Internal Communications During Crisis-Induced Organizational Change

Abstract

The COVID-19 epidemic prompted several organizations to make adjustments in order to handle economic and operational difficulties. Knowledge of how organizations use communication to drive changes and ensure employee commitment to the organization is essential. By integrating literature from symmetrical internal communication, organizational change research, and organizational support research, this study proposes a theoretical model to understand the role of symmetrical internal communication on the employees’ cognitive and affective experiences and affective organizational commitment during the pandemic. An online survey was conducted with 533 full-time employees in Ghana, West Africa. The overall result shows a positive correlation between symmetrical internal communication and employees’ perceived quality of change communication. Moreover, the perceived quality of change communication, facilitated by symmetrical internal communication, increases employees’ perception of organizational support and positive emotions during crisis-induced organizational change, resulting in affective commitment. The study discusses the theoretical and practical implications.