The Role of Internal Communication in Start-ups: State of Research and Practical Approaches

ABSTRACT Start-ups differ from established organizations in having limited routines and undergoing constant change that shapes their communicative structures. Although they are dependent on successful internal communication, its importance as a strategic discipline seems underestimated in practice. In addition, research on internal communication in start-ups has so far only focused on several sub-areas. In this article, internal communication is, in a first step, defined as a subdiscipline of strategic communication and elaborated on from the perspective of the Four Flows Model in order to allow a holistic view on internal communication. Secondly, we ask what role is attributed to strategic internal communication in start-ups across different stages of development in academic research and practice. Answers are provided through a multi-method design consisting of a systematic literature review in the fields of strategic communication, business management, and entrepreneurship, and 12 guided interviews with representatives of start-ups. Although both literature and interviewees identify internal communication as crucial to the success of start-ups, it mainly results from routine and is rarely strategically derived or evaluated. This study provides a more detailed insight into the role of strategic communication in start-ups, to which further studies can refer in order to fill the research gaps discussed.