A communicator looks at American industry

If American corporations respond in timely fashion, there is unquestionably a unique window of opportunity in this decade. Many of the pieces are already in place: a highly competent sales force, willing workers, experienced management, a proud history, and loyal customers.

We have all been impressed by what has been accomplished to date. But I am also impressed by the magnitude of what remains to be done. If I had to begin with only one impression, it is that it is do-able. Whether or not it will be done depends entirely on an openness and willingness on the part of management to change.

As I see it, corporations have a major communications problem. It is a crisis of employee morale. The work force is confused. They do not feel that they are getting the full story of what is happening within their company. They see constantly changing management teams. They perceive senior management as remote and often indifferent.

They receive a wide variety of conflicting messages. And, in the absence of solid information, they are open to all kinds of misinformation, rumor, undigested data, and speculation about their company and its future.

These perceptions become their reality.

It adds up to a significant and pervasive problem. It, more than any other factor, smothers the kind of enthusiasm and winning attitude, which are parts of any successful enterprise. It erodes their confidence in their company.

These problems are systemic in any company doing business on a national or global scale. They all have to do with communications in one form or another. Cumulatively, they can sap the productive energy of a company. If dealt with and resolved, they can release a surge of positive energy and imagination, which can transform an ordinary workplace into a hub of participatory excellence and quality.

The rising tide lifts all boats. Effective communication is a multiplying force within a company. Everyone benefits.

At the core is the need for a company wide culture, which incorporates:

* Shared vision. *Shared knowledge. *Shared responsibility.

If this positive corporate attitude is sometimes hard to identify and define, there is little problem in sensing its absence in an individual or group. A losing team mentality is devastating. It turns active and creative human energy into cynicism and hostility. It puts an end to pride of achievement and to initiative. It isolates people from one another and develops the 'us against them' mentality at all levels of the organization.

('The most important ingredient in winning wars is morale.' ... Dwight D. Eisenhower)

Managers are the key

The manager is the mediator, teacher, motivator, and model. The manager knows the realities of the local work force and of the increasingly diverse workforce. There will be little productivity, improvisation, initiative, or enthusiasm unless there is a manager, who exemplifies these values,

- Communication is the process.

- The manager is the agent.

- Communications will be the test of the modern world.

We are the communicating species. As individuals and in groups we employ an elaborate system of symbols and signals to create an environment of ideas, emotions, and attitudes. We cannot not communicate.

We are always sending out messages. We might not always do it well, but we always do it. We communicate by our presence, by our choices, by our words, by the complex nuances of our silent language. Basic to all of its forms is the fact that human communication has to do with an interactive process in which a message is sent, received, and responded to. To understand our organizations, and ourselves it is critical that we understand this most complex of human activities. We are the communicating species.

A corporation is a communicating entity with many audiences, customers, suppliers, shareholders, employees, the competition, governments, and the public.

The perceptions of these groups are critical to the company's ability to operate and to thrive in a complex and competitive environment. Communication deals directly with these perceptions. That is why productivity and profitability are so directly dependent on communication.

That is why no company can be much better than the quality of its communication. That is why communication will be the test of the modern corporation.

The information age is characterized by the democratization of information and a decentralization of decision-making. They go together. Technology has speeded up the flow of information. Customer expectations have brought about the need for on-the-spot decisions. Today's employees need information, which is candid, timely, and thorough.

Eighty-five percent of productivity problems are due to management policy and procedures, said T. Edwards Deming, the late celebrated management critic.

Experience has confirmed that many corporations look upon communication as a kind of cosmetic overlay on the serious business of the company or as a bag of techniques designed to keep the public and the employees at peace. It is my conviction that the communication dimension is an integral part of the business of the corporation and that it can be the quickest and most cost-effective way of advancing the goals of any corporation.

There are no systems which are people-proof. Getting the most out of your people is the cleanest and most direct path to progress and profitability.

Effective communication is the central nervous system of the corporation. At every level, the manager should be looked to as the source of information and motivation. If the managers are credible, the company is credible. The manager is the key factor in the triad of management, employees, and customers.

Most companies presume that they are already through a manager-based structure. Realistically, this assumption often has more to do with the organizational chart than with the functional activity of the company. Today's manager should be perceived by employees as the personnel department, the communication department, the safety department, the benefits department, and the training department.

The manager becomes the key player in the network of speeded-up information. The manager is the initial contact for advanced and privileged information. He is the primary source for both information and motivation for employees. The manager is the messenger and the message.

These principles were developed in the founding of Federal Express and they have served that company productively for all these years. It's not that the system has been tried by many and found wanting: most often it has not been tried.

Great workplaces are defined not so much by wages and working conditions as by feelings, attitudes, and relationships.

Look at the manager through the eyes of the employees. Workers don't show up in the morning with the idea of doing a mediocre job. They want to make a difference, to contribute to the enterprise, to feel good about themselves.

In a time of disintegrating institutions, they want to belong to a group that does meaningful work and does it well.

The world asks them: 'What's your name and what do you do?' Both answers are important to your employees.

Once again, the point-of-contact manager becomes the soul of the corporation. He is the one who personalizes the strategy, who injects the passions and feelings into the task. And, although sports metaphors have often been over-used, it can be helpful to look upon today's manager not as a boss but as a coach.

He is the teacher, the motivator, the trainer, and the model. He stands up for his players. He sets the tone. He monitors the execution of the plan in an informed and improvisatory fashion. And, in all situations, he removes obstacles from the path of talent.

There is an advertising agency in San Francisco which has a simple Latin motto taped to each of its manager's telephones:

NE SIM OBEX
'May I not be an obstacle'

Employees working in this special kind of environment will inevitably approach their work in a more positive and productive way.

The challenges in these early years of the 21st century are three, the management challenge, the employee challenge, and the customer challenge.

There must be developed a sense of urgency in managers to nurture a will to win, to get the juices flowing in them by putting them on a war footing for a battle in which they are assured they will prevail because of superior planning and strong leadership.

Employees must be convinced that they are the company, that they are not manual laborers but professionals operating with a sense of the whole company and with knowledge and decision-making power of their own; that they are needed, wanted, and respected.

The customer must be made to know that the company is part of his experience, that company employees are on his payroll. The company must be customer-driven, customer-sensitive, and customer-centered.

A certain South African tribe has one custom that might well be introduced into todays corporate cultures. Considering long speeches injurious to the orator and to the audience as well, they have an unwritten law that a public speaker must stand on one foot while addressing his listeners. As soon as the other foot touches the ground, the speech is brought to an end, by force if necessary.

Orville and Wilbur Wright, the aviation pioneers, were guests at a testimonial dinner for them. Both were extremely shy. The toastmaster called on Wilbur to make a speech. Wilbur rose and stammered: 'There must be some mistake. I think you want my brother.' Wilbur quickly sat down and the toastmaster called upon Orville, who said, 'Wilbur just made the speech.'