Live Online Course
Strategic Communication for Non-Profit Organisations
How to manage your organisation’s communication effectively from A to Z

Three-day course over 4 weeks:
18 and 25 Nov, 2 and 9 Dec 2022

Fridays 09 AM - 12 PM CET
Starting at CHF 440

Image:You X Venture on Unsplash

Overview

Resources allocated to communication often focus on the implementation phase and more specifically on the production of tools such as flyers, a new Website or a video. The planning and evaluation phases of strategic communications, as well as the proper dissemination and promotion of tools are too often neglected. Consequences? The different communication activities carried out by the organisation may lack relevance and results are not what they could be. Taking a more strategic approach, dedicating more thinking to the overall communication of the organisation and its activities, and evaluating more properly the actions undertaken, will optimise the available resources and lead to better results.

The course features presentations, experiential learning and sharing experiences, readings, facilitated discussions, individual and group activities.

Who Should Attend

This online live course is intended for practitioners with different profiles who want to strengthen their capacity in strategic communications, including - but not limited - to:

Practitioners already working in communication for a non-profit organisation such as an NGO, an association, a foundation or an UN agency who are specialised in one area of communications, such as media relations or reporting and would like to have a more holistic approach to communication
Persons who are planning to take more responsibilities in communication
Practitioners with limited experience who want to strengthen their overall skills in communication management
Practitioners who have learned by doing without any specific training in communication;
Persons working in the non-profit sector but not in communication such as project or programme staff who want to work in communication;
Heads of non-profit organisations, offices and departments with decision-making power in communication who want a better understanding of critical communication challenges and solutions;
Practitioners working in communication for the private or public sector who want to move into the non-profit sector and understand the differences between the sectors.

Key Benefits

Following this course, participants will be able to more efficiently manage their time. More specifically, participants will be able to:

Identify strengths, weaknesses and areas of improvement of an organisation’s overall communication’s strategy
Undertake an internal audit of their organisation’s communication
Develop a communication strategy and plan of action
Assess and review communication tools, target audiences and messages; make recommendations and propose measures for improvement
Take concrete measures to close the gaps in the current communication strategy or its implementation, in accordance with priorities and resources
Reach out effectively and get messages across to different target audiences using the most relevant tools and messages
Build the overall capacity for managing the communication of an organisation; continued learning.

Course Programme

Session 1: Analysing the overall communication paradigm and its challenges

· How does communication contribute to the realisation of the organisation’s vision, mission and strategic objectives

· The main modalities of communication: target audiences/messages/channels

Session 2: where does your organization stand in terms of communications

· Assessment of your organisation’s communication status: the best tools

· Your organisation’s internal and external communications: Where does it stand, are there any gaps to bridge?

Session 3: Developing a sound strategy and action framework for impactful communication activities

· What does a successful strategy look like? What does it include? Why should your organisation have a strategy?

· Indicators of success for communication activities and means of verification

Session 4: How to use the most relevant tools and messages for maximal outreach to identified target audiences

· Review of possible communication tools: their characteristics, differences, pros and cons, relevance of their choice

· Message design: do’s and don’ts

· Outreach: much more than a distribution list

Personalised Post-Course Coaching

At the end of the course, each participant can avail of a credit of 45min for personalised coaching to support the implementation of action plans and for any questions related to it. The coaching is provided by the trainer of this course. It is valid for a period of two months after the course.

Course Organisation

This course is the equivalent of a three-day in-person course. It takes approximately 24 hours, thereof 12 hours of live online classes, about 12 hours of live working groups on case studies and exercises with other students, reading and individual work. The trainer maintains the same level of interaction as in an in-person course.
Click here for our Terms & Conditions.

Course trainer: Laura Faehndrich

Two types of certificates are available for this course (fees in Swiss Francs, CHF):

Certificate of Attendance: After completing the course programme.
Certificate of Achievement: After passing successfully the short test at the end of the course programme.

Max. 16 participants - register early to secure your participation