Scott McDougall · Edinburgh, Scotland

Connectingleadershipstrategywiththepeoplewhobringittolife.

I help organisations turn complex strategies, technical information and business priorities into clear, engaging communications that connect people and strengthen brands.

Internal CommunicationsEmployee EngagementCorporate Storytelling
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Portrait of Scott McDougall

Digital Marketing & Communications Analyst

Elite Energy

What I do

Clear communication is a business capability.

Over three years supporting an international energy technology consultancy, I’ve learned that the hardest messages to land are the ones that matter most: strategy, change, technical complexity. My job is to make them land.

3+

Years in energy-sector communications

3×

LinkedIn engagement in under 12 months

1

Company-wide rebrand, delivered end-to-end

Illustrative Communications Exercise, Demonstrating My Approach

From business strategy to employee understanding

Explore the five-stage approach behind turning a dense leadership message into something people can understand and act on.

01 · The raw strategy : Start with what leadership means

A typical board-level message might be full of abstraction: “Optimise operational leverage across the value chain via integrated delivery synergies…”

The first job is to identify what is actually changing, why it matters and who needs to act.

02 · Deconstruct : Extract the real intent

Break the message into the questions employees genuinely ask: why now, what changes, what stays the same and what support is available.

This turns a dense strategic statement into a clear communication brief.

03 · Translate : Write in plain language

Replace jargon with a message people can understand quickly: what is happening, what it means for their team and what they need to do next.

The goal is not to simplify the thinking; it is to make the thinking usable.

04 · Channel & format : Meet people where they are

Adapt the same core message for a leadership email, town hall slide, manager briefing, newsletter or intranet announcement.

Consistency does not mean copying and pasting; it means preserving the meaning in each format.

05 · Understanding & action : Close the loop

Use readership, questions, feedback and survey signals to check whether the message landed, then refine the next communication.

Communication is successful when people understand what to do, not just when something has been sent.

Before · Leadership language

“We are optimising cross-functional delivery leverage to enable integrated operating-model synergies across the value chain.”

After · Employee communication

“We’re changing how some teams work together so projects move faster and responsibilities are clearer. Your manager will share what this means for your team this week, and the intranet FAQ has the detail.”

Why I communicate this way

Plain English over jargon

Audience relevance over generic messaging

Clear actions over vague objectives

Consistency across channels

Human tone without losing credibility

This illustrative exercise reflects the approach behind my real internal communications and brand work at Elite Energy.

Case study: leadership strategy Case study: brand transformation

Why energy-sector experience matters

I’ve communicated some of the hardest subject matter there is.

Hydrocarbon operations, allocation data, AI tooling, carbon compliance. At Elite Energy I helped translate deeply technical work into messages clients and colleagues could act on. That discipline transfers to any complex organisation.

Engineering-led, technology-driven subject matter

International rollout across UK and Australia

Monthly performance reporting from LinkedIn & Google Analytics

Next step

Let’s connect.

I’m open to opportunities in internal communications, employee engagement and corporate communications, in Edinburgh and beyond.

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