What does internal communication look like leading up to a product launch? How are teams looped in?

The most helpful thing to do here is to have a single point person to talk to on each team involved in the launch. In our case, we have a "most knowledgeable person" on marketing, product, community, and sales (if it's relevant). These people are responsible for cross-team communication about the upcoming launch, so that you don't get several people on one team talking to several people on the other team and no one knows which information has been exchanged. That's how you run into confusion and duplicative work. These are the folks who meet on a regular basis about the launch and then bring action items back to their teammates if needed. They're also the ones collaborating on decisions based on tradeoffs or needs for each team.

Clarity and focus are so important for cogent, successful launches. Many people need to know exactly what role they're playing, what they're responsible to deliver, and when. This information needs to remain as consistent as possible, and if there's any change, then everyone involved should immediately be informed. Having single point people on each team helps with this considerably.

Another great question. Product launches more often than not tend to get chaotic, especially as you approach the launch date. We follow the RACI framework for decision making (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Responsibility_assignment_matrix) and we make sure we appoint only 1 DRI from every team. The teams who need to be part of your communication channel typically depend on your org structure but as a piece of advice make sure that every team is equally represented (and there is no over or under-representation). Typically at organizations, I have worked, we would have Product, Brand & Marketing, Sales PR (and legal, CS if necessary) teams involved all in different capacities.

Kick-off Meeting: Start with a comprehensive kick-off meeting involving all cross-functional stakeholders essential for executing the launch. This meeting should cover what is launching, include a product demo, share the Go-To-Market (GTM) plan, and outline schedules and timelines.

Weekly Status Meetings: Hold regular status meetings with the cross-functional team, ideally on a weekly basis. These meetings are a platform to review progress, timelines, address obstacles, and ensure everyone is on the same page. In some organizations, daily stand-up meetings may be required for more frequent updates.

Trainings for Internal Customer-Facing Teams: Conduct training sessions for internal customer-facing teams such as sales, partners, and customer support to ensure they are well-prepared to handle customer inquiries and effectively promote the product.

Communication Channel: Establish a dedicated communication channel for the launch team to interact outside of the scheduled meetings. This could be a dedicated Slack channel, a mailing list, or any platform that facilitates real-time discussions and updates.

Status Updates to Exec Staff: Keep the executive staff informed with regular status updates to ensure they are aware of the launch progress. This transparency can be invaluable in gaining their support and addressing any high-level concerns.

By following this structured approach, you can enhance internal alignment, streamline communication, and set the stage for a successful product launch.

Over communication is so important when it comes to launches - it's a huge part of ensuring team enablement. 

We try to embody the marketing adage "7 times, 7 ways" when it comes to internal launch comms. If you've covered it in a meeting, send a follow-up email. If you've posted in slack, make sure you also add it to an upcoming agenda. Etc.