Internal Communication in Ghana Broadcasting Corporation (GBC)

Abstract

Internal communication has become a crucial part of organisational development today. This is because scholars have classified employees as the most important publics for organisations. Therefore effective communication with employees is indispensable and inevitable in organisations. The purpose of this study was to ascertain the state of internal communication of information on digital migration at Ghana Broadcasting Corporation (GBC). To better ascertain the state of internal communication at the GBC, the study investigated the communication process adopted for communicating information on digital migration. The study also examined the channels that were deployed for communication and lastly the feedback communication regarding matters of GBC’s digitalisation. The Managers of the Public Relations and the Publications Departments were interviewed, respectively. In addition, one hundred and fifty (150) employees were also selected through multi-stage sampling to respond to questionnaire on various aspects of the internal communication at GBC. The study was guided by the interactive model of communication and the media richness theory. Among other things, the study found that internal communication was poorly conducted at GBC. The absence of two-way communication channels and formalised feedback communication made interactivity at GBC difficult. Employees were therefore dissatisfied with the use of ‘lean’ communication channels like Memos via notice boards and GBC Newsletter. The employees preferred ‘rich’ channels, which had the inherent capacity to facilitate interactivity. Judging from the tenets and assumptions of the model of interactive communication, the study concluded that internal communication at GBC was not formally and totally interactive. Sources of information on digital migration used ‘lean’ channels because information was unequivocal. This finding typified the assumptions of the media richness theory.