From Comms to Energy Amplifier: What communications could be by 2030

In 2030, the best communications teams don’t “control the message.” They amplify the energy. They don’t just issue press releases and update the intranet. They listen to what’s already alive at the edges of the organisation — and turn it into movement.

James Plunkett’s blog The Energy at the Edges reminds us that change often starts far from the centre, in the fringes and footnotes.

So what if communications teams worked like that, too?

Here’s how comms in 2030 could look if it focused more on spotting, surfacing and spreading what’s already working.

By the way, we’re already doing some of this here!

📣 Comms in 2030: A glimpse at the edges

1. The intranet is co-owned and co-written

In a coastal council, the corporate centre doesn’t “own the intranet.” It’s a living space shaped by staff. Updates come straight from teams. The content with the most views last month? A post from the street cleansing crew about how they beat their fly-tipping target — with selfies and memes.

🔎 What changed?

Comms stopped being a filter. They became a coach — helping teams find their voice, then get it heard.

2. The best campaign of the year was never planned

At a housing association, a tenant live-streamed their community garden launch and tagged the organisation. The comms team spotted it and reposted with love, turning it into a week-long “#LocalRoots” celebration of resident-led spaces. No brand toolkit. Just human energy, picked up and elevated.

🔎 What changed?

Instead of waiting for the right moment, comms learned to respond in real time — to notice the spark and fan the flame.

3. Storytelling is crowdsourced from the front line

In a major hospital trust, the comms team runs “Story Jams” every month. Nurses, porters, caterers and patients join to share the moments that matter. Some stories become social media posts. Some fuel staff briefings. One became a national campaign.

🔎 What changed?

Instead of guessing what people want to hear, comms teams co-create the story with those living it.

4. Comms isn’t just a service, it’s a mindset

In a social enterprise, every team has a “comms companion” — not a comms officer, but a person trained to think like a storyteller. They capture progress, record reflections, post short updates. The formal comms team curates the best, connects the dots, and supports where needed.

🔎 What changed?

Comms stopped being a bottleneck. It became an ecosystem — distributed, decentralised, alive.

5. CEO updates are voice notes

In a housing group, the weekly staff briefing isn’t a 500-word email — it’s a two-minute voice note. Raw, warm, full of vulnerability. It started when the CEO recorded one while walking between meetings. Staff loved it. Now it’s a ritual. Sometimes it’s joyful. Sometimes it’s tough. But it’s always human.

🔎 What changed?

Comms became about connection, not control. It’s not about polish — it’s about presence.

6. Communities shape the message, not just receive it

A local authority working on climate action doesn’t send out glossy leaflets. Instead, they work with neighbourhood connectors to host “Listening Labs” — conversations in kitchens, parks, WhatsApp groups. The themes are then turned into open-source visuals, co-designed with residents, that speak in their voice.

🔎 What changed?

Comms became participatory. The message is no longer written for people — it’s shaped with them.

7. Crisis comms is powered by trust, not templates

During a data breach, a public service’s comms team doesn’t hide behind legalese. They hold a livestream Q&A, admit what they know (and don’t), and share the plan. Why does it work? Because they’ve built credibility over years of honest, human comms.

🔎 What changed?

Comms didn’t wait until a crisis to be transparent. Trust was already in the bank.

🔁 Comms as the connective tissue of transformation

What if communications wasn’t about “getting the message out” — but about creating the conditions for people to see themselves in the story?

If we followed the energy at the edges, comms would:

• 🧭 Work with curiosity, not certainty
• 🫶 Be as good at listening as it is at broadcasting
• 💡 Turn staff into storytellers, not just audiences
• 🤝 Make the organisation’s voice more polyphonic, more porous, more real

So what should comms teams do now?

You don’t need to wait until 2030. You can begin right now:

🟢 Run a Story Jam. Invite colleagues to share a small, proud, funny or frustrating moment. Share one each week.

🟢 Amplify the unofficial. Notice what staff are saying, sharing and celebrating — and repost it. Tag it. Honour it.

🟢 Ditch the template. Try a voice note. A selfie video. A WhatsApp bulletin. Something that sounds like how people really talk.

🟢 Open the channel. Invite staff or residents to help shape the next campaign or consultation. Ask: “What are we missing?”

Final word

If the energy is at the edges, then communications can’t sit in the centre.

Comms in 2030 isn’t the team that gets the message “right.” It’s the team that helps people see and shape the message together.

We’re not managing the narrative anymore — we’re nurturing the network.