In the last issue of Inside Out (Proof for the profitability of engagement), I talked about what it takes to get employees engaged in systematic continuous improvement. I also cited recent research that proves the huge bottom line impact you can produce from doing it effectively.
After 15 years of benchmarking and refining a process that’s been used by several Baldrige Award winning companies, we’ve found that some of the “tried-and-true” principles for accomplishing that goal aren’t really so true after all. In fact, what actually works – what makes an improvement process a fully integrated system instead of a one-off activity – is somewhat counterintuitive.
“Bigger” isn’t always “better.”
One classic flaw in most suggestion programs is the emphasis on hitting “home runs.” It seems like it makes sense to focus on the big wins at first glance, but there are two problems with that notion. First, big things are hard to plan and implement, and not many employees are equipped to take them on. So it limits participation. Second, when employees get bigger incentives for bigger improvements, that’s where they tend to focus their attention – and they wind up walking right past hundreds of smaller ideas – the “base hits” – along the way.
The counterintuitive key is to set up the incentive structure to value every idea equally regardless of its size and impact. In our “Un-Suggestion System,” we use a random drawing to accomplish that goal. For every approved improvement that an employee implements (not just suggests), his or her name is entered once into a bi-weekly drawing. Depending on the size of the organization, approximately 10%-20% of the names are pulled each time. Importantly, the value of the awards is very modest – usually no more than $50 – regardless of whether the idea saved $100 or $10,000. The value of the award has absolutely nothing to do with the value of the improvement.
That approach works for several reasons:
- People aren’t wasting time trying to cost-justify a lot of small improvements that any well-trained supervisor can see right away will make things work better, faster, cheaper, cleaner, easier or safer.
- It keeps employees focused on the little things that they have control over.
- It emphasizes the intrinsic merits of the improvements and the inherent motivation that everyone has to make things work better rather than the “prize money.”
- In the end, the most motivating factor for employees is that someone is actually taking their ideas seriously, helping them get those ideas implemented, and thanking them for their contributions.
Committees aren’t close enough to the action.
If you want to make sure that employee suggestions get evaluated and implemented, set up a suggestion committee to review and approve everything – right? Wrong! Dilbert would have a field day with that notion. Setting aside all the jokes about committees in general, let’s look at how that process typically works.
An employee comes up with an improvement idea and submits a suggestion. After going to the supervisor and probably to a manager, the idea eventually works its way to the suggestion committee. That “team” gets together maybe once every month or so to review a slug of suggestions. Of course, they’re doing double-duty. Not only do they have their own jobs to do, now they have to take on another load. What’s more, they often don’t know much about the improvements that are being proposed, so they have to do some research. By the time they finally make a decision, it’s been weeks or even months. Employees lose interest, and they aren’t very motivated to submit additional ideas.
So what’s the alternative? Keep it local – focusing most decision-making where the improvements will be implemented. You make it the job of every supervisor to review, evaluate and approve or decline the vast majority of improvement ideas. You also make it the responsibility of employees to get their ideas implemented. If they need help from their supervisor or someone else, they can get it – but they “own” it.
Here’s another benefit of that approach. It bolsters the role of the supervisor as a coach. To optimize that role, supervisors need the right kind of skills, of course. They have to learn how to evaluate improvement ideas, lead process improvement meetings, encourage employee participation, help people get their ideas implemented and acknowledge them for their contributions. Those duties also need to be included in the supervisor’s job description and assessed as part of their performance reviews.
While the principles are basic, making the shift from a “suggestion program” to a more viable and vital “improvement system” is not easy or “intuitive” for most people. But when that system produces dramatically more implemented improvements than a traditional program, the rewards far outweigh the effort.
Les Landes, Landes & Associates
Buy Les’s webinar replay: Getting to the Heart of Employee Engagement
When I was a kid, I really wanted to learn to play the piano. Weird, huh? Unfortunately, we couldn’t afford it, and the apartment was too small for one anyway. So when my youngest daughter decided she wanted to take lessons, I was thrilled. I couldn’t wait for her to become good enough to enjoy the music more than she dreaded the practice. That was three years ago when she was 10. Luckily, she was persistent – and I was patient. Now when she sits down to play, I stop whatever I’m doing to listen.
What Do You Mean, Dad?
The other day, she was playing something very moving, and I told her that when she plays, it makes my heart soar. She looked surprised and asked me, “Is that a good thing or a bad thing?” I couldn’t believe the question, and I quickly assured her it was very good. “Then why does it hurt your heart?” she asked. That’s when I realized she thought I said her playing made my heart “sore.”
It was a vivid reminder of a lesson I learned years ago from my communication mentor, David Berlo – Meanings are in people, not in words or symbols. That lesson is obvious when it comes to homonyms like “sore” and “soar,” but it’s more subtle and complex in other forms of communication, and professional communicators need to be highly sensitive to all of its nuances in everything we do.
Align People’s Meanings – Inside and Out
That sensitivity is especially vital when it comes to aligning the meanings that people inside and outside the organization have for the words and symbols that organizations use to communicate. It’s common practice to do focus groups with customers to test promotional messages for interpretation and impact before rolling out a big advertising campaign. However, you rarely see the same attention given to assessing how employees inside the organization interpret those promotional words and symbols. What’s more, the implications are seldom considered for how employees need to perform in order to deliver on the promises being made in the marketplace.
Inside or out, with one person or many, here are some guidelines to help you avoid the “meanings trap”. . .
- Don’t ask what a word means – because IT doesn’t mean anything. Instead, ask what people mean by the words they use.
- Don’t assume people know what you mean when you tell them something or send out a message. Check to make sure they’ve interpreted it the way it was intended.
- Don’t ask people if they understand what you mean if you want to make sure they understand something important. Ask them to repeat what you’ve said until you’re satisfied you share the same meaning.
- Don’t expect to find common ground in a debate about the meaning of a word, but rather in a conversation committed to a common understanding of what is meant by the people using it. As the famed communication theorist, Marshall McLuhan, once said, “Propaganda ends where dialogue begins.”
- Les Landes, Landes & Associates
Buy Les’s webinar replay: Getting to the Heart of Employee Engagement
My friend and colleague, Richard Barrett, wrote a book several years ago called “Liberating the Corporate Soul.” It’s exceptional on many levels, as I wrote in a review that is posted on Amazon.com. One remarkable quality about Richard’s book is how it is both wonderfully inspiring and technically rigorous. Marcello Palazzi, Co-Founder and Chair of the Progessio Foundation said that “Liberating the Corporate Soul achieves the impossible: it integrates the intangibles of ethics, vision, and consciousness into a tangible measurement system.”Much of Richard’s work is rooted in his experiences from when he worked at the World Bank. During his years there, he developed a strong conviction that the institution needed to focus more of its attention on the issue of human rights in its monetary policies and decision-making. Since he was a mid-level manager with limited influence, he decided that he would need to take a less conventional approach if he wanted to reach the ears – and hearts – of senior management.
Les Landes, Landes & Associates
Buy Les’s webinar replay: Getting to the Heart of Employee Engagement
It’s ironic, isn’t it, that one of the surest ways to raise suspicion about someone’s motives is for the person to say, “Trust me on this?” That’s certainly true when it comes to employees and customers.
In the workplace, few challenges have obsessed and perplexed the business world more than the issue of employee trust. The reason is obvious. With it, virtually any obstacle can be overcome in an organization. Without it, every day is filled with uncertainty and anxiety, no matter what else the organization does right.
In the marketplace, few things are treasured more passionately than loyal customers – those people who come back time and again, and even refer new customers to enjoy the same experience.
When you get them both right, it’s business paradise. The crucial thing to understand is that the two go hand-in-hand. Without employee trust, customer trust suffers, as well.
Management Credibility Factors
One reason organizations fail to foster a culture of trust is because they focus mainly on interpersonal factors. They’re important, to be sure, and here are key behaviors that managers have to exhibit to gain employee trust:
- Caring – Genuine concern about employee wellbeing is where it has to start.
- Honesty and Openness – Dance around the truth or hide important information, and people tune out and turn away.
- Responsiveness – Listening and taking action on what you hear tells people you’re sincere.
- Competence – If you don’t know what you’re doing, it’s hard to win a following.
- Reliability – Can people count on you to do what you say?
- Apology – If you can admit mistakes and apologize sincerely, trust goes way up.
In a recent article I wrote for Communication World called “Cracking the Culture Code,” the communication VPs for Southwest Airlines and Enterprise Rent-A-Car talk about how their companies observe those behaviors in their extraordinarily successful cultures.
People-First Systems
But…that’s only half of the equation. You also have to design the systems, policies, and processes in a way that tells employees unequivocally that they are trusted. We call those People-First Systems, and they fall into five main categories:
- Measurement
- Rewards and recognition
- Communication
- Learning and development
- Continuous improvement
Of course, many organizations have some type of mechanism in place for all of those areas. But do they really demonstrate to employees that they are trusted? Do they truly reinforce the oft-heard mantra that people are our most important asset? Fact is, systems in most organizations are designed to protect against the miniscule number of irresponsible people, and those constraints wind up stifling the vast majority of employees you can count on like clockwork.
Bottom line, you can’t have performance excellence without sincere trust and belief in people. If you have doubts about the merits of that philosophy, consider the wisdom of renowned statesman, Henry Stimson, who said, “The only way to make a man trustworthy is to trust him.”
Les Landes, Landes & Associates
Buy Les’s webinar replay: Getting to the Heart of Employee Engagement
- Create an incentive structure that places equal value on small and large improvements
- Place the responsibility for approving and implementing smaller improvements with front-line supervisors, not a suggestion committee
- Respond to the majority of employee ideas within 24 hours
- Focus employees on small improvements within their own areas of responsibility, and give them responsibility for implementation, seeking assistance as needed from their supervisors
Les Landes, Landes & Associates
Buy Les’s webinar replay: Getting to the Heart of Employee Engagement
The basic idea behind “brand alignment” is pretty simple – When it comes to delivering on your marketing promises, make sure everyone in your organization knows what’s going on and they’re able to walk the talk. Living up to that ideal, though, isn’t simple at all. It takes a concerted effort to get everyone tuned in and turned on to the principles and practices that align the “do” with the “say.”
Promise Broken
One revealing way to test if an organization is living the brand is to observe how they deal with customer complaints. I recently had an experience with a new service I subscribed to online that told me a lot in a hurry about what they believe and how they operate.
Within an hour after subscribing, I got a notice that the first program would be broadcast that same evening. They described the event and what the participants would learn during the one-hour session. I didn’t want to miss it, but I already had another meeting scheduled. Reluctantly, I contacted that person and asked if we could reschedule for the following evening. She agreed, so I was set to take part in the new program
About halfway through it, they still hadn’t talked about the topic that was advertised. I was getting suspicious that I had been sold a bill of goods – that this was yet another company that promised one thing and delivered something else. By the end of the program, they still hadn’t discussed the topic they had promoted, and I was fuming. It had been a long day … I was tired … I had wasted an hour … and I had put off another meeting.
Customer Disappointed
I decided to share one of my Inside Out lessons with them in the form of a “strongly worded” e-letter to what I thought was some nebulous person in the ether-world. To my amazement, I got a reply the next morning from a sales manager named James, expressing regret for my problem and promising to look into it. Later that day I had my next pleasant surprise. I got a real live phone call from James explaining how I had been connected to the wrong program. He also thanked me for informing them because they were able to contact other people who experienced the same problem. Then he said I would be set up in the near future to participate in the program that had been advertised.
Relationship Renewed
That would’ve been good enough, but then I got a call from David, their head of marketing. He had received my e-letter, too, and he also wanted to apologize for what happened. Then he really floored me – he said he wanted to give me a FREE lifetime subscription to their service. The only thing he asked in return was for me to give him occasional feedback on how I felt the service was meeting their customers’ needs.
I told him I thought his offer was very generous but I probably over-reacted a bit in my note, and his compensation was way more than I expected. To his credit, he would have nothing of my attempt to downplay my initial disappointment, and he apologized again for “wasting my time” and failing to give me what I was promised.
Execs in some companies might say he was crazy to give away so much. But I’m betting they don’t get many complaints like mine, and when they do, few people raise a fuss because the service is probably impeccable most of the time. Since it’s an online program, it’s not really “costing” them anything to give it to me free, but it still speaks volumes about their commitment to delivering on their promises – and living their brand.
Les Landes, Landes & Associates
Buy Les’s webinar replay: Getting to the Heart of Employee Engagement
Whether you directly report to your CEO or not, the CEO is typically an internal communicator’s customer. So how well do you know this customer? Do you know his/her goals, outside interests, or what’s challenging him/her? If not, time to do some audience analysis.
A quick review of hard research and informal information gathering will provide insight into the minds of CEOs. Consider this data from the IBM study, Capitalizing on Complexity: Insights from the Global Chief Executive Officer. Findings state that enterprises today are not equipped to cope effectively with the rapid escalation of “complexity” in the global environment, which is named as the biggest challenge confronting CEOs. How can communicators use their knowledge to help CEOs with this challenge?
Other studies include the Strategic Planning CEO survey (Financial Dynamics, Forbes Insights, Association for Strategic Planning and the Council of PR Firms) which states that CEO’s believe that lack of understanding/communication is a leading factor of why business strategies fail. This presents a great opportunity for communicators. So, when was the last time you talked to your CEO about business strategy?
Informal information gathering is a way to gain an even better understanding of your CEO. Try and schedule regular meetings, even if they are brief, to get to know both business and personal sides of your CEO. What’s his/her family situation, top priority each day, who he/she admires, and outside interests? What does he/she read that you might also read to create a source for you to make conversation with your CEO.
Rate your CEO on his/her communication level so you have a better understanding of how much and what type of work you are in for when working with this customer. Does he/she have an excellent or poor level of communication understanding (impact, process, complexity)? Does he or she have a good but could use some coaching or poor and doesn’t care level of communication ability?
While communicators are constantly conducting audience analysis on different segments of their employee audience/customers, they often overlook the CEO. Take time out to get to know this key audience. Doing so will allow you to build a stronger and more effective working relationship with your CEO.
I was recently introduced to http://www.LetGoandLead.com, an online community that explores the ideas of leadership and transformation. The site got me thinking about my leaders — from all walks of life — and why I admire them. I quickly realized communication skill and the ability to engage others are common denominators. My list includes my mother, a former co-worker, several clients but one in particular, a few U.S. presidents, a colleague, and a fitness class teacher. They are all people with a passion and the ability to lead others to believe, create and excel.
So, to my mother whose passion to see the world and colorful stories of her travels led me from western NY to China and many destinations in between for unmatched adventure, learning and fun; to my colleague whose guts to take beyond measurable risk continues to enable me to take more; and to my client who inspires me to stretch and realize greater achievements through simple appreciation for what I do; thank you for your candor and your inspiration.
Which leaders are on your list and why? Are they encouraging an environment where open, honest communication can flourish? If not, what are you doing do to help them create this environment?
It’s that time of year again. Resolutions. Out with the old. In with the new. Stopping bad habits. Starting good ones. Bottom line: it’s time for change. But that simple little word conjures up lots of emotions and reactions among people.
Recently, I came across a little book with a clever title – “Change is Good. You Go First.” That phrase reflects the sentiment that many people have about organizational change. They realize they can’t survive without it. They know that everyone has to do their part. But they dig in their heels when it comes to taking the first step, and they have a hard time staying the course – at least that’s the conventional wisdom.
People Hate Change —
Or Do They?
Here’s an important question, though. Is resistance to change really inherent in human nature – or is something else going on? If you look around, you can see people changing all the time. Clothes. Foods. Channels. You name it. Like the old adage goes, variety is the spice of life, right? So how does that cherished maxim jive with the contention that people resist change?
Truth is, people don’t resist change as much as they resist being forced to change without their involvement. People actually relish change if they’ve got some control over it, and they think it’s going to be good for them. Human beings are imprinted at birth with an innate desire to make things better. We want today to be better than yesterday, and we want tomorrow to be better than today. Everyone knows that can’t happen without change.
People Embrace Change —
When They Have Some Control
So that’s where smart leaders will go when they want to foster employee engagement and get people on board with a change management plan:
- They start by giving employees a compelling vision, a riveting story of where they want to be “tomorrow.” And they explain why it’s important to embark on that journey in a way that speaks to the well-being of employees, not just the company.
- They continue to build on the allure of that vision in every communication they have with employees, and they provide the support employees need to reach it.
- They give continuous encouragement and express absolute confidence in the ability of employees to do the job.
- They make the change process manageable by not giving people too much to handle all at once, and by giving them clear, simple steps they can take successfully.
- They let employees see the performance numbers, and they allow people to take the initiative to make course corrections along the way.
- Finally, they let employees have a say in how to design and manage the change they’re expected to embrace
In the end, change is NOT necessarily good. But it IS absolutely necessary. Whether it’s good or not depends on what the change is – and, more importantly, how it’s handled. Change is also unavoidable. As the introduction says in the little book that inspired the title of this essay, the only choice we have is this: “… either we manage change, or it will manage us.”
People Will Change —
If They’re Led the Right Way
It’s true that change can be difficult. Even though it isn’t as onerous to employees as some people think, human beings often long for the familiar, and old habits die hard. But if you label the source of those behaviors as “resistance to change,” you’re probably going to be treating the wrong cause of the challenge – and take the wrong approach to overcoming it.
So along with your other resolutions this year, add one more. If you see your change efforts stalling out, don’t jump to the conclusion that employees are “resisting change” – and don’t assume that it’s just human nature. It could be that the so-called “resistance” is actually due to the methods you’re using – or the way you’re telling the story.
Les Landes, Landes & Associates
Buy Les’s webinar replay: Getting to the Heart of Employee Engagement
Great communicators employ many different skills as they pursue success. Many of us focus on continual improvement in the tactical skills that carry our role — particularly true early in one’s career. Later, leadership, analysis and relationship skills help us become trusted advisors and strategic contributors.
One of the most important skills we can employ is giving unsought counsel – having difficult conversations with executives and clients where you disagree or offer an alternate view from theirs. I recently found myself in such a situation. The client is a new client and we don’t know each other well. She and her team are very interested in intranet governance and social media.
It is my practice to review current business and communication goals and objectives to better understand what drives the organization. The communication goals and objectives in place in this client organization are not strategic, not focused on behavior, and not likely to successfully position communication as the trusted advisor it should be. They also aren’t contributing to a strategic view of communication that drives the business.
Improving intranet governance and using social technologies may result in some successes, but couched in a flawed communication strategy, these things won’t have near the impact they could if the communication strategy itself were sound. Can you say “time for a tough conversation”?
What this requires most is courage – courage to think along a different line, to be observant of issues for which we’re not responsible, to speak up without prompting or expectation. Courage is in short supply in communication circles.
The best thing you can do is to prepare. Ask yourself the right questions first, and you’ll be better able to deliver clear messages and ask appropriate questions of the client. Consider:
1. What’s my relationship with the person and how might the conversation affect that relationship?
2. What would be the outcome if I never have the conversation? Bad enough to warrant intervention?
3. What are the two messages on which I can focus to get at the heart of the matter?
4. What is the balance to those two messages that helps to persuade and also lighten the negativity?
5. What examples can I offer in support of my concern?
6. What questions can I ask to get the client thinking along my lines of thought?
7. What solutions will I offer?
8. How will I wrap up the discussion in a positive and productive way?
What other tips do you have for giving unsought counsel? Share those and examples of a time when you worked through such a situation successfully.
Stacy Wilson, ABC, is president of Eloquor Consulting, Inc., in Lakewood, Colorado
Here at the IABC World Conference (Twitter tag #IABC09), much of the buzz is about “social media.” First of all, a lot of my clients wrinkle their noses at the term. I’ve started using “social technologies” which is not only more broad and approachable, but also less entertainment sounding. Let’s face it, being able to find the right subject matter expert because of a great internal profile, well, that’s not really “media” is it?
I continue to be amazed at the number of people who are talking about social technologies, but not actually using them. It’s some of these who whine: “my boss won’t let us do this or that.”
Some of these technologies have to be tried to comprehend and strategize, not to mention convince others of their value. So, how can you really do justice to the opportunity and potential if you aren’t playing in the space at all? Jump in and give it a try. Read, comment, blog, make friends – just get a feel for it all.
Once you understand what social technologies can do, ask yourself these questions:
- What business problem(s) are we trying to solve? (from the perspective of the business or end user)
- What business goal does this initiative support? How?
- Who are our stakeholders?
- What do we want to do with our stakeholders?
- Do we have executive support?
- How strong is that executive support?
- How will executives and other leaders be involved?
- Who needs to be involved, and can they participate enough from the start to ensure success?
- Can this initiative start small?
- Which superstars/rebels can be engaged in a lead role?
- How well is the organization prepared for the impending cultural and organizational change?
- What legal issues (e.g., privacy, discovery, retention) exist and how will we address these?
These questions will set you on your way to strategic use of social technologies that will deliver business results, as well as, great new communication channels. So, build some skill first, then get serious.
Stacy Wilson, ABC, is president of Eloquor Consulting, Inc., in Lakewood, Colorado
A colleague recently asked for dos and don’ts in partnering with IT. It is a crucial skill in today’s corporate environment. Partnering with all functions in the organization is important, but IT in particular.
We need IT: we need the technology they deploy, good security, openness to new approaches such as social technology, clear, user-centered choices in technology.
IT needs communication too. They need adoption of new technologies, a clear connection to the business, openness to business process change, help leveraging their great solutions into the culture of the business. They need to be seen as not just a consumer of resources, but also a driver of business. All things we can help them with.
The way we approach partnering with IT professionals can make or break it.
Respect their knowledge and capability. Don’t be dismissive or condescending. They know important information – stuff we don’t know – and their perspective is often a good balance with the communicator’s perspective. It’s not that they “don’t get it,” it’s that the lens they are looking through is a different color. We should, however, seek to enlighten them about the role and value of communication.
Be linear, process-oriented thinkers. To work with them, we must become a little more like them. We must be able to connect the dots in a linear process, see the process breaks and bottlenecks. If we move through processes with them we’ll all see the end game together.
Speak their language. Know the basics, terms and concepts. Be able to converse about these with confidence. Doesn’t mean you have to sit down and code an application. I like being the dumb blonde in the hardware store. Working with my IT partners is no time for the dumb blonde routine.
Define roles and responsibilities clearly. IT has specific responsibility for delivering solutions that meet business needs and requirements. Communication should take responsibility for clearly communicating strategy and requirements, helping IT connect to the business goals, ensuring good change communication during rollout, and securing the change in the culture. Use our different areas of expertise to divide, conquer and succeed.
Think of IT as a client. Collaborate and ensure their success. Make them shine – sometimes IT can serve as a pilot and example to the rest of the organization. Give them positive visibility. Seek solutions, don’t take or give orders.
Communicate ROI and drive the business. What every good IT and communication professional wants to do for their company. We are on the same team and we share many of the same challenges and frustrations. Not being viewed as a strategic business driver or trusted advisor, is just one of them. We can help each other here.
IT isn’t gender specific. IT is becoming increasingly diverse with many women joining the ranks. I’ve seen some of my colleagues refer to the “IT guys,” but it’s no longer just a guy space.
Stacy Wilson, ABC, is president of Eloquor Consulting, Inc., in Lakewood, Colorado
How many times have you tried to have a strategic conversation with an executive or client only to have him or her immediately revert to a tactical focus? Sometimes, the same happens with other members of our own teams. It’s hard to stay focused on strategy. When you’re putting out a fire, it’s hard not to just focus on tactics – deliver the order.
The best way to regain that strategic focus is to ask the right questions. Whether you are just asking them of yourself, or of a client, executive, or colleague, you can use questions to prompt people’s strategic thinking. First, be sure you craft the right questions:
- Questions should demand details, not a yes or no response
- Questions should use keywords straight from your organizational or departmental strategy
- Seek to clarify assumptions or complexity
- Use supportive language
- Ask questions that value the other person’s opinion, validating the importance of the tactic
Here’s a story that serves as a great example. I was working with a client on a survey and she wanted to add a question to the survey. It was a bad question that wasn’t actionable and wouldn’t contribute to her strategic use of the results. I asked “What will you do with the results? What will you improve based on the results from that question?”
Stopped her dead in her tracks. She decided not to include the question.
Here’s another example. I had a conversation with a client about the company’s intranet. The client doesn’t believe the intranet has any strategic importance at all. He views it as a distraction on his plate of more pressing issues. Here is the series of questions I asked him:
- How important is innovation for your business? (He said it is their most important goal.)
- What is required of a company to be truly innovative? (After some prompting, he agreed that conversation, dialog and idea sharing were crucial.)
- What role might your intranet play in enabling more conversation, dialog and idea sharing?
He stared briefly at me in a stunned silence. He had his answer. He answered his own cynicism with his own answers to my questions.
One more story. After a facilitated series of Q&A and planning, my client and her team realized they can no longer be order takers and still deliver truly strategic communication solutions. Instead, they must enable others to be great communicators and serve the organization in a whole new way. At the end of the day I asked her what she thought about the planning we’d done.
“I just hadn’t ever thought about it this way. No one had asked me those questions.”
Stacy Wilson, ABC, is president of Eloquor Consulting, Inc., in Lakewood, Colorado
How many consultants or independent practitioners out there? How many of you work for the man, but view the man as your client? This is for all of you.
If you weren’t flexible before, you certainly have become more flexible in the past 13 months, right? Clients want to cherry pick what they can afford, sometimes opting to do more themselves. Some want to stagger project stages to fit a challenging budget. Some want to pre-bill, others want to delay billing.
The more flexible you can be, the better able you’ll be to survive in this tough environment. Here are some suggestions.
- Offer options for how your time is used and how it gets billed
- Work with subcontractors and vendors to flex their involvement and billing
- Be ready to work as part of the client team, with you doing some pieces and the other team members doing other pieces
- Be ready to teach others how to do stuff, rather than doing it for them
- Think in terms of smaller chunks of work that can be done incrementally
- Understand the dependencies between those smaller chunks of work
- Create a calendar of your work that shows all the time overlaps (Gannt Chart) so you can see how you might move things around to accommodate client’s changes
- Be ready to tackle those outlying projects during the down time, and be ready to spin up fast when too much work comes in at once
- Delegate where you can (budget allowing, of course)
For those working outside their client operations, I want to suggest a great book: Bag the Elephant, by Steve Kaplan. Its focus is on how you can operate in a way that makes it easier for large companies to hire you. The ideas work well for a client of any size, and some work well for those serving internal clients. It’s a short, easy read you’ll remember for a long time.
Stacy Wilson, ABC, is president of Eloquor Consulting, Inc., in Lakewood, Colorado
Yesterday’s Communitelligence webinar was about getting executives and clients off the individual tactics and into strategic thinking and decision-making. As the facilitator, I talked about using questioning and even offered 15 specific questions people can use to pull a client or exec back to strategy.
- Creating your own questions
- Facilitating a flexible planning session
- Recapturing a hi-jacked session
One of the individuals who sent in the evaluation after the webinar had this to say: “Perhaps more specific, rather than general, examples.” Ok, I can accept that a few specific stories illustrating how to use all the intellectual capital we just gave away would have been good adds. I’ll do that next time.
But, as my colleague just said, “they want you to do it for them.” He’s right. So many of the communicators I run into in conference and workshop sessions want someone to give them step-by-step instruction. “Just tell me what to say in that difficult conversation with my exec – give me a script.”
John Gerstner, president of Communitelligence, commented to me that even best practices don’t always make sense because you need a solution that speaks to your particular organization. So, it’s about taking the tools and figuring it out for your situation or organization. Requires some critical thinking, a skill that all of us in communication should continue to hone.
This depends on my ability to recognize a bunch of valuable tools when I see them. I think some are looking so hard for the script that they miss the tools right in front of them. And it means being able to think through how to use the tools once I’ve recognized them. Takes work. Takes effort, focus and dedication. Sometimes courage.
I’m all about tools. Those who’ve worked with me know this. But, not tools that simply tell “how” to do something or tell precisely “what” to do. No, I value tools that prompt my strategic thinking and that of my client. I want tools that push me to be practical, direct, honest with myself and my client, focused on the right stuff. That’s what a good communication tool should do.
When we took a bunch of our custom tools and made them available online at http://www.eloquor.com, this was our focus. Help communicators think more strategically, even when putting out fires. Part of that is about helping communication teams conduct their strategic business more consistently. Ultimately, it all comes down to positioning communication as a strategic function that serves as a valuable asset and trusted advisor to the business. Put in less “corporate speak”: communication matters to the business and communicators offer the business value.
But, communicators have to be willing to hone their critical thinking skills, to use strategic thinking tools and to master the ability to find great and appropriate solutions. It’s our future.
Stacy Wilson, ABC, is president of Eloquor Consulting, Inc., in Lakewood, Colorado.
If you’ve been in communication for a while now, and you consider yourself an advisor rather than an order-taker, then right now your brow is furrowed. Why would I ask what the value of strategic communication is? Aren’t we passed this? Can’t we just assume that yes, strategic communication is valuable. More valuable than simple tactics such as newsletters and Town Halls?
First, let’s take a stab at defining “strategic communication.” Here’s a simple view (I am, as always, focused on internal communication):
Sound and measurable communication process that supports business goals, enables individuals and teams to contribute their best, and encourages dialog and recognition
These are the elements research shows us are fundamental to engagement in the workplace. These are the elements that make workplace change more successful, and according to the work of John P. Kotter, our organizations more financially sound.
Right about now, you’re wondering why I’m talking about this. Well, last month I facilitated a webinar for Communitelligence on moving execs and clients off a tactical focus and onto a more strategic thought process. One comment in the evaluation really sparked my attention. The attendee wanted more explanation of what made strategic communication better.
I talked this through with several others, including Communitelligence founder John Gerstner. We all wonder why we’re still talking about this. Isn’t it obvious that making a strategic difference to our organizations is better than just cranking out newsletters? Haven’t we proven this in our ROIs, measurement and business cases
Could it be that this was an entry level communicator who hasn’t yet discovered the value of strategy in his or her work? If so, this speaks to a void in our educational system that we professionals will have to fill as these newbies come into the work place.
Could it be that this was a mid-level communicator who hasn’t had the benefit of a mentor or working for a strategic-thinking organization? Likely – we see it all the time. This is what our associations are striving to do, along with those of us providing many different organizations counsel. But, it takes a long time to reach everyone, especially those who are not networking, not reaching out, not getting involved with other communicators.
Could it be that this was a senior level communicator who still hasn’t got the message about strategy, about serving as an advisor, about delivering value? I sure hope not. You’d have to have been working for decades in a vacuum.
I am always willing to educate other communicators on the value of strategy in our work. I wistfully look to the day when the presumption is that communication is strategic – there is no other option.
Stacy Wilson, ABC, is president of Eloquor Consulting, Inc., in Lakewood, Colorado.
Comments |
RE: What’s the value of strategic communication? |
Interesting topic, Stacy…I’ve been discussing this issue of “tactical vs. strategic” communication around a lot recently with colleagues and friends. I think what I’m missing in your definition is the word “change.” A great tactical communications plan will be measurable and support one or more business goals, but it focuses on a delivered result rather than on a delivered change. It’s really only when either individual behavior and/or organizational direction needs to be changed that a communications strategy is required. A planner asks the question “Are we doing things right?” while a strategist asks “Are we doing the right things?” A strategy is only valued where it is required — i.e. where change is well defined — otherwise, a really good plan will do perfectly fine, even at a high level in the organization. Remember the Cheshire Cat in Alice in Wonderland…When Alice asks the cat which fork in the road to take, the cat asks where she wants to go. When she says that it doesn’t really matter where she goes, then the cat says it doesn’t matter which road she chooses. When managers can’t really define the change they want to see, they aren’t likely to value communication strategy. |
Posted on Thursday, Jan 21, 2010 – 09:24:00 PM CST ![]() |
RE: What’s the value of strategic communication? |
Mike, valid comments. However, in my original post, I noted that I’m willing to “educate.” I don’t think you can persuade someone to take up a strategic mindset and certainly did not imply that. But, education is required and it can be done without the big wow effort. Just yesterday I spoke with a young communicator about her communication plan. We walked through it step-by-step and addressed where her thinking needed to be more strategic. We talked about how she can use this thinking to reposition herself with her internal client and achieve more results with stakeholders. If we keep talking about this type of focus, even with the small stuff, eventually she embeds the thinking. We tackle her confidence level and position her to make a difference, even if it’s not in a shock and awe sort of way. It’s one person at a time. Changing the definition and the entry methods into the profession will wait for another day. |
Posted on Friday, Jan 15, 2010 – 03:04:00 PM CST ![]() |
Are We Appropriately Recognized? |
The issue of whether the value of the communicator is appropriately recognized is an old, old chestnut. It persists, in my view for four main reasons: 1) There is no common definition for “communication” within and among businesses. One person’s job spec for a “communication lead” may involve strategy and messaging, another’s may involve effectively acting as a concierge for senior stakeholders. This problem is unlikely to disappear. 2) The barrier for entry into the world of communication is non-existent. Everyone–particularly many senior managers–fancies themself as a communication expert on some level. Many who end up as professional communicators do so by default or accident. Even with aggressive growth of professional accreditation, this is unlikely to change as well. 3) The above factors do little for the confidence of professional communicators (and particularly internal communicators) and the corresponding timidity produces work that is safer and more tactical than required. 4) The organization has yet to have a “shock and awe” moment when they realize something desired would not have been possible without the strategic communicator. I do think things will get better–not by trying to persuade people that we should be treated as strategic–but by seizing the opportunities for communication to make a difference in these turbulent times. Mike Klein–The Intersection http://intersectionblog.wordpress.com |
Posted on Friday, Jan 15, 2010 – 10:18:00 AM CST ![]() |
Max Ways, the former editor of Fortune magazine, predicted 40 years ago, “The main challenge to U.S. society will turn not around the production of goods, but around the difficulties and opportunities involved in a world of accelerating change and ever widening choice. So swift is the acceleration that trying to ‘make sense’ of change will become our basic industry.”
That prediction is an apt description of our current reality. Change is no longer a force in the environment. It is the environment. Organizations around the world struggle to keep their footing in a whirlwind of technological innovation, customer demands, competitive pressures, globalization and economic volatility – knowing that any of these forces can turn a business model upside down in an instant, rendering even the best strategies obsolete.
To succeed during turbulent times, organizations and individuals must find ways to thrive – not just survive – amid complexity and uncertainty. Those enterprises that continually transform themselves in response to constantly shifting conditions gain a tremendous competitive advantage.
So what does it take to manage change today?
Managers looking to help their organizations (or teams or departments) make sense of change in the 21st century need a completely different set of skills than their counterparts in the last century. Forget about issuing orders or coercing with threats. Success in the Information Age takes employee engagement and creative collaboration. It takes guidance by managers who know how to harness the energies and talents of others while keeping their own egos in check. It takes leaders at all levels who manage by influence rather than by position.
The dictionary says that leadership means going ahead or showing the way. To lead is to help a group define and achieve a common purpose. But look carefully at that last sentence – helping a group define and achieve a purpose is not the same as setting that purpose and then “selling” it throughout the organization. Change driven from on high without significant across-the-board participation is bound to meet with workforce skepticism and resistance. On the other hand, the co-creation of purpose/vision/strategy is an inclusive process that encourages employee engagement from the very beginning.
Effective management of organization change also depends on early, comprehensive, and transparent communication. In most cases, the manner in which change is communicated is more important than the nature of that change. And don’t think for one moment that speeches and articles are the only ways leaders communicate. Every action and off-the-record comment carries weight. As one insightful manager told me, “What I do in the hallways is more important than anything I say in the meetings.”
Abrupt change that comes as a complete surprise is the hardest to accept. To reduce fears of the unknown and squelch fantasies of the rumor mill, leaders “set the stage” by informing people upfront about the real-life challenges and opportunities that are likely to become the future impetus for organizational transformation. They also make sure that employees have enough business acumen to make sense of financial data. The more everyone understands about the current situation, the trends and forces shaping the future, the economic realities of the business, the alternatives being considered, and the consequences of not changing – the easier it is to accept and even anticipate the need for change.
Respected change-managers are powerful communicators who don’t ignore or sugarcoat negativity. Instead, they help people make sense of it. If a past change effort has failed, it’s publicly acknowledged and reviewed so that everyone can extract its lessons and move forward. (Likewise, if a best practice is discovered, it’s also publicly acknowledged, reviewed, and learned from.) Candid change-communication means that both positive and negative aspects are disclosed. The most motivational managers are those trusted by their team to share knowledge and “tell it like it is.”
Effective managers of change are catalysts, creating synergy in their organizations. They delegate responsibility and authority. They encourage and protect their teams. They model attitudes and behaviors they want to see reflected back. Most of all, they realize that managing change today takes emotional literacy. It is no longer enough to appeal solely to people’s logic. Leaders also have to touch people’s hearts. And the best of today’s leaders do so by revealing their own passion – for the future success of the organization and for the individuals in that organization who face the tough job of transforming themselves in order to collectively create that future.
Carol Kinsey Goman, Ph.D. is the author of nine books including CREATIVITY IN BUSINESS and “THIS ISN’T THE COMPANY I JOINED” — How to Lead in a Business Turned Upside Down. She delivers keynote speeches and seminars to association and business audiences around the world. For more information or to book Carol as a speaker at one of your events, please call: 510-526-1727, email: CGoman@CKG.com, or visit her website: http://www.CKG.com.
After speaking at a conference on the East Coast, I was approached by an executive who handed me his business card as an introduction. I was startled when he abruptly snatched it back. He explained that he wanted to cross out the word senior in front of his vice-president title. He went on to tell me that he was only temporarily acting in the senior position and that, as soon as possible, he wanted to return to his old job. He said that five years earlier his ambition had been the presidency of the company, but not anymore: “Being a vice president suits me just fine. I’m good at it, and I could do it in my sleep. I don’t need the added pressure of a higher position. Besides, I’ve got a family and a couple of interesting hobbies. This gives me time to play.”
Just the week before, an audience member had shown me a drawing he’d sketched of his career objectives. His goal was to become the head of corporate communications for his present employer – an international firm that had already identified him as a “high potential” candidate. But the young man went on to say that he also wanted to live on the family ranch in Montana. While the company had been looking at ways this employee might commute home on weekends, he’d drawn a picture of himself working from the ranch and coming into an office only periodically.
Like many other talented professionals I’ve met and interviewed, these two were developing their own lifestyle formulas to compensate for the demands of the workplace. And while the strategies differ from person to person, they almost always reflects a desire for autonomy and freedom.
Especially noticeable in younger generations, employees are demanding more control of their time — whether it involves organizationally structured arrangements such as flextime, flex-place, part-time or contractual work, or a corporate culture that stresses results over “face time.” And enterprises that don’t fully support and align with these initiatives will lose a competitive edge in retaining and motivating top talent.
Newer workers are not as likely to believe (as do some of their bosses) that the world begins and ends with the office or factory. I’ve heard this sentiment expressed in a variety of ways: “I love my job, but it’s not my whole life.” “If the company ever relocated, I wouldn’t move. I like my lifestyle here too much.” “My parents weren’t there for me when I was growing up. I will never let a job get between me and my family.”
My anecdotal research was supported by a 2005 study in which the Society for Human Resource Management found women and workers younger than 35 saying that work-life balance is the most important component to their overall job satisfaction. But don’t think it’s just women and Millennials who are looking for work-life balance.
Although blending career and family life first came to corporate attention with the influx of female employees in the 1980s, companies soon began to find that so-called “female” issues actually jumped gender lines. One example is DuPont: Because more women were joining its ranks, the company’s affirmative action committee decided to survey employees about their child-care needs. They found that childcare was not just a women’s issue; it was a mainstream employment issue affecting both men and women. Those findings had significant implications for DuPont’s ability to retain good staff; a subsequent study found that half of the women and a quarter of the men working at the company had considered moving to a company that offered more job flexibility.
Based on the results of this survey, DuPont executives began a process of developing “work-life programs” to help employees deal with issues such as childcare and elder care and to balance the demands of work and home. Fifteen years later, a survey of employees found that 52% of those who had taken advantage of the programs said they would “go the extra mile” for DuPont, compared to 36% of those who had not used the programs.
Beyond the U.S., balancing work and life is fast becoming a global business issue. A recent survey by Watson Wyatt found four out of five employees in the UK saying work-life balance considerations played a crucial role in deciding whether or not to stay with their current employer. And, by the way, most employees who were dissatisfied chose not to say anything, but simply to leave.
Some leaders are paying attention – and responding. Last year I worked with a company’s senior management team. They were looking to center their organizational reengineering efforts on the key question: What gets in the way of your doing a great job and having a great life? It wasn’t an idle question. A 2005 ISR study of 50,000 workers found a clear link between good management practices, good work-life balance for employees, and an improved bottom line that included more satisfied customers and lower rates of absenteeism and safety incidents.
So ask your staff about their scheduling conflicts, and then involve them in co-creating timetables and deadlines. Be as understanding and supportive as you can when your workers have major personal issues. Find creative ways to help employees balance the work-life seesaw – and watch the positive effects on retention, customer loyalty, and profits!
Carol Kinsey Goman, Ph.D. is the author of nine books including CREATIVITY IN BUSINESS and “THIS ISN’T THE COMPANY I JOINED” — How to Lead in a Business Turned Upside Down. She delivers keynote speeches and seminars to association and business audiences around the world. For more information or to book Carol as a speaker at one of your events, please call: 510-526-1727, email: CGoman@CKG.com, or visit her website: http://www.CKG.com.
If you’re curious about what leadership is all about, you’ve come to the right place. Here is where we are going to explore the art of leadership and how it applies to our practice as communicators.
We will discover there is no simple formula for leadership. It’s a quality that emerges when we give the best of ourselves to others. It grows in direct proportion to how much we’re willing to give away. And it can be measured by the leadership we bring about in others.
Talk about a paradox. And talk about an opportunity. As communicators we are uniquely placed within the ebb and flow of organizational life to learn from others and practice the principles of leadership in all we do. When we do this, we add value to our work and credibility to ourselves as professionals. I’m looking forward to learning from you as we discover the curious nature of communication leadership. As Carl Sagan once said, “Somewhere, something incredible is waiting to be known.”
By Elise Roaf