Internal Communications and Culture in 170+ Gulf Companies: New Research

22 April 2026

Kateryna Byelova:

Sage XP, a GCC-based Internal Communications and Corporate Culture consultancy, has released the second edition of its Gulf Internal Communications and Corporate Culture Landscape Report — a large-scale regional study based on insights from 179 organizations across the Gulf.

The research provides the first structured benchmarks of how Internal Communications (IC) and Corporate Culture functions are organized, measured, and evolving in the region.

The findings reveal a clear and consistent pattern: while these functions are now widely established, their ability to drive measurable impact remains uneven.

Functions are established — impact is not

Internal Communications functions are now present in 97% of organizations, while Corporate Culture is established in over 80%.

Yet only around 30% of companies consider these functions highly effective.

This gap is one of the most consistent findings across the region: organizations have built the function — but not yet its impact.

Measurement is improving, but not enough

There are early signs of progress comparing the results with the last year: 

• Companies not measuring IC dropped from 25% to 18% 
• For Culture, from 19% to 14% 

However, one in five organizations still does not measure Internal Communications at all.

More importantly, measurement is often limited to activity and reach, rather than linking communication to behavior and business outcomes.

And the data is clear: 75% of functions rated as “not effective” do not measure IC at all.

Reach is not the issue. Engagement is

Most organizations already have tools and channels in place:

• Newsletters, town halls, intranets 
• Culture initiatives, engagement programs 

The challenge is not a lack of activity. It is the absence of a system.

• 41% of companies reach 81–100% of employees through IC tools, yet only 10% achieve similar engagement levels 
• A similar gap exists in Culture: 51% report high reach, while only 33% report high engagement 

The pattern remains consistent with 2025, confirming engagement as a structural challenge. In practice, organizations struggle not with “doing more communication,”
but with ensuring that communication consistently drives understanding, alignment, and action.

The Core Challenge: Information Flow, Not Communication Volume

46% of organizations report that collecting updates from across the business is their biggest Internal Communications challenge, making it both the primary goal and the primary constraint of the function.

This points to a deeper issue:

Internal Communications is often dependent on fragmented inputs, rather than operating as a structured system with clear ownership, defined flows, and accountability.

As a result, communication becomes reactive — focused on sharing updates — rather than shaping alignment and behavior.

Structure Defines Effectiveness

Across the data, the strongest differentiator of effectiveness is how the function is structured and positioned within the organization.

71% of ineffective Internal Communications functions are not clearly positioned, highlighting the direct link between clarity of ownership and performance.

Leadership perception reflects this gap:
Only 17% of leaders view Internal Communications as a strategic function, while the majority still see it as a support or tactical role.

At the same time, shared ownership models are associated with weaker positioning and greater challenges in securing leadership support.

Together, these patterns point to a structural issue:
Without clear ownership, defined positioning, and alignment with business priorities, Internal Communications struggles to move beyond activity into impact.

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AI adoption is accelerating, but impact still lags

AI is one of the fastest-moving areas.

• Adoption increased from 74% to 85% year-on-year 
• Primarily used for content creation and analytics 

Organizations using AI are more likely to report higher effectiveness.

However, AI alone does not close the effectiveness gap.
It amplifies what is already in place, but does not replace structure.

Maturity remains in the middle

Most organizations operate at mid-level maturity.

• The largest share of companies sits in the “Grounded” stage (35–36%) 
• Around one in four remains at the initial “Started” level 
• Only 13% (IC) and 6% (Culture) reach full maturity 

This concentration in the middle explains why impact remains inconsistent.
Functions exist, but they are not yet fully embedded into how the organization operates.

What differentiates more effective functions

Across the data, a consistent pattern emerges.

More effective functions are not defined by:

• more tools 
• larger teams 
• higher activity levels 

They are defined by:

• clear ownership and positioning 
• alignment with business priorities 
• consistent measurement of impact 

Where these elements are missing, effectiveness remains limited, regardless of effort.

From activity to system

The findings point to a clear shift for organizations.

The gap is no longer in awareness or activity — it is in structure and execution.

The next stage is not about adding more initiatives, but about building a structured communication and culture system that connects strategy to behavior and enables consistent measurement of impact.

Organizations that make this shift are better positioned to move beyond activity and visibility and start using Internal Communications and Corporate Culture as drivers of alignment, performance, and business outcomes.

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Kateryna Byelova is CEO & Principal Consultant at Sage XP, Internal Communications and Culture Consultancy