Internal Communication


Internal Communication's main focus is on high level communication to staff and students about strategic University initiatives, projects and major events. We also seek to ensure staff and students have the essential information they need to work and study at Western Sydney University.

Internal Communications develops and executes communication plans for major University-wide strategic initiatives which have a significant impact on staff and/or students. The team can also provide support for smaller projects and events, including giving advice on the best channels to communicate a message.

We manage a number of staff and student communication channels, including broadcast emails, digital screen ads on campus, E-Update and the University's Staff News publication. We also work closely with our OMC colleagues to arrange for messages to be published on other channels such as website pages and promotional buttons, social media, posters, postcards and vUWS.

Internal Communications provides communication advice and support for staff who are managing large strategic projects or have a message to communicate to staff or students.

How We Can Help

We can help by:

  • providing advice on the best channel/s to communicate your message
  • developing communication plans if required, including key messages, strategy, channels and a schedule of communication activities
  • implementing communication plans, including arranging design and publishing of messages
  • drafting or reviewing and sending broadcast emails to staff and/or students
  • publishing digital screen ads on campus
  • profiling individuals and teams in the Staff News publication

Tips and tricks

Communication planning

Think about who your audience is and what the communication is trying to achieve. Are you just aiming to create awareness, or do you have a call to action? Keep your audience in mind when drafting key messages to make sure you focus on what they want and need to know. Develop a schedule to help plan your communication activities and assign responsibilities and timings. Use the small communication plan template as a guide. If you think your project, initiative or event may require a more comprehensive communications plan, submit an Internal Communications request, providing a copy of your project plan and any background information.

Writing messages

Whether you are drafting an email, a Yammer post or some website content, the same principles apply. Keep it brief and to the point. Put the most important information upfront. If there's a call to action, make it clear. Don't include unnecessary detail – direct readers to a webpage or a contact person for more information. If your message is relatively long (e.g. webpage content), use headings, subheadings, paragraphs and bullet points to break it up. Use plain English and avoid jargon. Lastly, don't forget to proofread and spellcheck.

Choosing channels

The most appropriate channels will depend on your audience, the message and its impact. For high impact messages (e.g. a message from Executive), broadcast email is appropriate, while for lower impact messages (e.g. a campus event), Yammer, E-update and the Events Calendar are more suitable. Contact Internal Communications for advice on the best channel/s for your message. You can also directly submit messages on E-update, Yammer,  and the Events Calendar at any time. Refer to the Guidelines for more information about the use of various channels.