The IC scaries and comms mistakes that could come back to haunt you

AB

Oct 12

4 min read

It's Sunday afternoon, the kettle's on, and somewhere in the back of your mind, a memory of a message you sent on Thursday starts rattling its chains.

Did the link work? Did it really need to go to 14,000 people?

These are the IC scaries, and after more than sixty years in the industry, we’ve witnessed a few ourselves. Here are the comms mistakes most likely to come back to haunt you, and how to lay each one to rest.

The ghost

When things go quiet during change

"There's nothing new to announce yet, so let's wait until we know more."

Have you nodded along to that plan before? When this happens, we've found that the communal kitchen starts running a publishing schedule that quickly outruns the comms team, and they don't wait for sign-off.

Perhaps this radio silence is contributing to these IC Index 2026 figures: only half of surveyed UK employees trust their CEO or senior leadership team. That’s down nine points in a year.¹ And just 42% think their organisation is good at helping them adapt to change.²

How to lay it to rest: Tell people what you know and what you don't. Then name the day you'll be back with more information and actually turn up. "We don't know yet, but we'll update you on Thursday" is a perfectly respectable message.

The zombie

Channels that died years ago and no one’s noticed

The newsletter that litters an inbox, but nobody opens. The outdated digital signage in the canteens. These channels drag on quarter after quarter because switching one off feels like admitting defeat.

Meanwhile, they feed on the one thing your colleagues can't spare: attention.

Gallagher's 2026 Employee Communications Report surveyed more than 1,300 comms and HR professionals. Of those, 83% said information overload is a growing problem. The report's advice is refreshingly blunt. Find one channel with zero engagement and stop doing it.³

How to lay it to rest: Give every channel a job description. If you can't write it in one sentence, hold a small and dignified funeral.

Frankenstein

The update built by committee

A restructure announcement starts as a sharp, succinct 150 words. Then legal adds an arm, and a director thinks their project has legs and wants it mentioned: "for context". What finally lurches onto the intranet has eleven authors – and no pulse.

How to lay it to rest: Agree on one owner and one purpose before anyone opens a document. Put what the reader needs to do at the top and make every later addition fight for its place. A published sign-off deadline helps too. Gallagher suggests asking for content 48 hours ahead and sticking to it. ³

The vampire

The "quick” all-staff email that drains the life out of everyone

Each one takes only a small bite of attention – a reminder here, a "please see below" there. But by Friday, your colleagues look pale, and their inbox resembles a patchwork quilt of unreads.

Gallagher found that when organisations move from medium to high volumes of communication, the share of communicators who see leadership trust as a significant risk jumps by 30%. Burnout risk rises by 24%. On strategy messaging, the report observes that "volume is often used as a substitute for clarity".³

How to lay it to rest: Remember that a vampire has to be invited in. A shared publishing calendar and a one-in, one-out rule let you decide who gets their say. The IC Index 2026 suggests employees now spend around ten minutes a day on internal comms⁴, a reasonable amount of time, so use it wisely.

The invisible colleague

Writing for the people working at a desk and forgetting everyone else

They’re on the shop floor, in the depot, on the ward and out in the van and in many organisations, they’re most of the workforce. Yet intranet updates still assume everyone’s at a laptop and can grab a quiet ten minutes.

Gallagher's data shows frontline-majority organisations communicate least about strategy and change, two subjects where being left out hurts the most. In those same organisations, in-person town halls were rated the most effective channel. And while 87% of respondents see line managers' communication skills and capacity as a risk, only 21% actively use manager toolkits.³

How to lay it to rest: Go to where the people are. Then give line managers a one-page brief they can deliver in a minute. For many frontline teams, the manager is often the only channel that turns up at every shift.

The skeleton in the room

The survey you ran and never mentioned again

People gave you twenty minutes and an honest opinion but then nothing… until the next survey arrives. They remember, and the response rate shows it.

Gallagher reports that 58% of teams have no formal approach to listening.³ The IC Index 2026 found that 56% of employees believe communication from their employer is open and honest, eight points lower than last year.¹

How to lay it to rest: Share what you heard, including the uncomfortable bits. "You said, we did" is good. "You said, we can't, and here's why" earns just as much respect.