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FACULTY OF HUMANITY AND SOCIAL SCIENCES             
Course: ANH318DE02 – INTERNAL COMMUNICATION          FINAL REPORT         
INTERNAL COMMUNICATION PLAN  THE LAB SAIGON           
Lecturer: Mr. John Basihan Bayarong 
Students’ Name: Lê Thị Phương Lan – 2160407         
Submission date: ..........................................................................................     
FACULTY OF HUMANITY AND SOCIAL SCIENCES             
Course: ANH318DE02 – INTERNAL COMMUNICATION          FINAL REPORT         
INTERNAL COMMUNICATION PLAN  THE LAB SAIGON           
Lecturer: Mr. John Basihan Bayarong 
Students’ Name: Lê Thị Phương Lan – 2160407         
Submission date: ..........................................................................................        TABLE OF CONTENTS 
1. EXECUTIVE SUMMARY ....................................................................................... 1 
2. BACKGROUND OF THE ORGANIZATION ........................................................ 2 
3. VISION, MISSION AND GOALS ........................................................................... 3 
4. ORGANIZATIONAL STRUCTURE ...................................................................... 4 
5. OBJECTIVES OF THE PLAN ................................................................................. 5 
6. KEY MESSAGES OF THE ORGANIZATION ...................................................... 6 
7. AUDIENCES ............................................................................................................ 7 
8. INTERNAL COMMUNICATION TOOLS ............................................................. 8 
8.1. Existing communication tools ............................................................................ 8 
8.2. New communication tools ................................................................................ 10 
9. IMPLEMENTATION PLAN AND TIMELINE .................................................... 12 
9.1. Plan and timeline .............................................................................................. 12 
9.2. Budget plan ....................................................................................................... 14 
10. MONITORING AND EVALUATION ............................................................... 16 
10.1. Feedforward monitoring ................................................................................ 16 
10.2. Concurring monitoring .................................................................................. 16 
10.3. Feedback monitoring ..................................................................................... 16 
REFERENCES .............................................................................................................. 17         
1. EXECUTIVE SUMMARY 
The Lab Saigon, a design agency based in Ho Chi Minh City, was founded by 
creative director Tuan Le. The company designs and runs many independent businesses 
in Ho Chi Minh city. The Lab Saigon is the creative minds behind numerous popular 
domestic brands such as WORK Saigon, Work Cafe, Bunker and other projects. In 
addition, the organization also helps to shape the design styles of several local and  international brands. 
The Lab Saigon is a small-scale company with over 20 full-time employees 
working at the headquarter of The Lab Saigon in District 1 (Ho Chi Minh City) and 
more than 30 part time employees dispersed by projects. The communication taking 
place in the main office is mainly cost saving. The company have utilized a variety of 
channels from direct interaction to electronic and printed platforms to foster the 
company networks. For example, face-to-face (meeting, leader visits, events), 
Workplace, Email, Moodboard, Company’s brochure, Google Drive. 
Despite the bonded contract workers, The Lab Saigon is running a lot of design 
projects and food and beverage stores with the participation of more than 30 part-time 
staffs, which propels a need to build strong connection for all of the employees 
regardless of being full-time or part-time. Currently, The Lab has no internal 
communication team or human resources department. As such, the employees’ 
engagement index is not measured to evaluate if the communication activities within the 
company are effective or not. Owing to this, this report aims to craft an internal 
communication plan for The Lab Saigon to bolster their employees’ involvement and  increase its productivity.    1   
2. BACKGROUND OF THE ORGANIZATION 
In 2014, Tuan Le, a man full of creative ideas from his memorable childhood 
in the States, started up a company that provides designing services and operates 
restaurant and accommodation projects. One of the company’s most salient projects is 
“Nest by AIA” at Bitexco Tower in Saigon in 2015. One year later, “Nest by AIA” 
marked its success with another grand opening at Vincom Tower in Hanoi. This coffee 
shop designed by the Lab Saigon based on the request of AIA Insurance is among the 
Lab’s biggest plans in terms of budget and efficiency. Apart from “Nest by AIA”, The 
Lab Saigon is also the designer of “Ba Lá Trà” a chain of tea shops with unique 
atmosphere. Besides, The Lab also runs independently many other projects with 
innovative ideas, namely, WORK Saigon, Blank Bar Saigon and Hanoi and Bunker Bed 
Breakfast Bar. During its development momentum, the Lab has created different styles 
of interior design. For instance, WORK Saigon, one of the very first project of The Lab 
when the leaders first dabbled into the food and beverage industry, impresses its 
customers with the concept of a coffee shop with coworking space. Or Bunker Breakfast 
and Bed, a small restaurant and homestay inspired by Tuan Le’s formative years circa 
early 90s in Chinatown, Los Angeles. The Lab Saigon not only supplies design services 
and does business in food and beverage field, but it also stepped into the fashion and 
furniture domain with Label Concept Store. There are a variety of product lines, from 
prototype, unique to collaborative models in this brand. Label Concept Store challenges 
popular product with mass-produced designs and questions the craft industry. The brand 
is special because it allows users to label any product in order to transform the interior 
space to suit their purpose. Moreover, the Lab Saigon has deals with oversea customers 
as well, for instance, Los Angeles and Hong Kong. The company provides designing 
ideas to advertising agencies that are outsourcing.      2   
3. VISION, MISSION AND GOALS 
The Lab Saigon aims to be one of the most trustworthy designing agencies that 
first comes to customers’ mind when they look for creative ideas. The Lab understands 
and applies the structure of reinvestment. The Lab do not bid for projects. When 
consulting clients and advising them about design options, the staffs are very confident 
because they created the designs by their own money. After producing about 80% of the 
ideas, they will introduce it to customers. 
 Its mission is to wow clients every time they use The Lab’s service with its 
amazing designs and architecture. For their own stores, The Lab wants to let its 
customers try their food, drinks, cakes and even clothes in the most special ways that 
fill them with unforgettable memories. 
Beside the business objectives, The Lab Saigon also has its own goals for 
internal communication which are measured based on the SMART (Specific, 
Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, Timebound) template (Grossman, 2018). The 
objective details are as follows: 
- By the end of 2019, the company’s employees’ engagement index will be 
measured and raised up to 60%. 
- Until June, the company employees’ productivity will increase by 10%. 
- At the end of 2019, job satisfaction increases to 75 points.      3   
4. ORGANIZATIONAL STRUCTURE  Creative  Directors Accounting  General  Accountants Department Managers Food & Beverage  Projects  Manager managers Store Managers Designers  Staffs Producers   4   
5. OBJECTIVES OF THE PLAN 
To match with the organizational outcomes, this internal communication plan 
focuses on the communication objectives mentioned below: 
- Objective 1: To build connections among the core staff and coordinators so 
that the Lab can reduce absenteeism and facilitate employees’ engagement 
by ensuring that every employee is heard and appreciated via an anonymous  platform. 
- Objective 2: To foster productivity so that the company can achieve better 
safety and quality performance by identifying workers’ needs through 
surveys and provide them with in time soft skills training (problem solving, 
planning, customer communication, manner and etiquette) and help them 
understand their goals and roles. 
- Objective 3: To cultivate company’s culture so that the company becomes 
a cohesive group by making all employees feel connected and belonged 
with a shared company calendar.      5     
6. KEY MESSAGES OF THE ORGANIZATION 
The messages the company wants to send to its employees are summed up in  the table below.  Purpose  What the  What the  What the  What the 
company wants company wants company wants company wants  its workers to  its workers to  its workers to  its workers to  KNOW  THINK  FEEL  DO  Foster 
No matter what Employees can The Lap hopes  Employees are  employees’ 
their position in think of The  its employees  encouraged to  engagement  the company is, Lab as their  feel secure and  share their  they can  second home  comfortable  stories and  always raise  and colleagues  within the  problems to  their voice and  are the family  company and  others.  their stories  members. If  around their  will be heard.  workers look  colleagues.  for advices  from all aspect  of life, the Lab  is here for  them.  Increase  The Lab  The company  Its employees  Employees are  productivity  always works  wants its  will feel  expected to  on trust and the employees to  motivated and  thrive for their  managers will  think that  committed.  best, devote  provide all the  employees at  their time,  information  the Lab are not  make great  needed to equip only earning  effort, keep  its employees  money, but  good self- with necessary  they are also  discipline and  skills.  learning new  head to a  stuffs every  successful  day.  future.    Nurture  Everyone in the The Lab will  The Lab wants  The Lab’s  company’s  Lab care for  make its  its employees  employees  culture  each other from employees  to feel  should care for  every little  think that they  belonged and  others,  thing, every  are a part of a  loved.  maintain good  milestone in  family, not just  relationship  their lives  a company.  and have a  positive  attitude  towards others.        6    7. AUDIENCES  Audiences  Age  Personalities  Mindset  Directors  25 to 35  Responsible,  Competing in a dynamic domain  and  years old  innovative and 
like Design, the Lab Saigon aims  Managers  visionary leaders 
to create things they understand  Supportive team  enough but also surprising  builders  enough. 
Leaders in the Lab Saigon respect  the difference and target to 
expand their employees’ limits.  Designers  20 to 30  Creative 
They are internet savvy, but they  and  years old  facilitators and 
are also designers who prefers  Producers  hard-driving 
visual appeal. They are working  workers  in the designing realm, which 
facilitates their sense of art.  Part time  18 to 25  Active and 
They are millennials with modern  staffs  years old  energetic  point of views about various  collaborators  aspects in life. 
Part time staffs of the company  are very well-adapted to the  company culture.   
With a general understanding of the audiences, hence, the internal 
communication plan will focus on applying technology to render it user-friendly while 
embedding artistry details and decorations to ensure it attract the audiences and meet  their purposes.      7   
8. INTERNAL COMMUNICATION TOOLS  8.1.  Existing communication tools 
Most of the tools being used within The Lab are cost saving. Due to the small 
size of the company, everyone at the main office sits in an oval seating arrangement. As 
a result, internal communication easily takes place and face-to-face is mainly used. 
However, the company also applies other electronic platforms to control over the 
employees and disseminate information. Printed materials are utilized as well for 
advertising purposes. The table below will evaluate the effectiveness of internal 
communication tools used in The Lab Saigon.    Tools  Cost  Security  Installation  Storage  Information  sharing  Face-to- Free  Depends on  Very easy to  Free of  Very fast  face  the situation implement. It  charge  and easy.  happens in  However,  forms of  sometimes  weekly  it gets  meeting, leader  influenced  visits and  from the  company  events  grapevine.  Workplace  Affordable:  High  Easy to install  More  Sharing  (1)  3$ per  security  and get use to  expense for  information  person per  (only  because it  more storage. easily and  month  members  shares the  instantly  who have  same interface  People  company  with Facebook  receive  accounts  notifications  and  and can  permissions  from admin  attach files  can join the  while  group)  chatting  Google  Reasonable: Low  Easy to install  Large  Easy to  Email  3$ per  security  storage with  attach files  person per  (Members  a lot of  and share  month  in the G- business  suite can  emails  forward  company  8    emails to  outsiders)  Moodboard  Cheap  High  Takes time to  Small  Easy to add  (2)  expenses for security  decorate and  storage  in new  decoration  (Nobody is  keep updating  The content  information  and printing  allowed to  timeline and  is only in the about new  only  take picture  new  size of board projects,  of this  information  strategies or  because it  ideas.  contains  People can  commercial  secrets)  get the news  faster  Company’s  Average  Low  Takes time to  Small  Easy to  brochure  cost for  security  design and  storage.  share  (3)  printing 
(Information print, but it can It contains  information  can easily  be easily  the  be leaked  allocated to  information  because the  staffs  about the  company  projects and  distribute it  the staffs  to the  employees)  Google  Included in  Average  Easy to install  Huge storage Easy to  Drive (4)  Google  security  up to  share  email cost  (People can  30Gb/person information  share  but it  company  requires to  files to  pay more to  outsiders,  upgrade  but it may  storage  require  owner’s  permission) 
(1) Workplace: an online tool for teamwork collaboration, with Facebook features. 
(2) Moodboard: a shared board hung on the wall in the main office containing project 
timeline, notes and space for creative ideas 
(3) Company’s brochure: Brochures of company project information and pictures to  promote and advertise. 
(4) Google Drive: “Google Drive is a file storage and synchronization service developed  by Google Inc.”  9    8.2.  New communication tools 
In order to fulfill the company objectives, this report suggests some new tools 
with a hope to make improvements for The Lab Saigon’s internal communication  activities.  Objectives  Tools  Functions  Executor  Foster  Confession  To allow people to reply to  Managers  employees’ forum 
information, present their concerns,  engagement 
give feedback, make suggestions, ask 
for advices without fear of censorship  Rewards 
To create a standard for employees to  Directors  Rubric 
encourage employees to achieve  Increase  Surveys 
To learn what workers need to support  Managers  productivity 
them as well as to gain their feedbacks  about leadership management 
Communication To improve employees’ soft skills by  Managers  Training 
provide them with information about  communication skills such as 
(customer communication, presentation  skills, etc.)  Human  To measure the employees’  Directors  resources team  engagement, productivity and  satisfactory 
To control the confession page  To train employees  To conduct company trip  Cultivate 
Shared calendar To mark all the special milestones  All  company’s 
within the company (employees’  employees  culture 
birthday, anniversaries, grand  openings, etc.)  10    Company trips 
To create chances for employees to  All 
relax and build rapport with others  employees      11   
9. IMPLEMENTATION PLAN AND TIMELINE  9.1.  Plan and timeline 
This internal communication will be applied by the beginning of 2019 and  last for a year.    Purpose  Channel  Tactics  Duration -  Desired  Audien Measure- Frequency Outcomes  ce  ment &  Timing  Foster  Workplace Create a  01 Jan to  The page  The  The admin  employees’  confession 31 Dec  helps  Lab’s  of the page  engagement  page  employees  workers will make    share their  sure the  problems  content of  and gain  the posts  advices or  appropriate  even make  and check  suggestions  the  without the  interaction  fear of  of  punishment.  employees  in forms of  comments  and reacts  every  month.  Face-to- Rubric for  Once at  This rubric  The  The human  face  best  the  will help  Lab’s  resources  employee  beginning  employees  workers team will  of a  understand  create a list  project  what they  of criteria  and best  should do to  and  staff of  become the  measure  every  best  employees’  three  employee of  performanc month for  the  e.  each store  company.  Workplace Survey  January,  This survey  The  The human  and  is to  Lab’s  resources  December  monitor the  workers team will  engagement  create an  rate of the  eNPS  employees  survey and  compare it  over time.  12    Increase  Google  Distribute  Every  The surveys The  Human  productivity Drive  Google  three  will gain  Lab’s  resources    form  months  employees’  workers team will  question- From Jan  needs for  consider the  naire  to Dec  training or  skills they  feedbacks  need to  about  make sure  leadership  they are  management.  necessary  and review  their  feedback to  take  suitable  measureme nts  Face-to- To run  Every  The training The  Managers  face  communic three  programs  Lab’s  will observe  ation  months  will equip  workers the changes  training  from Jan  employees  in behavior  programs  to Dec  with the soft  and skills of  skills they  employees  need.  after they  receive their  training.  Face-to- Recruit  Once time  The team  The  Directors of  face  human  at the  will help  Lab’s  the Lab will  resources  beginning  managers  workers evaluate the  team  and  team  directors in  effectivenes taking care  s through  of their  leader visits  customers  and focus  and  group every  measure the  three  effectivenes months.  s of internal  communicat ion.  Face-to- Briefings  Weekly  These  The  Human  face  from Jan  meetings  Labs  resources  to Dec 
are tools for workers people will  monitoring  send  and it will  quizzes  update the  monthly to  employees  employees  with the  to check if  internal  they  communicat understand  ion  the  activities  company  current  13    inside the  situation  company  and have  enough  information.  Cultivate  Workplace Create a  Jan to Dec The  The  The human  company’s  calendar  calendar  Lab’s  resources  culture  and share  helps to  workers managers    it in  remind  will check  Workplace  everyone in  if everyone  the Lab of  knows the  special days  special days  so that they  via quizzes.  can spend  more  wonderful  moments  together.  Face-to- Conduct  Twice a  The trips  The  The human  face  company  year (Jun  will tighten  Lab’s  resources  trips  and Dec)  the bond  workers team will  among  send  workers and  feedback  create  forms to  beautiful  employees  memories.  one week  after the  trip.  Face-to- Focus  Every  The  The  The human  face  group  three  meeting  Lab’s  resources  month  will help  manage department  (Jan to  company  rs  will create a  Dec)  employers  check list  understand  and make  more about  sure the  its  managers  employees’  have  difficulties  appropriate  and  measures to  advantages.  support  their  employees.    9.2.  Budget plan 
Owing to the need for reducing cost, many of the suggested tools are free. The 
following budget plan is a tentative one with approximate numbers for the expenses of 
the internal communication tools within a year.  Expenses  Date  Purpose  Quantity  Price  Sum  14    Money prizes  After every Best  1 (May  2 mil/project  2 mil  project  Employee of vary)  a project  Voucher 200k  End of  Best staff of  4 times x 6  200k/voucher  4.8 mil  available in all  March,  each stores  stores  the Lab stores  June,    September  and  December  HR Employees  Monthly  Human  2 people *  5 mil/person  120 mil  resources  12 months  team  Travel  June and  Company  30  200k/person  6 mil  Insurance  December  trip (*)  Accommodation June and  Company  30  200/person  6 mil  December  trip  Meals  June and  Company  30  150/person/day  4.5 mil  December  trip  Transport  June and  Company  30  200k/person/day 6 mil  December  trip  Total:  149.3 mil 
One hundred forty-nine million and three hundred  thousand Viet Nam Dong 
(*) the expense above is only for one day    15   
10. MONITORING AND EVALUATION  10.1. Feedforward monitoring 
In order to identify the communication problems and keep employees updated 
about the news happening within the company, the plan executor will have to do 
feedforward monitoring before creating the plan by: 
- Conducting surveys to gain insights of the company problems 
- Checking reviews of post employees through some website like Glassdoor 
- Introducing and explaining thoroughly the new internal communication  plan  10.2. Concurring monitoring 
During the implementation of the internal communication plan, the human 
resources employees in charge will conduct briefings every month to ensure all 
employees are on the right track and to sum up what have been done and what need to 
improve. Besides, focus groups are also applied to let workers share their thoughts, 
difficulties and suggestions for the plan after every quarter of a year.    10.3. Feedback monitoring 
- After every project, the employees’ efficiency will be measured by the time 
they spend on each project and the quality of their work. 
- After every three months, the company will conduct eNPS survey 
(Employee Net Promoter Score) to gauge the involvement rate of its 
employees. This survey developed by Fred Reichheld, Bain & Co and 
Satmetrix shows how much the employees want to recommend their 
employer to their friends and acquaintances (Netigate, 2018). 
- After the first half of the year, employees at the Lab Saigon will fill out a  job satisfaction survey. 
- During the year, some small quizzes may be distributed to measure 
employees’ knowledge about the company.    16    REFERENCES   
Employee Net Promoter Score – how engaged are your employees? (2018, December 
19). Retrieved from Netigate: https://www.netigate.net/employee-
engagement/employee-engagement-survey/ 
Grossman, D. (2018, December 15). How to Create an Internal Communications Plan 
in 7 Steps. Retrieved from Your thought partner: 
http://www.yourthoughtpartner.com/blog/internal-communications-plan          17    
