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...CEOs of small companies help employees see the same big picture they do...Ahhh. White sands bend around a peaceful blue bay. Or, a spectacular
view unfolds all the way down the slope of perfectly packed snow.
Visualize yourself at the destination. Call this number, and you are
there.
But
life is not a vacation. When it comes to work, knowing the destination
— achieving business goals — and the route to arrival — company
philosophy and values — isn't always so clear. The big picture is in
the boss's head, not a travel brochure.
Large companies hire
professional communicators to translate the CEO's vision for the
workforce. Writers who specialize in internal communication keep
employees focused on business goals, help workers understand
marketplace pressures so they can offer better customer service,
provide people with information to make sound decisions, and clarify
workplace matters like company benefits or operations. Effective
internal communication programs boost morale and the bottom line.
But
in small companies, a CEO is usually on her own to draw the staff a
vision-picture. Actually, it's usually words instead of a visual.
Mostly, it's all about talking — frequently and specifically.
Whether
you are a company president or department manager, you have
conversations with your staff without giving it much thought. In fact,
research shows that women are more comfortable and confident in this
role than men, even when they are acting on instinct rather than formal
training.
With a conscious attempt, however, you can sharpen the
vision-picture for your staff. It's worth the extra effort. Getting
everyone in step with your vision helps employees make a solid
contribution toward business success.
Simply stated, communication is a component of excellence in overall management. Here four steps you can take.
1. Get personal
In
one-on-one conversations, you gain employees' commitment, offer
guidance on their day-to-day work, and reinforce company values. You
probably know each person's family, likes and dislikes, and strengths
and weaknesses, so even a business conversation unfolds as personal and
meaningful.
"I'm very fortunate that I have a small company that
still allows me to be able to know everybody's name and keep up on what
everybody is doing," said Phyllis Browning, president of Phyllis
Browning Company, a real estate company. "It's important to me to know
if someone has problems at home like a sick child or going through
divorce. It's going to have an impact on their professional lives."
She
works with three managers overseeing more than 125 real estate agents.
That's a lot of people to keep up with, especially considering she
started with two agents when she formed the company in 1989. "It's been
steady growth. The biggest change came about eight years ago when we
opened an office on Blanco and Bitters roads. Our agents needed a place
to stop for a Coke — a small office with a computer and a bathroom so
they wouldn't have to drive back to the Alamo Heights office," she
said. Suddenly, she faced the challenge of staying in regular contact
with staff members in multiple locations.
"It's difficult. I do
not get to the Blanco and Bitters office as much as I'd like to,"
Browning said. "We have one meeting a week with all agents from all
offices. We also have one place were we have phone duty, where an agent
sits on the telephone and takes in calls from signs or newspaper ads.
That one particular place is at the Broadway office, selfishly, where I
am, so I can see who's on the phone and get to know them."
2. Explain why we do this every day
Lib
McGregor Simmons manages a staff of 10, double the size when she
started as pastor of University Presbyterian Church 11 years ago. Her
mission might seem obvious, but actually, like any business operation,
the big picture can get cloudy. Simmons clarifies. "I set the tone of
trust and articulate a vision. Then, at the same time, I help the staff
be aware of making it concrete."
When they understand the
tangible, specific actions needed to reach goals, people can do their
very best. "I spend time with each of our program staff every week
talking about the concreteness of what they are doing. We're relating
it to the bigger picture," the Rev. Simmons said.
The
challenge is to connect the dots between an individual's work in the
trenches and the big picture. It makes more sense when a worker sees
the whole pie, not just "my slice" of the work pie. To that end,
Simmons holds a weekly, 30-minute, calendar-and-communication meeting
for the whole staff. "Their primary responsibility is to do work in
their small arena. My job is to help them see the connection to other
activities. If we're all succeeding, that's better for the whole
church," Simmons said. "We talk about how programs might relate to each
other."
3. Allow relationships to flourish
Another
factor that helps employees achieve business goals is finding
supportive relationships on the job. People find co-workers with common
interests and become friends. They call on each other with questions,
draw from each other's experiences, and depend on one another's
guidance. People bonded in workplace relationships learn faster,
perform better, and are more committed to the company. In
conversations, employees arrive at a common meaning for what goes on at
work.
Phyllis Browning Company promotes relationships with a
mentor system, linking a new agent with a veteran agent. "When a new
agent needs someone, an experienced agent is there to help them, along
with their manager," Browning said.
"The way our company works,
people genuinely care about each other. We had an agent who fell and
broke her hip. She was living in a two-story house. An agent with a
one-story house took her in and helped take care of her," Browning
said. "That's the type of people we want in this company, those that
care about everyone – including their customers and clients."
When
staff members take time to talk, what might appear on the surface to be
idle conversation distracting them from their work in fact may be
beneficial relationship-building. When the conversation includes the
company president — or even just knowledge of the leader's opinion —
these unofficial discussions reinforce the big picture.
4. Build conversations into business operations
Structure
and process crowd out relationships, especially in growing
organizations with new levels of management to lighten the CEO's load.
Browning, however, asks her managers to keep her informed about agents,
so she remains knowledgeable and connects with them when conversations
do occur. "I have three wonderful managers. They feed me information
when there might be something I should know," she said.
Formal
meetings mushroom in businesses that need to force conversation. While
meetings can be deadly dull, conversation shouldn't be. A more pleasing
option puts staff discussions about the business and individual
contributions into ongoing operations and processes.
For
example, Simmons leads a mid-week worship service, and while staff
members are not required to attend, doing so gives them an opportunity
to share stories about what is going on in their lives. In addition, a
once-a-month staff lunch brings everyone together. "One of us cooks — a
chef of the month. We go through our monthly activities, and people
bring a list of issues they have encountered," she said.
Listening
is half of any conversation, of course. "It's real important for me to
hear what agents are saying," Browning said. "We have a group that
meets once a month to bring to the table any problems they are
experiencing or any changes they think should happen. It's an advisory
group, and the agents select who they want to serve for one year."
Simmons
makes a concerted effort to listen, too. "I try to pay attention to the
content of what they are saying. But I ask myself, 'What's really going
on here?' I try to keep the big picture in mind."
What's really
going on here? That's what employees want to know, too. When people
come to work, they just naturally talk with each other about it,
looking for insight. The boss's big picture provides an answer.
This article by Sheri Rosen first appeared in San Antonio Woman magazine, March/April 2005.
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