Sage XP, Gulf-based consultancy, launches Academy with Internal Communications & Culture Strategy Certification for communications professionals

Five-week applied education program teaches professionals how to build an Internal Communications & Culture system and develop a strategy around the business priorities and employee reality of their own organisations

Sage XP has launched Sage XP Academy to strengthen strategic capability in Internal Communications and Corporate Culture through practical, applied professional education. Its first program, the Internal Communications & Culture Strategy Certification, begins in November 2026. 

The program teaches participants how to analyse business priorities and employee needs, identify the employee behaviours required to support business goals, assess the current Communication & Culture system, and translate these insights into clear communication objectives and an integrated Internal Communications & Culture Strategy. 

Participants use their own organisation as the case throughout the five-week program, applying the methodology to real business priorities, employee needs and communication challenges. The work completed in each module becomes part of a draft Internal Communications & Culture Strategy for their organisation. 

The curriculum covers five areas of strategy development: Leadership Intent & Business Priorities, Employee Reality, Communication & Culture Audit, Communication & Culture Strategy Development, and Communication & Culture Strategy Implementation. Participants learn how to define strategic priorities and communication objectives, design communication architecture, leadership communication, messaging, engagement and recognition approaches, and develop strategic initiatives, governance, measurement and an implementation roadmap. 

The online education program combines live teaching, practical assignments and individual consulting-style feedback. Participants receive more than 40 reusable frameworks and templates, including a Master Strategy Workbook, to support research, analysis, strategy development, implementation and 
measurement. 

The certification is led by Kateryna Byelova, Founder of Sage XP, an Internal Communications and Corporate Culture strategist with more than 18 years of experience working across complex organisations and workforces of up to 350,000 employees. Byelova holds an MA in Communication from Johns Hopkins University, and the program combines practical corporate and consulting experience with evidence-based communication methodologies. 
“Internal Communications professionals are increasingly expected to connect their work with business priorities, employee behaviour and organisational performance,” said Kateryna. “We developed this program to give professionals a clear methodology for doing that. Participants learn the methodology and immediately apply it to their own organisation, so every stage of learning contributes to the strategy they are building.” 

By the end of the five weeks, each participant will have developed a draft Internal Communications & Culture Strategy for their organisation, supported by individual feedback and a final expert review. The methodology, frameworks and tools can then be reused to develop and evolve communication and culture strategies beyond the program. 

The first cohort will run from 12 November to 10 December 2026, with one module delivered each week and three hours of live online learning per week. Sessions will also be recorded and available on demand for one 
month following the program. 

More information about the Sage XP Academy Internal Communications & Culture Strategy Certification, including the curriculum and upcoming cohort, is available through the Sage XP Academy website at sagexp.com/academy. Full program details can also be requested at academy@sagexp.com.

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Sage XP