Three Critical Questions for Good Leadership Communication
Photo by Pedro Ramos on Unsplash
When I work with organizations and their leaders, I see a common mistake: poor communication. When I facilitate organizational culture audits, poor communication is a regular item for improvement listed by an organization's workforce. This reality is equally true for non-profit and for-profit entities.
As I mentioned in my last article, communication is the currency of leadership. Rarely do leaders try to mislead their people through erroneous or manipulative communication. The primary problem is a need for more intentional, quality communication. When external crises hit, most organizations are great about hiring the best PR firms to help them manage the fallout through public messaging. But little thought is given to consistent internal communication, which is the lifeblood of any team or workforce.
Leadership teams spend many hours solving problems and making strategic decisions, and then they need to remember to take the final step of forming a communication plan about what was just decided. The result is that decisions leak out in haphazard ways, causing confusion, hurt, and distrust. There is a simple framework that can help leaders and teams think through a quality communication plan and avoid the trust gap.
Three critical questions for good leadership communication:
Who needs to know?
This question is the first and most important one. Not everybody needs to know everything. But certain people do need to know, primarily because it will directly affect them, positively or negatively.
Those who will be directly impacted by any decision, strategy change, or significant new information
Those who will be indirectly impacted by any decision, strategy change, or significant new information
A key stakeholder--which is someone, or a group of someones, who, without their support, the organization might cease to exist.
What and when do they need to know?
The answer to this question addresses the core message and appropriate timing.
A thoughtfully crafted core message needs to include key points, the reasons behind a decision, the expected outcomes, and any immediate actions required. Clarity and conciseness are crucial to avoid misunderstandings.
Timing matters, too. Those who will be most impacted need to know quickly. Those who will be impacted, but in a more cascading way, can potentially be informed at a later, more appropriate time.
What is the best way to communicate with them?
Choose the most appropriate medium (e.g., in-person meeting, virtual meeting, email, or phone call) for delivering the message. Consider the context, urgency, and potential emotional responses, ensuring that the communication allows for feedback and discussion if necessary.
We know that email never conveys emotional news well. The greater the complexity and emotions surrounding a decision, the more personal it needs to be.
Adding these three questions to any significant meeting agenda will lead to better and more timely communication. The benefits of quality communication are enormous. Here are a few to consider:
Enhanced collaboration and teamwork
Increased employee engagement and satisfaction
Improved decision-making downstream
Stronger organizational culture
More significant conflict reduction and resolution
Improved adaptability to change
Enhanced organizational reputation and trust-building
Leaders must be good communicators. The primary rule of communication is that it has not taken place until the other person has received it, understands it, and can act upon it.
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