COMMUNICATING CLEARLY AND BROADLY

As leaders set a clear direction, it's not enough for them to be knowledgeable. The entire team must comprehend where the organization is going and why. This isn't something that can be communicated in one e-mail or voice mail, or that is absorbed through some strange osmosis. People must understand the strategy or plan, and they must be part of the process: they must be given the opportunity to provide their thoughts and feedback. To explain why, I return to one of my favorite reference points: the cubicle.

The people in the cubicles are often on the front lines where plans and strategies are executed in interactions with other departments and divisions in the organization, as well as with customers and suppliers. These individuals are integral to every strategy. As such, they must be told what is going on and why.

When I was one of the people in a cubicle, there were plenty of times I received a memo from management (“those guys”) that laid out a directive without explaining how and why it fit into the overall plan. As I stood there in the cubicle, scratching my head, my coworker popped in. “Why are we doing this?” she asked.

The only reply I could honestly give her was that it was what “those guys” wanted.

As I witnessed back in the cubes, even when people had the best of intentions, if they didn't know why they were being asked to do something, there was a high probability that the directive would not be carried out as management intended. Either the people in the cubes didn't understand exactly what they were supposed to do, or they decided to cherry-pick what seemed to make the most sense to pursue. Even more important, without knowing the reasoning behind the plan, they were not able to provide feedback on how the process might be improved—for example, by changing the order of certain tasks or combining them for greater efficiency. Instead, the people in the cubes were left to guess and, when in doubt, to improvise.

There is a psychological reason behind communicating to every member of the team: people want to know they are part of something much bigger than themselves. In Chapter Six, we talked about the parallel lines representing the various business units and functions, and the organization as a whole being the circle that encompasses all of them. That same concept applies here, only this time people must be encouraged to look beyond the tasks on their particular “line” to see that they are indeed part of the bigger “circle.” As a leader, you should strive to give every member of your team a holistic understanding, instead of just a list of tasks that must be accomplished. When your team understands how everything fits together, they will feel more empowered as individual contributors who are part of a broader overall plan.

In my own career, I've experienced the clear difference between being told to do a specific task without a real grasp of why it was important and understanding the greater scheme of things. When I was a young analyst and my manager said, “I need you to run this financial model under three scenarios,” my reaction was to complete the task because he was my boss. However, I would have been much more engaged if my manager had said, “We're thinking about making an acquisition. We need to determine the value of the acquisition candidate, and how much we can afford to pay for it. What specific scenarios do you think we should analyze?”

With an understanding of why I was being asked to do something, I would be much more enthusiastic and take more ownership. This was no longer a project but an initiative that was important to me. Now I could focus on determining the key drivers that would affect the value of the acquisition. I could define the key questions: How would this acquisition candidate fit into our company? What efficiencies and economies of scale could be derived by combining these two companies? I could really be thoughtful about the process.

As a leader, you will find that people at every level of the organization want to have meaning and purpose. They want to be emotionally engaged in what they do, and to know that the tasks and responsibilities they are being asked to carry out really do make a difference. When this happens, the cubicle conversations change. People no longer feel that the only reason they are doing something is that “those guys” have asked them. Now they are excited to be part of a bigger project or strategy that is important to where the department, the division, or the whole company is going. Without a clear direction, however, that won't happen.

Thus, setting a clear direction serves several purposes. First, it ensures a higher probability of being able to achieve the desired goal or end result. Second, people will be engaged and motivated to do their best because they know that what they are being asked to do is important. Third, they understand their roles and how they fit into the whole. Moreover, this understanding enables them to provide feedback and input. They are allowed to question and to challenge, such as when they see a better way of doing things as it relates to their part of the process. Fourth, clear direction empowers people to act on their own, especially when and where there is no immediate, direct oversight. Clarity of direction and values serves as a strong ethical compass when people are confronted by mores and cultures that are different from their own.

I have seen this so many times in my career. When people at every level know they can speak up and that their views are welcome, some of the best ideas emerge. A team member on the assembly line, for example, may be connecting part A and part B and then handing it off to someone who adds C and D. However, if that team member understands the complete process, he may be able to suggest a different sequence or even methodology that allows different jobs to be combined. This won't happen, however, unless people see the big picture and know that their feedback is welcome.