Change Communications

The Communication Plan Template reflects the following Seven Principles of Strategic Organizational Communications, developed by Francois Basili:

1- Organizational Communication is a management process..
with a specific business purpose and disciplined methods of development, implementation, and measurements. It is accomplished through a strategic communication plan reviewed and approved by senior management.

2- Organizational Communication is a change agent.
The purpose of communication is not just to convey information, but to change behavior. It changes behavior by persuading people to take action toward the organization’s objectives.

3- The primary responsibility for internal communication lies with all managers and supervisors.
The Organizational Communication unit is responsible for designing and delivering the system and tools that enable managers to play their role as communicators. Face to face communication with the immediate manager is the most effective form of communication, and is the way employees prefer to receive key information.

4- Communication is a two way process.
Listening and encouragement of feedback must be as emphasized and practiced as speaking and providing information and directions. Two-way is the only way for communication to actually exist in the organization.

5- To be understood, communication must be grounded in the interests and language of the receiver.
While it seeks to achieve the organization’s strategic objectives, it cannot do so effectively unless it uses a receiver-focused approach in both content and context.

6- To be noticed, communication must be compelling and continuous
As it must compete for the receiver’s attention, communication must use highly compelling and creative ways to deliver its message. To be remembered and internalized, communication needs to be continuous and consistent. We can not afford not to communicate.

7- To be influential, communication must be credible.
Without a high degree of credibility, the integrity and believability of the message will be lost, and the whole communication process will be a waste of resources.

Source: (c) 2003-2005 Francois Basili, President, Communication Ideas. Taken from the Communication Plan Template. All Rights Reserved.

The 10/20/30 Rule for PowerPoint

A PowerPoint presentation should have no more than ten slides, last no more than twenty minutes, and contain no font smaller than thirty points.

Source: Let the Good Times Roll, by Guy Kawasaki

We all have people with whom we have to work to get things done. Our ability to communicate with clients, customers, subordinates, peers, and superiors can enhance our effectiveness or sabotage us. Many times, our verbal skills make the difference. Here are 10 ways to increase your verbal efficacy at work:

Develop your voice – A high whiney voice is not perceived to be one of authority. In fact, a high soft voice can make you sound like prey to an aggressive co-worker who is out to make his/her career at the expense of anyone else. Begin doing exercises to lower the pitch of your voice. Here is one to start: Sing — but do it an octave lower on all your favorite songs. Practice this and, after a period of time, your voice will begin to lower.

Slow down – People will perceive you as nervous and unsure of yourself if you talk fast. However, be careful not to slow down to the point where people begin to finish your sentences just to help you finish.

Animate your voice – Avoid a monotone. Use dynamics. Your pitch should raise and lower. Your volume should be soft and loud. Listen to your local TV news anchor; take notes.

Enunciate your words – Speak clearly. Don’t mumble. If people are always saying, “huh,” to you, you are mumbling.

Use appropriate volume – Use a volume that is appropriate for the setting. Speak more softly when you are alone and close. Speak louder when you are speaking to larger groups or across larger spaces.

Pronounce your words correctly – People will judge your competency through your vocabulary. If you aren’t sure how to say a word, don’t use it.

Use the right words – If you’re not sure of the meaning of a word, don’t use it. Start a program of learning a new word a day. Use it sometime in your conversations during the day.

Make eye contact – I know a person who is very competent in her job. However, when she speaks to individuals or groups, she does so with her eyes shut. When she opens them periodically, she stares off in a direction away from the listener. She is perceived as incompetent by those with whom she consults. One technique to help with this is to consciously look into one of the listener’s eyes and then move to the other. Going back and forth between the two (and I hope they only have two) makes your eyes appear to sparkle. Another trick is to imagine a letter “T” on the listener’s face with the cross bar being an imaginary line across the eye brows and the vertical line coming down the center of the nose. Keep your eyes scanning that “T” zone.

Use gestures – Make your whole body talk. Use smaller gestures for individuals and small groups. The gestures should get larger as the group that one is addressing increases in size.

Don’t send mixed messages – Make your words, gestures, facial expressions, tone, and message match. Disciplining an employee while smiling sends a mixed message and, therefore, is ineffective. If you have to deliver a negative message, make your words, facial expressions, and tone match the message.

Improving your communication skills will improve your productivity.

Source: Open Loops

Les “sciences molles”: un ensemble d’outils, principes et méthodes qui permettent de prendre en compte le facteur humain lors d’un changement majeur dans l’entreprise. C’est une façon de donner une main courante à ceux qui vont vivre le changement.

L’application des sciences molles à l’intégration des systèmes, six principes tirés de l’expérience Lawson Project dans une grande société de service pétrolier:

1. Sortir le projet de l’ombre, se rendre tangible. Surtout pour un projet informatique dans des métiers traditionnels (sidérurgie, pétrole)!
2. Apprendre leur langue. Il faut adopter le point de vue de l’utilisateur et prendre en compte ses besoins.
3. Générer de l’attente. L’attente, voire impatience, que quelque chose va se passer, va changer.
4. Créer de l’urgence. Personne ne doit perdre de vue le moment crucial de “bascule”.
5. Simplifier le message. Transmettre des messages simples et clairs pour calmer les inquiétudes et dissiper les rumeurs. Travail sur le message lui-même. Forme aussi important que le fond.
6. Créer et utiliser le réseau. Responsabiliser les acteurs locaux. Communication de proximité.

Source: Nicholas Ranken, Frederic Reynaerts, presentation to Atos Origin Oracle/Peoplesoft, BI, CRM and HR departments, Paris, 29 September 2005

The seven “C”s to communication credibility!

• correct (get it right - grammar, spelling)
• consistent (follow a stylebook)
• clear (use simple words, short sentences, short paragraphs)
• concise (save people time)
• coherent (think structure, organization)
• complete (answer the questions)
• creative (be interesting, don’t bore)

Source: Communitelligence Teleseminar

Stakeholders will need different levels of communication and they will need it at different times. They will need information about the change which directly affects them, but they may also need to establish a sense of relationship to the project if their involvement is key.

Communication planning should therefore include elements of both information and relationship building, and there is a role for the whole project team in fulfilling the full spectrum of stakeholder needs. This is indicated in the communications escalator illustrated below:

• Awareness - achieved through the transmitting of information about the project through newsletters, e-mail and other communications channels.
• Understanding - the transmitting of information in a more intimate and focused way, for example, road shows, video conferencing and presentations.
• Support - the level of communications where employees seek clarification and the project team provide help or support. Two-way focused communication is integral to the support approach, including Seminars and training courses.
• Involvement - the level of communication where employees are actively involved in the development of the project, which can be achieved through team meetings, workshops and feedback forums.
• Commitment - the highest level of the communications escalator and is achieved through the building and development of quality relationships, joint problem solving sessions etc.

To speed up a major change in your company, think about how your intranet, paper and face-to-face communication contribute to the process.

In an in-depth report on managing major change called “Communicating Big Change Using Small Communication,” authors Dr TJ Larkin and Sandar Larkin explore the idea of using “thousands of small face-to-face conversations between managers and employees” to bring about big change in large companies. Drawing on various research findings, the report outlines the effectiveness of each of the main communication channels and when and how they should be used in a major change campaign. This can briefly be summarized as follows:

1. Intranet: best for short, quick information retrieval Internet is the best channel for searching and retrieving factual information. This implies that the company intranet is most useful during the implementation phase when employees need to quickly find small pieces of information located within large data sets. It’s wrong, however, to rely on the intranet as your major communication channel during the planning phase of the change. Using intranet instead of face to face is a mistake. Intranet is not employees’ preferred choice and does not change behavior. It’s also a poor choice for sensitive information.

Don’t rely on the intranet as your major communication channel during the planning phase of the change.

2. Paper: best for learning complicated informationWhen ideas on a computer screen become complicated — employees hit “print.” Research shows that employees prefer paper as soon as new material becomes difficult to understand. Although less certain than employees’ preference (i.e., face-to-face communication), many studies also show improved comprehension. With difficult topics, employees often learn more when reading from paper than from a web page. This means paper plays an especially important role during implementation when there may be many new and complicated ideas to communicate. Paper also plays an important supporting role in face-to-face communication. It’s wrong, however, to rely on paper as your primary communication channel during the planning phase of a big change.

With difficult topics, employees often learn more when reading from paper than from a web page.

3. Face to face: changes behavior If your change means employees must change the way they behave, then face to face is the best channel for communicating the message. “Diffusion of innovation” is the study of how groups adopt new behaviors. The leading expert of this approach is Professor Everett Rogers. Surveying 50 years of research and 4,000 studies, Rogers concludes that mediated information (print and electronic) creates awareness of new ideas but rarely adoption. On the other hand, face-to-face communication with a respected member of your own group (opinion leader) delivers the most new behavior.

A study by the Hay Group, Key Driver Analysis, also examined different ways to communicate and the associated amount of employee support forthe change. The correlations discovered by the Hay Group show most support when employees learn about the change from their own managers.

1. f2f channel/vehicles -
Every survey everywhere has pointed to this communication channel
and it’s specific vehicles (1 - 1 meetings with supervisor;
team meetings; town halls; skip level sessions with higher-level
managers; informal tours by and sit-downs with the CEO; etc.)
as an employee’s preferred source for UNDERSTANDING. Awareness
and knowledge can be had through other channels and their vehicles,
but true understanding can only occur with a channel and its vehicle
that is dialogic and symmetrical.

2. say/do message agreement -
The message is one thing: the source of the message - and the
legitimacy, credibility and believability of the source are
other things entirely. The message we so diligently craft in the
communication from the source has to be the same as the message
received from the behavioural actions and symbolic actions of
the source. Or, in David Ferrabee’s words: true leadership.

3. relationship-management role -
This is about role-enactment in internal communication. In
particular, it’s about how the head of the internal communication
department sees her or his role. There is evidence from many studies
to suggest that we enact the roles with which we are comfortable.
That is, it is not only ‘management’ that puts limits on the role(s)
we play: we self-limit. For example, we place ourselves in various
roles:
(1) information packager and sender (info/message-oriented);
(2) communication system enabler (tools/media-oriented);
(3) you too can be a communicator trainer (supervisor
competency-oriented)
(4) employee change programmer (change them
not us-oriented: change their attitudes, culture, morale,
engagement, etc. - and voila - productivity, retention, quality,
costs, sales, revenues, etc. change for the better) and
(5) stakeholder relationship-builder (advocate for them, change
(deeds; actions; behaviours) us both but particularly us and
maintain mutual trust-oriented).

With stakeholders - self-identified groups who perceive they
have a stake in the consequences of an organization’s decisions
and thus in the organization’s decisions themselves - one finds
customer relationship management, supplier chain relationship
management, shareholder relationship management, community
relationship management (or Corporate Social Responsibility),
and even media relationship management. Stakeholder
relationship-building is the number one topic in the
PR/Communication field’s academic literature at the moment.

Yet, in our internal or employee communication literature,
one does not easily find the concept: employee relationship
management. We seem stuck on the change programmer role,
particularly this straw we’ve grasped called engagement. Yet,
the relationship-management role is more strategic. It is about
behaviour management not communication management.

Why communications are just as important as equipment in technology change

The Challenge

If your agency or business is involved in a major Information Communication Technology (ICT)upgrade, the last thing you want is staff circling the wagons and resisting the changes.

Yet getting the new hardware, software and cables in place may be the easy part of your job.The technical challenges may be daunting but the toughest part could be the people issues.

After two decades of constant change in the corporate world and many unfulfilled IT promises, staff are often wary or even cynical when management announces new ICT arrangements.

ICT upgrades are as much about communications as they are about engineering. It seems that changing mindsets, negotiating turf wars and telling staff what is happening are just as important as sourcing, buying and installing new systems.

Professional communicators warn of programs that will be stuck in second gear unless managers and project teams address the so-called ’soft’ people issues involved in a technology transition.

The Roller Coaster of Change

When employees face new technology they climb aboard a workplace roller coaster. At the top of the ride there is excitement at the prospect of a new system solving all their problems. Then comes the descent with the realisation that change is a complex process and cannot happen overnight. At the bottom of the ride there may be despair or cynicism until the climb upward begins and the new systems are installed and accepted.

For a major roll-out to succeed, a good communications plan needs to sit right in the same roller coaster trolley as a good network plan. It needs to be robust and thorough so it flattens out the highs and lows in people’s expectations and wins support for the new program.

Use the Power of Research

Successful staff communications begins with identifying all the groups in the organization with interests in the new arrangements. Upfront research is an invaluable investment because it will uncover competing objectives, unrealistic expectations, what information people need and how and when they should receive it.

On-line surveys are useful for identifying the opinions of overseas or remotely based staff while one on one interviews and focus groups are good at tapping into the mindset of high priority groups. But however you manage this research, collect information in a low key way to ally concerns and ensure expectations are not raised.

Key Elements for Successful Communication

A successful ICT communications plan has four key elements:

• The commitment of the person at the top.
• Persuasive messages that show how the new setup will lead to an improved organization and better outcomes for staff. These are just as important as the “what is happening” messages.
• A system for people to feed in their concerns so they do not feel threatened and a way to
  provide information closely linked to their concerns.
• Someone who is responsible for the plan. Even if you engage outside help, some-one in
  the organization needs to own the communications process.

Choosing Who to Tell

A logical place to kick off communications is to inform senior executives across the organization. These are the people who write the cheques, control the business processes and set the service standards.

And don’t forget to include the HR managers especially if the new arrangements lead to job changes.

The most important people however are not on the top floor but on the shop floor. They are the front line managers who oversee the business processes on a day to day basis, supervise employees and deal with clients. They are the hands-on people and they can make or break a change because they a re also the most credible and authoritative figures for everyone they deal with.

Their support is critical to a successful roll-out.

Tactics Tools and Tips

Communicating change will differ from organization to organization but proven techniques include:

• Recruiting and supporting influential people who can act as “change champions”. These will be the people who others turn to for comment or advice during the technology transition.
• Continually supporting front line managers, getting and using their input and arming them with information.
• Cascading project briefings throughout the organization at the start and offering regular
  updates.
• Providing simple materials that let people absorb the whole project at a glance.
• Posting information to the Intranet and, during the implementation phase, also including self help functions .
• Getting staff involved through demonstrations and case studies that illustrate how things
  will improve in future.
• Regular updates through e-mails, electronic and printed newsletters and staff magazines.
• Deploying an onsite help team to help people during the early stages of mplementation.

Succeeding in the End

You climb a mountain when you introduce new technology into your workplace. Everyone wants to arrive at the top fast, and enjoy the view of a better organization and smother work processes. To get there with your team and technology intact, effective communications must be part of the process from the base camp to the summit.

Copyright: Maine Street Marketing www.mainestreet.com.au

Q: “Does anyone have any tips and advice to share on how to communicate a global strategy so that it works locally?”

A: “My experience is that providing toolkits can be an effective way to allow for some localization. We have run a number of programs where the European comms team has worked with the business heads to articulate overall messaging and developed a series of tools that help deliver those messages.

The most successful programs have been those where the implementation of those tools (and therefore the message) has been chosen and tailored locally. This means we gain consistency of message while also making it relevant and meaningful to each market.

Here are some quick suggestions:

- Work on the overall concept in loose terms and then take it out to the local comms team/business management in local markets. Explain the overall need/objective and work together on how it could be useful for them (it helps if you know about the local market first so that you can show how the comms concept appeals to the local needs of
employees).

- Go for a partnership approach rather than a one-size-fits-all or an approach that could feel dictated by a central team. Show you are willing to develop the delivery mechanism of the messages to meet local needs. It takes longer at the development stage as it involves consultation but the implementation will be sustainable.

- Consider local translation so that the message feels local.

- Is the audience literate? Do you need to consider using a creative approach (e.g., theater) to communicate the message?

- Remember the difference in communication styles and values by culture. Have a suite of tools that can be used to appeal to all. Some cultures communicate informally and may respond better to management huddles rather than formal comms sessions.

- If articulating messages centrally, remember icons/personalities aren’t always global.

Remember, what works in one company culture may not work in another. I’ve also been looking at some interesting work done on culture and values at Cranfield Management School by Dr Gilles Spony, resulting in the Spony profiling model (visit www.futuretobe.net for further information).”

JANE SPARROW
SONY EUROPE