Sonja Silveira

Ever met an Internal Comms pro who hates their job? Didn’t think so. This isn’t just a career—it’s a cult of connection. We’re wired to crave clarity in chaos. Internal Comms pros wield the glue holding companies together. No flashy campaigns. Just raw human impact. Why do we stay obsessed? - We bridge gaps before they become canyons - We turn jargon into stories that stick - We’re the quiet architects of culture Every email, town hall, or Slack thread? It’s a chance to spark alignment. Or dismantle silos. Or make someone feel seen. You don’t just do Internal Comms. You breathe it.

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👵👴 Reimagining what “mid-career” looks like Age 50+ is not the end of ambition it’s a moment for reinvention. That’s why I’m proud to shine a light on AARP Foundation’s BACK TO WORK 50+ program, a free, high-impact initiative equipping older adults with the training, coaching, and confidence to reenter today’s job market. Through in-person and virtual sessions, participants get: • Targeted career coaching (interviewing, resumes, digital skills) tailored to the 50+ experience • Real strategies to amplify their value and stand out to hiring teams • Support in navigating new tools, platforms, networking, and employer expectations Since launch, BACK TO WORK 50+ has helped 100,000+ individuals across fields from IT to healthcare to HR get back to work. It’s more than upskilling, it’s restoring confidence, connection, and purpose. 👉 If you or someone you know is navigating job search later in life, this is a resource worth exploring. 🔗 Learn more / find a workshop in your area: https://lnkd.in/dggSUw2f #BackToWork50plus #CareerReinvention #LifelongGrowth #Inclusion #WorkforceEquity

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The best way for internal comms to get a strategic seat at the table? It’s not data (though that helps), or connecting to business goals (should be a given), or lamenting about how you don’t have a seat (doesn’t work, in my experience). In my opinion, the answer is really simple. It’s executive communications. Connect your role to theirs in a way that directly benefits them. For me, the answer is really practical: we recommend that every internal comms manager sends their weekly or biweekly or monthly CEO letters out of Workshop, or whatever email platform you’re using. After the send, come back with a bunch of qualitative and quantitative analytics for those emails. Open rates, click through rates, read time, device type, all of that broken down by department/role/location, a mini listening tour just to get quick feedback, you name it. It doesn’t matter what the open rate is, really. (Our CEO’s emails get a 90% open rate, but that’s a story for a different day.) Typically, with CEOs, you’ll find that they always want it to be higher (no surprise there), and they will often be genuinely surprised by the result. If it’s a high open rate, they might be surprised that their words have that much impact. And if it’s low, they might be surprised that not every employee is receiving the message the way they thought. Either way, that CEO is going to talk to you about that data. They’re going to ask you how to improve their open rate, how to think about the success of that email, and how to reliably reach every employee with these messages. And that’s how you get the chair pulled out! So take a seat. 🪑✨

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🧨 If Internal Comms isn’t at the leadership table, your strategy is just a wish list. Too many internal comms pros are stuck in execution mode, publishing updates, chasing approvals, sending newsletters. But here’s the truth: - Without executive visibility, your strategy lacks air cover. - Without influence, your plan won’t get funded. - Without access, your work won’t align with what leadership actually cares about. Internal comms isn’t a service. It’s infrastructure for business alignment. “Communications isn’t a skill. It’s a leadership discipline.” — Rajeev Suri, former CEO of Nokia The organizations getting this right? - They bring comms in early. - They ask for messaging advice before a crisis. - They measure understanding, not clicks. Because if your strategy can’t drive decisions, retention, and culture… it’s not strategy. 👉 So... are you at the table? Or are you just translating messages from it? 👇 Have you ever been asked to "make this sound nice" instead of being asked what should actually be said?

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OpenAI hiring a content strategist isn’t irony. It’s a clear signal that AI doesn’t erase the need for strategy — it amplifies it. Because content strategy isn’t just about producing words faster. It’s about shaping narratives, aligning messages to audiences, and ensuring every touchpoint adds up to something bigger. AI changes the how — it drafts, iterates, and scales with speed. Humans still define the why and the what — the connective tissue that makes content resonate and move people. This is the “yes, and…” moment for content. Yes, AI is rewriting the process. And humans bring the judgment, creativity, and strategic clarity that turn words into impact. So no, the AI revolution isn’t cancelled because OpenAI is hiring strategists. If anything, it’s proof that the future of content is human and machine, working together. The companies that win won’t be the ones who choose sides — they’ll be the ones who know how to orchestrate both. ✨ Want to see what that looks like in practice? Try this simple prompt: “You are a senior content strategist. Take this draft and reframe it for three audiences: executives, practitioners, and skeptics. Keep tone and voice consistent, but shift what you emphasize.” That’s the power of “yes, and…” in action. #OpenAI #Content #ContentStrategy #ContentStrategist #ContentMarketing

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The thought of AI replacing Internal Comms is a myth, but though it's not 𝘳𝘦𝘱𝘭𝘢𝘤𝘪𝘯𝘨, it's certainly 𝘳𝘦𝘴𝘩𝘢𝘱𝘪𝘯𝘨 the role. Curious to hear your take on this. I've been in so many conversations lately where IC leaders feel this AI anxiety 🫨 They're worried that their core job is about to be automated by a robot. However, I believe the opposite is happening. If communicators can harness the power of AI, it's actually future-proofing / securing their role. AI isn't replacing the IC leader... it's actually putting them on a pedestal. For years, IC teams have been stuck on a content treadmill. 🏃‍♂️ Churning out newsletters 🏃‍♀️ Drafting all-hands scripts 🏃 Pushing intranet updates ... all while being measured on Output, not Impact. AI smashes the "content factory" model to pieces. It's sparking a massive shift in the role: 𝙁𝙧𝙤𝙢 𝘾𝙤𝙣𝙩𝙚𝙣𝙩 𝘾𝙧𝙚𝙖𝙩𝙤𝙧 ➡️ 𝙩𝙤 𝘾𝙤𝙣𝙙𝙪𝙘𝙩𝙤𝙧 🎻 AI can draft a message, but it can't lead the orchestra. A Conductor doesn't play every instrument. They: ↳ set the tempo (the strategic cadence). ↳ ensure every section (email, Slack/Teams, text, TV screen) plays the right note at the right time. ↳ listen for harmony (employee sentiment) and adjust. AI handles the rote creation. The IC leader handles the strategy. 𝙁𝙧𝙤𝙢 𝘽𝙧𝙤𝙖𝙙𝙘𝙖𝙨𝙩𝙚𝙧 ➡️ 𝙩𝙤 𝘾𝙪𝙧𝙖𝙩𝙤𝙧 🧑‍🎨 The "batch and blast" email was a function of limited time and resources. AI can handle the personalization + segmentation that was physically impossible before. A Curator doesn't just hang art - they design an experience. They: ↳ understand their audience (the employees) deeply. ↳ select the perfect message for the perfect moment. ↳ ensure the employee experience isn't just noise, but a meaningful journey. AI gives you the tools. The IC leader provides the human judgment and empathy. AI is handing IC leaders their most valuable asset back: Time. Time to be strategic ⌚ Time to build relationships ⏰ Time to listen to the "subtext" in the Slack/Teams channels 🕰️ Time to be the human-to-human connection, not just a content-to-inbox machine. Last week, we held a webinar featuring Kalia Waits-Smith ⛸️, Joshua Gardner, and Marci G., and the chat was blowing up. Comment REPLAY to watch our panel of seasoned comms leaders share real-world ways to make AI your competitive edge 👇

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Just read Muck Rack’s Generative Pulse 2025 report, and I can’t stop thinking about it. The stats that really jumped out at me? More than 95% of links cited by AI are from non-paid media, and over 89% are earned media. That’s a powerful reminder that real journalism and credible third-party sources still matter in the age of AI. I also found another point particularly fascinating: outlet authority plays a big role in whether a story gets cited by AI. AI systems tend to cite well known and generally trusted sources: 🗞️ Anthropic's Claude often sites CNBC, Good Housekeeping, Harvard Business Review, NPR, TechRadar and Yahoo Finance. 🗞️ Google's Gemini cites Axios, Forbes, Financial Times, Investopedia, Reuters and TIME. 🗞️ OpenAI's ChatGPT cites The Associated Press, Axios, Forbes, Financial Times, Reuters and TIME. As someone who works in comms, this underscores the importance of building trust with high-quality outlets and earning meaningful coverage. In an AI-native world, it’s not enough to optimize for search. We need to optimize for citation. Curious to hear how others in media and PR are thinking about this shift. Have you noticed changes in how your work is showing up in AI tools? Eleanor Hawkins covered the study for Axios: https://lnkd.in/eanM4ks8 Check out the full report from Muck Rack here: https://lnkd.in/ezmA38Yk #Comms #PR #AI #EarnedMedia #ArtificialIntelligence #GenerativeSearch #MediaRelations #ThoughtLeaders

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We wrote a 44-page report. Then we turned it into 2. Because let’s be honest, sometimes shorter is better. Our executive summary of “Thought Leadership in Practice: Insights from 1,000 Industry Experts” breaks down what’s working in thought leadership, where teams are struggling, and what top performers are doing differently → Clear stats → Fast takeaways → Built for busy teams No fluff, just the good stuff. Grab the two-page version here: https://lnkd.in/g2Cr4pNh

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"Talk to your customers." okkk, but without a robust Gong library or limitless access to customers (haha...ha), how are content marketers supposed to do that, exactly? Here's the Beam Team's approach: Talk to the people who talk to your customers—early, and often.  We’ve built an onboarding process to give content teams customer insights that can drive strategy, build alignment, and inspire resonant content all year long: Phase 1: Hear from your customers via your team Start by choosing the roster of teams that can give you the clearest signal about your audience. Curate a mix of voices from teams including: Customer Success Sales Product Marketing Customer Marketing Sales Engineering In these conversations, highlight: 1. Common themes 2. Communication and strategic gaps 3. Disconnects and disagreement between teams Your interview insights should help you plan for content on two levels: strategy and execution. 1. Strategy. Is there an overarching concept your product or brand is well-suited to introduce and create content around for the next 3-6 months? Look for a gap and a solution, or a then-and-now that matches where your brand is headed. 2. Execution. Brain-dump a list of all the potential content topics that came from these conversations. Look for quotes and ideas that can spin off the big-picture strategy you’re setting. Not all of these will materialize into a blog post or downloadable asset, but they might show up within another piece or become something bigger down the road. Phase 2: Build alignment with your team and customers Where is the overlap? Where could you create one piece of content that supports multiple customer-facing teams? Answering this will point you to your cornerstone pieces: Larger, longer-term, and heavy-lift pieces like research reports, product guides, or multi-SME roundups can support demand gen and sales enablement’s needs. A single cornerstone piece, especially backed by original data from surveys or your platform, can turn into: Sales enablement materials with strong customer proof Thought leadership during webinar or event presentations, podcast appearances, and earned media mentions A top-of-funnel gated piece focused on problem awareness, which demand gen can put ad spend behind A product-focused implementation guide, if you covered those tactical elements in your survey or SME interviews Phase 3: Execute, execute, execute Content that starts with a customer-focused strategy and ends with some (structured and within-reason) feedback from your customer-facing colleagues is your best shot at a home run for all involved. I'm convinced it'll make the difference between content as GTM glue and content as just another checkbox. Want more detail on execution? Bookmark this new article from our one and only Sabina Hahn💡 👇 👇 👇 https://lnkd.in/e-gVXk_4

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The role of the CMO is evolving fast. It's no longer just about branding and messaging. Today’s CMOs are expected to drive growth, master AI, lead with empathy, and align the entire organization around the customer. I just published a guide on the top skills every CMO needs to thrive in 2025—and how to develop each one. Read the full breakdown here 👇 #cmo #marketing #leadership #ai #management

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Internal comms has a bigger impact on performance than most people think. When your team doesn’t feel seen or spoken to, they switch off. Bradley Keenan 🏂's take in this Forbes article is spot on: AI makes it easier to craft updates that feel relevant for every department. Leadership starts with better communication. This is how you do it at scale. More insights on streamlining internal communications: https://lnkd.in/e-W_wC2c #ForbesCommsCouncil #Communications

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Everyone's worried AI will replace communicators. Meanwhile, the smartest comms teams are building their own AI. Eleanor Hawkins recently highlighted how comms teams at Cognizant, Instacart, Workday, Google, and others are creating their own AI solutions to streamline workflows, pressure-test messages, and unlock more time for strategy. I love this because it proves that marketers and communicators are uniquely positioned to lead in AI. Why? Because we already think in patterns, nuance, and audience perception. AI isn’t just about coding. It’s about asking better questions, spotting signals in the noise, and testing narratives at scale. The key takeaways: 1️⃣ AI isn't replacing comms teams. It's making them faster and more strategic. 2️⃣ The biggest wins come from eliminating busy work so humans can focus on what actually matters: storytelling and impact. 3️⃣ Smart teams are questioning the old "bill by the hour" model. Value isn't time. It's results. If you’re in comms or marketing, this isn’t a “someday” conversation. It’s already happening. The question is: will you wait for a tool to be handed to you, or will you design one that reflects how you actually work? Oh, and you don't need to be a developer to do this. Sometimes it's as simple as a custom GPT, a no-code tool like Lovable, or just better prompts that match how you think.

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