Internal podcasts: how to use a podcast for a company's internal communication

What an internal podcast is, and what it is not

An internal podcast is a show with episodes that a company records for the people who work there. It is like any podcast you listen to in the car, with one difference: it is not made for the public but for the team, and it is published on channels only staff can access, such as the intranet, Teams, Slack or a private link.

What an internal podcast is not is the usual memo read aloud. If the CEO reads a leadership statement into a microphone, nobody will listen to the end. A podcast works because it is a conversation: two or three people talking about something that matters, with questions, doubts and the odd laugh. That tone is what makes people press play.

It fits into something bigger: internal communication, which is everything a company does so its team knows what is happening, understands where it is heading and feels part of it. Email, all-hands meetings, the intranet, welcome videos and, more and more, on-demand audio and video formats all live there.

Why is it growing? Because companies have more people spread across offices, shifts or remote work, and it is harder to get everyone together at once. An episode is heard when it suits each person: on the commute, on a break or while sorting email. And it gives something an email cannot: the voice and face of whoever is speaking.

What an internal podcast is for

An internal podcast solves very specific communication problems. These are the uses that make the most sense.

Explaining leadership decisions. A change in strategy, a reorganisation, results, an acquisition. In an email, people read what it says; in a conversation, they understand why. When someone from leadership explains a decision by answering real questions, trust goes up.

Welcoming new joiners. The first weeks in a company bring lots of information and little context. A few episodes on the company's history, how work gets done and who is who help a new person understand the place much sooner. They are recorded once and work for years.

Letting departments get to know each other. In medium and large companies, sales does not know what product does and product does not know what customer service does. One episode per department, told by its people, breaks down those walls without a single meeting.

Training without boring people. Some processes, rules and know-how are explained better in a conversation than in a manual. An in-house expert explaining how they solve something teaches more than ten slides.

Telling the culture. Team stories, projects that went well and those that did not, people who have been there for years. This is what makes people feel part of something, and it often ends up working externally too, to attract talent.

If you are considering a podcast aimed at clients, the logic is different; we cover it in whether a video podcast is worth it for a company.

Formats that work for an internal podcast

You do not need to invent much. Five formats work well in almost any company, and they can be combined.

The leadership conversation. Someone from leadership and someone from the team, with questions the team sent in advance. It works especially well when the questions are real, including the awkward ones.

One department per episode. Two or three people from an area explain what they do, what their day looks like and how they can help everyone else. It is the easiest format to start and the one that sparks the most collaboration ideas.

New joiners. Each month, a conversation with the people who just arrived: where they come from, what surprised them and what they hope for. Everyone else gets to know them and they feel welcome.

Case of the month. A project, a client or a solved problem, told by the people who did it. It recognises the work and shows how things are done well in the company.

Questions and answers. An episode answering questions sent by the team, anonymously if needed. It is the format that builds the most trust when done honestly.

On length: fifteen to thirty minutes is reasonable for an internal episode. Longer gets heavy in a working day. And from each episode it pays to cut one or two one-minute excerpts to share in the Teams or Slack channel, which are what lead people to the full episode.

Audio or video, and where to publish so only the team sees it

An internal podcast can be audio-only or also recorded on video. Our advice is to record on video whenever you can, for two reasons. First, seeing the speaker's face creates closeness, especially when it is someone from leadership many people have never met in person. Second, video lets you cut excerpts for internal channels and, if it is ever decided, pieces for LinkedIn or the careers page.

Recording on video does not mean people have to watch it. Anyone can listen to it as audio while doing something else.

As for where to publish, what matters is that it is where people already are. If the team lives in Teams or Slack, the episode goes there, in its own channel. If there is an intranet, in a fixed section with every episode. You can also use a private video link or a private podcast platform, which lets people listen on their phone without it being public. What you should avoid is sending each episode as an email attachment, because it gets lost.

Two details should not be forgotten. Subtitles and a transcript, so anyone can follow it, including people who cannot play sound or have hearing difficulties. And an internal review before publishing: an internal podcast talks about company matters, and someone in communications or leadership needs to sign off on what is said.

How to produce it without stealing the team's time, and how to know it works

The biggest fear of any communications director is that the podcast becomes one more thing to chase every week. Good organisation avoids it.

First, record in batches. In one morning you can record two or three episodes back to back. That way each person on the team gives an hour and a half at most, and the podcast has content for a month or more. You can record in your own office with kit set up in a meeting room, as we explain in how to set up a podcast studio in your office, or in a studio.

Second, prepare the speakers well. Many people get nervous in front of a microphone and a camera. A list of questions sent in advance and ten minutes of chat before recording change everything. There are more tips in how to speak naturally on camera.

Third, have someone handle the rest: editing, sound, subtitles, recognisable cover art, the excerpts for Teams or Slack and publishing. That is exactly the work that eats the most time and the easiest to outsource.

How do you know it works? Look at how many people listen or watch, which episodes get comments or messages, which questions reach leadership after each one and whether anything changes in internal surveys. And ask directly: a two-question survey each quarter tells you more than any dashboard.

How we make internal podcasts at Bostak

At Bostak Films we produce podcasts and internal communication pieces for companies as part of our corporate communication work. We have spent years making video podcasts for shows with large audiences, and we bring the same care for picture and sound to the ones only your team will see.

Before recording, we design the show with you: what it is for, which formats it uses, how often it comes out and who takes part. We record at your office with our crew or at our studio in Viladecans, usually several episodes in one session. Then we handle editing, sound, subtitles, cover art, short excerpts for your internal channels and delivery ready to publish.

Internal content does not live in isolation. The same shoot can produce welcome pieces, leadership messages or team stories like the ones we made with Qilimanjaro, for example, a piece of just over a minute with Dídac, head of their lab. That kind of piece works inside the company and outside it too, so the talent you are looking for can see how you work.

Many companies hire it through our monthly communication plan, which works like a bank of pieces you use according to what you need each month; it is explained on our video and photography for companies page. If you want to see whether an internal podcast makes sense for your company, tell us how you communicate today and we will propose a specific format to start with.

FAQ

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