Skip to main content
Commsy creative stuff straight to your inbox

Blog

How to build a mighty manager’s guide

< Blog home

How to build a mighty manager’s guide

Building IKEA furniture. It’s a chore, isn’t it?

Wandering the aisles, collecting up all the necessary parts so you don’t get home with your car boot rammed, only to have to return for those missed items. And all the while, you’re busy dreaming of meatballs, jam and creamy, creamy mash…

But isn’t it satisfying, when, after all that researching, planning, screwing, hammering, ramming and polishing, your fabulous new bookcase, chest of drawers or giant storage system is finally complete?

You’ve created something useful, practical and rather beautiful that you can be properly proud of. Not just for you, but for everybody else to make good use of too.

That’s how it should be when we’re creating resources for our managers. Pausing to properly research, plan and refine the content until it shines.

15 ways to create a beautiful yet practical guide

Whether our clients are launching a new set of values, sharing their corporate narrative, communicating a transformation programme or embedding new software across the business, a manager’s guide is useful as part of a ‘cupboard of comms’ to help equip and inform the right people, at the right time, with the right information.

We opt for IKEA because we love the way it looks, it’s convenient and the end product is both practical and smart. We think manager’s guides should be no different.

But you don’t need to take our word for it. We’ve asked three marvellous comms pros what they think is important when it comes to a top-notch manager’s guide:

  1. Keep it compact

“Managers are bombarded with information and requests from all directions, so the reality is that communicators are competing for their attention in the same way as any other audience,” says Dave Wraith, Internal Comms, Employee Engagement and Change Communications Specialist. “You’re more likely to be successful by keeping manager’s guides as short as possible and laying them out in a visual, accessible way with easily digestible chunks of information.”

  1. Help them develop a deeper understanding of the subject

“Manager’s guides should always point to a channel where they can ask questions or get further help and support,” adds Dave. “Use your guide to highlight the headlines and then signpost them to resources where they can develop a deeper, more informed understanding of the subject or related topics in their own time.”

  1. Use stories to bring points to life

Illustrate your points with short stories and case studies to help bring them to life. Encourage line managers to do the same when they are sharing on to make their messages engaging and authentic.

  1. Include the WHY, the WHAT and the HOW

“Unless people understand WHY you want them to do things differently, or carry out a specific activity, they’re unlikely to do it,” says Keren McCarron, Head of Corporate Affairs & Communications at KP Snacks. “The WHAT is the detail of what they need to do and the HOW is either the tool they can use to help them do it where to seek help.

An example at KP Snacks is that we’re working with Alive to create a booklet around a new 121 process which we’ll be rolling out to all managers in our factories. In the booklet we tell them WHY a regular, good quality 121 with their team members is important; we give them the details of WHAT the conversations should cover off; and we provide information on HOW they can find key documents or how to refer colleagues on to areas like the Employee Health and Wellbeing.”

  1. Set expectations

“Managers are often very busy and they have to fit in the ‘doing’ of their day job, whilst also making sure they’re a good manager for their team. Some managers may need extra support in achieving this,” adds Keren.

“It’s important to be clear about what you’re asking managers to do. For example as part of our new 121 process, we’ve been clear about how frequently we expect managers to carry them out, factoring in that some people have bigger teams than others.”

  1. Support it with a training session

“If you’re briefing out a new way of working or a specific toolkit, it may be worth running an awareness and training session with some or all of the managers who’ll be using it,” says Keren. “This can help you to address any queries they may have and make sure everyone understands why they need to be doing it and exactly what is expected of them.”

  1. Feature simple yet powerful messages

According to Alex Mills, Corporate Communication Manager at South Yorkshire Fire and Rescue, “The key is the words or phrases you use which will flick a switch and empower your managers in a really practical, supportive way. Try to limit these messages to three or four per section – too many and people just won’t remember them.”

  1. Include an intro from senior leadership

Ensure they know that they have support from above and that what they’re being asked to do has been fully endorsed by leaders. Teeing up your guide with a strong message from the CEO or suitably positioned leader can help to give it credibility and importance.

  1. Use the power of the pause

Identify moments where the reader is encouraged to stop, think, reflect; considering the rationale for themselves to help them relate and find ownership in what they’re reading. Ask them, “How could you make this relevant to the people in your team?”

  1. Be realistic

“Think about how things will work in your own context,” says Alex.

“It’s all very well asking your managers to do certain things, but if you wouldn’t act on them yourself in your own team then it’s inauthentic and won’t work.”

  1. Consider your organisation’s unique sensitivities

“Know your organisation – what will go down well, and what will just switch people off. Make sure the case studies or ambassadors you use stand up to scrutiny too – only use people who truly represent your values and behaviours.”

  1. Build in some basic comms skills

It’s understandable that managers may worry about how to actually communicate in the best way. Consider including some basic tips and reminders on general communication skills. Think about tips that will help them add value to their conversations, personalise things and listen as well as speak.

  1. Drop in a question or two

Include examples of questions they may be asked from their teams about the subject, helping them to prepare and feel more confident about handling the issues that may come up. Drop them throughout the guide to help break it up and create moments of reflection.

  1. Use simple, jargon-free language

“Plain English is important,” says Alex.

“Listing easy to understand, practical advice ideally in a step-by-step way is going to help hard-pressed managers to take the information on board. As is so often the case, less is more too – ditch the jargon and lose the waffle, so you really cut through to a time-starved audience.”

  1. Maintain momentum

“Publishing a guide and expecting change to happen overnight is not job done,” adds Alex. “You will have to keep plugging away and finding creative ways to drop elements of the manager’s guide into every day communication and conversations.”

Apply this advice next time you’re creating content for your line manager’s guide and you’ll be well on your way to giving them the wonderful every day.

And if you need a little help screwing it all together, just drop us a line. We’re pretty nifty with an ‘Alan key’ too…

“I feel like they own and care for the project as much as we do! I would not use anyone else for my creative work and think Alive is ahead of the game.”

Jo Hobbs — Communications Manager

“Thanks for all your help. We are delighted with the campaign, both in terms of the creativity and messaging but also the thought taken over the rollout of the materials. All looks absolutely fabulous!”

Sarah Crowdy — Campaign and Media Officer Communications, South East Water

“We went to ‘Alive’ for ideas on how to run a specific employee program in Europe. Alan and his team were brilliant in coming up with fresh, creative and practical approaches. The team took charge and executed brilliantly. We are pleased with the progress made so far and hope to have the same level of partnership and commitment going forward.”

Sobha Varghese — Tata Consultancy Services

“Alive helped us create a video of our response to the floods of winter 2019. Our Chief Officer received messages from all round the country praising us for it and was really pleased with both the video and the response to it.”

Alexander Mills, Communications Manager — South Yorkshire Fire & Rescue

“We had the privilege to work with the Alive team. It was our first time to be involved in creating an animation for our patients within paediatrics. The team were approachable, friendly, creative and very accommodating. Your vision for what you want to create, is at all times acknowledged, appreciated and accommodated by the team. They worked effectively and with great passion towards our project and worked not only alongside health professionals but also our patients who really enjoyed the experience of working with the Alive team. It has given our team the confidence and inspiration to do further projects in the future. We highly recommend Alive and their exceptional team.”

DR ELENI ATHANASAKOS, Lead Paediatric Clinical Scientist — NHS Barts Health

“‘The short animation developed in co-production with clinicians and young people is outstanding! Informative, developmentally appropriate, vitally fun and engaging. We are really grateful for the expertise of the Alive with Ideas team for their innovative approach in building children’s health literacy.'”

Kath Evans — Director of Children’s Nursing at Barts Health

“Our mission was to update our brand visuals to better reflect our innovative and forward-thinking organisation. After receiving numerous pitches from different branding agencies, Alive stood out with their clear passion and understanding of our identity and goals. We thoroughly enjoyed working with the Alive Team to create an engaging new brand that we are immensely proud of.”

Lianne Springer — Communications and Engagement Lead

“Alive wowed us during the pitch process and they didn’t stop wowing us throughout the whole project. Every person we worked with at Alive were so friendly, knowledgeable and clearly passionate about what they do. They have worked with us to really understand what we do and have created a new brand and website that really stands out from our competitors. Thank you!”

Louise Burnard, Head of Marketing and Communications UK — Be | Shaping the Future

“I think the team have done such a brilliant job, particularly with responding to our requests. It's one of the best mental health videos I've ever seen. Very proud to be associated with your exemplary work. Thank you so much.”

Dr Anna Batho — Clinical Psychologist – Critical Care, UCLH

“We have worked with Alan, Caroline and the wider Alive With Ideas team for many years. In that time, they have provided a dedicated service that is second to none. We appreciate their attention to detail and creative approach to bringing our brand, communications and stories to life. And would recommend them to anyone looking for creative communications support.”

Georgia Beech — Internal Communications Specialist, Ocado Group

“This is brilliant. I wanted to give my heartfelt thanks to all of the team who worked on this. You all understood exactly what we wanted to communicate and why, and then managed to do it in a way that was far better than anything I could have imagined. I’m a bit choked up to be honest!”

Sarah Wright, Head of Communications and Campaigns — NEA

“Each time I work with the team, I am always stunned at the effort and creativity that goes into each detail and am always eager for the end result. The team is extremely accommodating and always provide a fresh approach to our projects that elevates our communications materials!”

Alana Khaytin, Communications Specialist — Braskem America

“What I really appreciate about Alive is that they work with us as partners, and care as much about getting it right for our patients as we do.”

Sara Langston, Patient Engagement & Marketing Manager — italk

“Alive are unique in how much they deeply listen and invest in you and your ideas. I have not come across a company that listens as much as they do to ensure your needs are understood and met (actually - they always exceed my needs and expectations). Everyone I recommend Alive to has an equally brilliant experience. When you work with Alive, you are not only getting some genius creativity brought into your life, you are also hanging out with some of the best examples of human beings I’ve ever known.”

Steph Tranter, Hybrid Exec Coach & Psychologist — StephTranter.com

“The (Alive) team were able to creatively pull together and document (in just over 2minutes) everything our service has achieved over the last few months, from thousands of prescriptions deliveries to hundreds of phone calls made to the vulnerable. The final product was so powerful and reflective of what our service has and continues to achieve. It couldn’t have been better received within the service – thanks Alive for once again helping us to communicate our vision!’”

Emma Wright — South Yorkshire & Rescue

“We worked with the team at Alive to create our staff recognition video.
At a time like this, its never been more important to share the amazing work that our staff have done and continue to do on a daily basis under very difficult circumstances. We wanted to shout about this and recognise that when the time came, South Yorkshire Fire & Rescue stepped up to the plate. We didn’t want an ordinary thank you post on social media or a basic email sent out internally, we wanted something special. Enter Alive. ”

Emma Wright — South Yorkshire Fire & Rescue

“Our company is fun, we have great brands, but most importantly we’re all about our people – and I wanted an agency who would understand that and help us bring it to life through our website and other comms. Straight away I felt that Alive ‘got’ us and provided the creative inspiration exactly where we needed it, as well as the technical expertise to deliver a well-functioning website.”

Keren McCarron, Head of Corporate Affairs & Communications — KP Snacks

“Boom!
Thank you so much. Incredible work done at incredible speed by incredible people.
Outstanding work as ever and what a turnaround. As for the concepts – wow. These are that good it would be an insult to describe them as just good. It’s a joke, quite frankly. This is exactly the Alive effect I was after. Right now I feel like I am living in an Alive With Ideas wonderland. Thank you!”

Jack Grasby, Campaigns Manager — SYFR

“If you are looking to improve creativity and build teamwork, I highly recommend a session like this for your team. No matter where you are in your creativity journey, a workshop like this can give your team a boost of energy and ideas to invigorate their creative thinking.”

Amy Lilja, IC Manager — Hennepin Healthcare

“Alive were there to help when we were working every hour to respond to the coronavirus outbreak. They gave us the creativity, ideas and support we needed to deliver campaigns which empowered our residents in the most difficult time most of us have ever seen, personally and professionally. The team understood what we needed, worked closely with us and delivered fast without any compromise on quality. Working with Alive has been a joy in the darkest of times and I have no doubt will have helped to save lives. Thanks team x”

Julie Odams, Assistant Director of Communications & Customers — Derbyshire County Council

“We got 'Alive' involved to help us shift mindsets across our organisation and they delivered! Using simple, clear and creative ideas the team have delivered us a campaign which has seen a dramatic increase in idea sharing and development. They’ve also played a significant role in creating a culture of shared success. I wouldn’t hesitate to work with again, in fact, we already are!”

Gavin Buckle — B&Q
Alive logo