Audio and podcasting: How si:cross is changing the way companies communicate internally
The audio market is booming and podcasts are no longer a trend. Audio messages are spontaneous, authentic and approachable. What’s more, voice messages can be listened to asynchronously, whether we are driving a car or going for a walk, we are not automatically interrupted in our current activity as we would be by a phone call, for example. We are not interrupted in our current activity by a phone call. Unlike in our daily lives, where voice messages are already an integral part of our communication, the audio boom has not yet reached internal corporate communications.
Although some companies produce their own podcasts, these are rarely aimed at their own employees. And this is precisely where the startup si:cross sees potential that can be mobilized and exploited with its micropodcasting software. Last year, the founding team went through the MediaTech Hub Accelerator and has been active on the B2B market with its si:cross software since the end of 2020. CEO and co-founder Rona van der Zander explains: “Our vision is to make corporate communication fit for the digital and decentralized future of the working world. It’s not about establishing yet another medium, but about doing things in a way that makes us all better off. Communication channels should be made easier. We often see how many videos are produced and emails are sent back and forth, the content of which could also be transported as audio. Then the listener can get away from the screen and run through the forest or go for a walk. Out into the fresh air. When I can and want to, and not on demand and immediately.” With audio, teams can network differently and strengthen mutual trust through transparent, direct communication.
si:cross works as a mobile app that is available via the Appstore. Employees can access their personal feed via their own company license.
To make this as simple and intuitive as possible, the feed can be organized according to so-called topic complexes, which can prevent an “information overload”. The focus is on the audio messages and less on the complex production of a podcast. Ideally, the company’s own audio platform should contain a good mix of internal information, knowledge and experience reports to which all or certain departments have access. As on other platforms, content can be liked, shared or recommended internally. Analytics functions evaluate which topics are particularly important to employees.
In addition to knowledge transfer, CEO Rona van der Zander sees a major advantage of audio in topics relating to transformation processes within companies. Many managing directors have to ask themselves: How can I take the employees with me on this journey? How do I reach everyone and communicate changes? An audio message from the CEO explaining the next steps has a more personal touch than a strategy paper sent by email. “Initially, it was mainly established companies that were interested in si:cross. After all, it’s the traditional sectors such as banking, construction and the automotive industry that are facing the challenge of major transformations. However, we are now being approached by more and more start-ups that have grown quickly and want to use the medium for better internal communication,” says van der Zander.
The trend is increasingly moving towards decentralized working, which has intensified during the . pandemic due to the necessity of working from home. Companies with multiple locations worldwide face the daily challenge of skillfully organizing the flow of information. Colleagues can use si:cross to update each other in the form of five-minute audio messages and thus compensate for any staff absences in meetings, keep up to date with the current status of negotiations and replace time-consuming reading of documents with concise audio messages. “For example, we got to know a pharmaceutical company that visited clinics and research facilities around the world and regularly wrote down the learnings in reports. Instead of elaborate reports, they started to insert small audio snippets and upload a podcast. That went down really well with the company,” says van der Zander, describing one use case. This is where the entertainment factor of audio messages comes into play. But the software is not just intended to encourage people to listen. The participatory effect is something that si:cross considers to be one of the strengths of the audio format: “We want to encourage employees to communicate. If they join in, everyone can promote and share topics. Especially now, at a time when we live a lot in the virtual space, the emotional and personal level of audio is a good way to pick us up.”
As the app’s content is only intended for internal corporate communication, special back-end safeguards were put in place and the highest German security standards were applied.
Information exchange, knowledge democratization and innovation: the si:cross team also regularly talks about what the future of work could look like in a podcast with interview guests. If you would like to find out more, you can listen to the si:cast format here: https://open.spotify.com/show/70rWT6a4UNNN8DfdCZpdWj
From Christine Lentz
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The media technologies of the future are already being used today – not only in the entertainment sector but in a wide variety of industries. For our MediaTech Hub Potsdam blog, we talk to tech enthusiasts, entrepreneurs and researchers once a month and tell the stories behind their innovative business models, ideas, projects and collaborations.
