LONDON, Dec. 5 /PRNewswire/ -- The erosion of trust in traditional
figures of authority means CEOs are under no illusion about the need for
more authentic communication to build trust and engagement among today's
workforce.
This is one of the key findings in a new report, 21st Century
Leadership Communication, produced by Melcrum and The Company Agency. In
frank interviews with 18 CEOs and senior business leaders from a broad
spectrum of organizations, words like "authenticity", "believability" and
"genuineness" cropped up again and again when CEOs talked about their
perceptions of good internal communication.
"There's a fair amount of spin that goes on that, in my opinion, isn't
necessary," says Lori LeBas, Senior VP, Strategy and Business Operations at
ESPN. "There's often a desire for the message to be positive -- the
business is great, or earnings are up, etc. And I think employees are smart
enough to understand that things aren't always going great."
Keeping it personal
The CEOs suggest that one of the key routes to authenticity is "keeping
it personal" -- particularly now that employees have increased access to
information and communicators need to break through the "noise" to connect
with and engage them.
"I think a lot of us are coming down to a sleeves-rolled-up,
sit-on-the- corner-of-the-desk approach, with 20 or 30 people at a time,"
says Keith Butler-Wheelhouse, CEO of Smiths Group. In addition, "even if
you're talking to lots of people," advises Paolo Cavalieri, CEO of Hollard
Insurance Group, "you want them to feel as though you're talking directly
to them individually."
Frustration with management
The expectation that CEOs have for internal communication to play a
stronger role in delivering more sincere and authentic messages was also
highlighted. "Internal communication," says Rona Fairhead, CEO of The
Financial Times Group, "is about making people feel part of an organization
-- rather than cogs inside a big machine who don't really know what they're
moving towards."
The CEOs interviewed also expressed frustration that other layers of
management are unable or unwilling to step up and "do their bit" to improve
the internal communication environment, often forcing the CEO to become a
ready-made communication symbol and figurehead for everything.
"I'd like to see the next two or three levels of management regarding
it as an absolutely core part of their role to be a more effective channel
for two-way communication -- rather than the risk you often get of some
tiers in management being the sticking point on communication," says Paul
Gray, Chairman of HM Revenue & Customs.
Other themes to emerge from the research include conflicting priorities
for CEOs and internal communicators, divided opinions about the role of
social media, and the desire for a deeper understanding of employee issues
that goes beyond the findings of the latest engagement survey. The report
also includes a list of recommendations to help create more consistency
between the communication goals and vision of both internal communicators
and CEOs.
Notes for editors
21st Century Leadership Communication is a new report produced by
Melcrum and The Company Agency, which explores the attitudes and priorities
of CEOs and senior business leaders when it comes to internal
communication.
It is divided into two parts:
1. An executive summary, including recommendations for CEOs and senior
business leaders
2. A detailed exploration of research findings, with recommendations for
internal communicators.
The report closes with an Afterword by Malcolm Higgs, Professor of
Organization Behavior and HR at the University of Southampton School of
Management, which places the key research findings in the context of
broader leadership research and thinking.
The research is based on in-depth interviews with 18 CEOs and senior
business leaders from a broad range of countries:
-- Keith Butler-Wheelhouse, CEO, Smiths Group plc
-- Paddy Byng, CEO, Smythson
-- Paolo Cavalieri, CEO, Hollard Insurance Group
-- John Conover, President Americas Distribution, Trane
-- Michael J. Critelli, Executive Chairman, Pitney Bowes
-- Rona Fairhead, CEO, The Financial Times Group
-- Iain Ferguson, Chief Executive, Tate & Lyle PLC
-- Val Gooding, Chief Executive, BUPA
-- Paul Gray, Chairman HM Revenue & Customs
-- Hugh Harvey, Managing Director, Comet
-- Jeremy Hicks, Director, Audi UK
-- Lori LeBas, Senior VP, Strategy and Business Operations, ESPN
-- Wim Roelandts, President and CEO, Xilinx
-- Peter Rogers, CEO, Westminster City Council
-- Truett Tate, Group Executive Director for Wholesale and International
Banking, Lloyds TSB plc
-- Jean-Pascal Tricoire, CEO Schneider Electric
-- Mike Turner, CEO, BAE Systems
-- Paul Walker, Chief Executive, The Sage Group plc
For more information, please contact: daniel.gregory@melcrum.com Or
visit: http://www.melcrum.com/store/products/product.shtml?id=3799
About Melcrum
Melcrum is a research and training business, expert in all aspects of
internal communication, with offices in London, Chicago and Sydney. Founded
in 1996 by Robin Crumby and Victoria Mellor, Melcrum has customers in over
90 countries. Through its global networks, Melcrum connects more than
18,000 professional communicators in sharing what works.
E-Mail: info@melcrum.com
Website: http://www.melcrum.com
Blog: http://www.melcrumblog.com
About The Company Agency
The Company Agency was founded in 2003 to provide communication
consultancy to leaders and to ensure their communication is focused,
compelling and consistent. Its offering falls into four categories: Focus
on Leaders, The Corporate Story, Focus on Senior Management and Employee
and Investor Programs.
E-mail: info@thecompanyagency.com
Website: http://www.thecompanyagency.com
SOURCE Melcrum
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http://www.melcrum.com
http://www.thecompanyagency.com
http://www.melcrumblog.com
http://www.melcrum.com/store/products/product.shtml?id=3799/
CONTACT:
Daniel Gregory of Melcrum Publishing, +020
8600 4670, European Office of Melcrum Publishing Ltd., +44 020
8600 4670 or fax, +44 020 8741 9975, North American Office of
Melcrum Publishing Ltd., +1-312-379-6500 or fax, +1-312-527-4917,
Asia-Pacific, Melcrum Publishing, +61 0 2 8249 8352 or fax, +61 0
2 8249 8101, The Company Agency Ltd, +44 020 7670 7400 or fax,
+44 020 76707401
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