarely stop to think strategically about their own career growth. Not in a vague, “maybe next quarter” kind of way, but deliberately and consistently.

That’s something I think deserves more attention.

Whether you’re early in your IC career or leading a global team, the time you invest in your own development has a ripple effect. It strengthens your voice, your value, and your ability to influence. These are a few thoughts and observations from where I sit. Not as a practitioner, but as someone who listens carefully to people doing the work every day.

Start with a Plan That’s Yours

Internal communicators are often the ones pushing their organizations to be intentional. They champion strategy, messaging, and measurement. But when it comes to their own careers, many haven’t created a plan at all.

I’m not talking about a five-year roadmap with fixed milestones. I mean something you can revisit every month: a simple set of goals that reflect where you want to grow and what you want to explore.

It might include learning a new skill, getting exposure to a different part of the business, or taking on a project that stretches your perspective.

It’s easy to put this off, especially when deadlines are looming and inboxes are full. But having a plan gives you a lens through which to make decisions and track your progress. It can clarify what matters and help you advocate for the support you need.

Look Ahead — Future-Proofing Your IC Career with 2030 Skills

If a personal growth plan keeps you moving in the short term, a clear view of the skills economy tells you where the road is heading next. The World Economic Forum’s Skills for 2030 report points to five capabilities that will matter most: critical thinking, active learning, emotional intelligence, systems thinking, and confident use (or design) of technology.

For internal communicators—sitting at the crossroads of people, strategy, and change—these form a preview of the job description that’s coming your way. They're not abstract buzzwords.

From Broadcaster to Behaviour Shaper

Traditional “announce-and-move-on” comms won’t cut it in organizations that expect employees to learn, decide, and act faster than ever. Harness your influence, storytelling chops, and emotional intelligence to spark the behaviors leaders need, then reinforce them through rhythm, repetition, and real examples.

From Information Manager to Learning Enabler

Change programs land only when people understand and adopt. That calls for active-learning mind-sets and systems thinking: translating complex strategies into narratives people care about, sequencing messages so they build on each other, and creating spaces—digital or in-person—where employees can question, practise, and share.

From Channel Operator to Experience Architect

Hybrid, borderless teams consume information in snippets and streams. Your job is to pull those touchpoints into a coherent experience—web, video, chat, AI summaries—so the right signal reaches the right person at the right moment.

Creative thinking, tech fluency, and a healthy dose of resilience turn that juggling act into a career-defining strength.

Why This Matters Now

The WEF boils future readiness down to a blend of technical agility, emotional depth, and change-making muscle. Communicators who lean into that winning combination will shape how their organizations learn, evolve, and stay aligned. In other words: the skill gap you close today might be the competitive edge that defines your role tomorrow.

Embrace AI so You Can Focus on What Matters

A significant shift is underway in internal communications, driven by advancements in artificial intelligence. At Poppulo, we've developed Agentic AI, a suite of AI agents designed to orchestrate routine, time-consuming tasks, freeing communicators to focus on strategic initiatives.

As Sanjay Rakshit, our Vice President of AI and Analytics, explained in a recent blog, Agentic AI doesn't aim to replace human creativity and connection but to clear the runway for it.

By handling repetitive tasks, AI allows communicators to dedicate more time to activities that drive real connection and impact through hyper-personalized experiences for employees.

This evolution presents an opportunity for internal communicators to elevate their roles, focusing on strategic advising and leadership communication. Embracing AI tools like Agentic AI can be a catalyst for career growth, enabling you to contribute more significantly to your organization's success.

Speak the Language of the Business

This has come up in nearly every conversation I’ve had with senior communicators: you can’t stay in your lane if you want to grow. The most effective IC professionals are the ones who understand the broader context: how their business works, what the company is trying to achieve, and where communication can make a real difference.

This means learning enough about the business side to ask better questions, shape more relevant strategies, and connect your work to the outcomes leadership cares about.

This shift, from communicator to strategic advisor, is often what opens the next door in a career. If you want to learn more about honing your business knowledge and acumen, here’s an excellent guide that will help you: Business Acumen in Internal Communications—Why it Matters and How to Build It.

Know What Sets You Apart

Skills and experience may get you through the door, but they rarely tip the scales. When opportunities arise, the deciding factor is often something less obvious: the particular wayyou think, the quality of your judgment, or how you show up when the unexpected happens.

But it’s hard to recognize those qualities in yourself unless you stop and reflect.

A few prompts can help:

• What do colleagues consistently come to you for?
• What kinds of problems do you enjoy solving, especially the ones others tend to avoid?
• Where do you find yourself adding unexpected value in a project or conversation?
• And when you feel most in your stride, what are you doing?

You don’t need to answer these in one sitting. They’re worth revisiting over time. But being able to name these things, quietly, clearly, without bravado, can help you navigate decisions with more confidence.

And when it comes time to talk about your experience, you’ll be telling a story about what it’s like to work with you, and why that matters—not just listing off your credentials, which is a common mistake.

Don’t Just Measure—Make Sense of What You Find

Of course metrics matter. But they don’t speak for themselves.The most impactful communicators I’ve seen are the ones who go beyond dashboards and click-through rates.

They know how to interpret the numbers, ask what’s behind them, and use that insight to refine their approach. They also know how to share results in a way that resonates with leadership, not just showing what was done, but what it achieved.

That kind of reflection and adjustment is what builds trust and influence over time.

Learn from Adjacent Fields

The scope of internal communication is widening. It touches everything from culture and change to technology, brand, and leadership. That means opportunities to grow don’t always sit within the four walls of comms.

Some of the most creative ideas I’ve seen come from people who look beyond their immediate remit. They explore marketing, behavioral science, UX, and even psychology, because it helps them see their work differently.

An example of what I’m referring to here is outlined in a great blog for Poppulo by Emily Hecker: Why IC Professionals Need to Think Like Business Psychologists.

In a role that’s all about context and connection, that kind of curiosity is a real advantage.

Make Yourself Visible—Even When You’re Not Looking

Opportunities don’t always come from formal applications. More often, they start with a conversation, a connection, or a shared project. That’s why staying connected to your peers is so valuable, even when you’re not actively looking for a new role.

This doesn’t mean relentless networking. Sometimes it’s as simple as reaching out after a webinar, commenting on a post that resonated, or staying in touch with someone you met at an event. Those small moments of connection can add up over time.

One Final Thought: Don’t Leave It to Chance

If there’s one thing I’ve learned from the many people I’ve met in internal comms over the years, it’s that no two careers look the same. There’s no universal playbook or guaranteed next step.

But there is one trait I consistently see in people who’ve built careers they’re proud of: they’re intentional.

They don’t always have a perfect plan. But they make time to step back, think about what’s next, and take small steps in that direction. They stay open, stay curious, and take responsibility for their own growth.

If you’re doing the work to support everyone else, make sure you’re doing a little of that work for yourself too!