As a business leader you understand the importance of communication. You conduct hundreds of meetings every year just so you can get groups within the company aligned with your overall business vision and help them execute to achieve that goal. You issue multiple memos with guidelines to departmental heads to let them know the way things will now have to change to again achieve that goal. You travel to client offices, make them promises that will make them stay with you for maybe another quarter. You even head the company CSR initiative because you want people to notice your company as a responsible corporate citizen. You meet the shareholders and reassure them that your vision will grow their investments multiple times over in the coming year. And then you come home to your family and let them know the things you are doing that are helping them live the lifestyle you are providing. That’s your job, you are the creator of dreams and everyone else dreams the dream because they believe you will lead them to a better future.
But, in this whirlwind life of meetings and memos and video conferences you are only really sharing the piece of the overall vision that is relevant to that department. Manufacturing gets to hear that which is relevant to them, marketing gets your view on how to talk to customers, finance knows how you plan to spend and grow the revenues over the next few years and HR knows the skills you are looking for to propel the company over the next decade and the technology guys know how you see technology making those dreams a reality. But is anyone, other than your spouse, really aware of your composite vision? How all those magnificent pieces fall into place like an epic puzzle and finally reveal the true beauty of your plan – The overall vision, the dream, your magnum opus. I sincerely doubt it.
You don’t have the bandwidth really. You cannot spend endless days getting buy-ins on the overall vision. You have a company to run. So you have to break it into digestible pieces that department heads can chew and in an unmistakable Chinese -whisperesqe way transfer it down the rank and file and get the team aligned to your vision. You know what really happens. Because departmental heads only get part of the vision, they only see part of the execution and they have a ton of opinions about your vision and its ability to succeed. You can only imagine how that message is then going down the ranks with all the layers of opinions sullying it by the time it actually reached the foot soldiers – The main guys that get things done, daily, out there on the field. Are you really sure they are seeing your vision for what it really is and not a club sandwich of what the many layers of people above them really think of your plan. You know the truth. Not every stake holder really sees or understands that dream, that vision. Most of them don’t even know what the real objective is, how their contribution really fits into the greater mission of the company and how their slightest belief can create a tornado that could alter the future of your company forever.
You might have wondered why there is lack of cohesion in the team, why there is confusion about the mission; how they don’t understand they need to contribute to make a change. How you wished there was a way where you could find the time, to speak to each of them and motivate them to start contributing to the bigger picture. Well, here is your chance – A once in a lifetime chance, to speak to each one of them and help them make a difference. Never before have you had such a captive (pun unintended) audience, stuck in a single place, hanging on to any word from corporate, to know what to expect next. This is your moment. I guarantee you, to never come again in your life time.
The pandemic of opportunity:
Everyone, hopefully, in your company is in lock down. Rumors are swirling about job cuts, salary cuts, loss of business, upcoming recessions, elongated lockdowns and even the sad news of people getting exposed and infected. They are not meeting each other; the chinese whispers have given way to Zoom meetings, long phone calls. Not only is the virus not spreading but what is also not spreading as viciously is the sullied version of your vision. The spreaders of malicious intent have all been locked in, their influence blunted. This is the time for you to truly shine. When the going is tough, the brave see the opportunity. My advice is that you will not find a better opportunity to speak to the troops. And I mean down the line to each and every one of them. By all estimates this lockdown looks set to be extended – To the end of May 2020 if not later. You have an opportunity of almost 6 weeks where your audience is literally captive – speak to them. Tell them what your dream is. Reassure them that their jobs are secure. Inquire about their family. Recommend them books that have made a difference to your life, share life incidents that made you a better business man. Share you dream, share how they all fit in, predict the future of the industry, of the company, of the country. Just speak to them. You might not believe it, but they want to hear from you. Start that blog you always wanted to, share it with your company. Let them hear from you and get more hope and strength to tide over this tough time.
Whenever this is over, they will know more about you, more about your vision, more about their role and more about what is expected from them. This is the opportunity to make them buy-in without the influence of the layers and nay-sayers. This is the time you speak to them 1-on-1, because frankly they don’t have much else to do than listen.
And if you feel you are not a good writer or can’t really articulate your thoughts effectively, just reach out to me. We have team of accomplished writers, editors and weavers of magic that can help turn your vision to a blog that will change the way your company perceives you and their own selves in the larger scheme of things. Don’t let this opportunity go. It will not come back ever again. Hopefully. Good Luck!