lunches, round-table discussions, 'town meetings', etc. Workspace: The working environment. Examples include notice boards, plasma and LCD screens, accessories (e.g.: mousemats), window decals, etc. Informal channels reflect the non-linear dynamics of a social network and can be as influential, if not more so, than official channels, often more likely to stimulate and create discussion and dialogue. The channels may manifest themselves via the rumour-mill, water-cooler conversations, social networking, graffiti, spoof newsletters, etc. Selecting channels One of the key challenges any internal communicator will face is how to select the right channels - and the right mix of channels - for both the audience and the message. Bill Quirke offers a simplistic guide; see Weick for some theoretical grounds for this basic insight. The practical considerations are: Availability: what channels either already exist within the organization or can be introduced effectively? Audience: who are they, where are they based, how do they prefer to access information and how effective will the proposed channel be in reaching them and engaging them? Objectives: what does the organization want people to learn, think, feel or do as a result of the message? Content: what is the context and substance of the message? (for example, sensitive messages may need to be communicated face-to-face, rather than by text message) Timing: how urgent is the message? (for example, communications in times of crisis which require quick dissemination of important messages) Traffic control A typical large organization IC function will be concerned to monitor and limit the quantity of information flowing through each internal channel, prioritising according to the relevance of a given message to the audience implicated in that channel, as well as the urgency and impact of the message. Such organizations typically face a risk that channels (such as intranet news, or email) are over-used for inappropriate, low value messages, causing vital audience groups to filter them out. Channel development and administration IC teams will often (but not always) hold responsibility for the administration and development of several of the organization's communications channels. The range of media available is wide - and growing fast with new electronic media. Initially, IC tends to focus on the existing resources of the organization, typically an intranet, email distributions, and newsletters. One common element of channel development and administration involves managing supplier relationships - agencies external to the organization typically specialise in one main channel area, such as audiovisual, or