Decision making and producing results

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How Leaders Communicate Big Ideas to Drive Business Results

Suzanne Bates

Communicating vision and values isessential to driving business results. By definition, leaders cannot do the work of the enterprise; they can only communicate what needs to be done, inspire trust, and motivate others to execute the plans.

Many leaders are able to inspire people to action by articulating vision, achieving buy-in, and moving the enterprise forward through effective communication. Others fail to get their message across even though they are intelligent, analytical, and decisive leaders.

Human resource professionals know that the consequences are serious if leaders can- not successfully communicate a vision. Exec- utives have to motivate and inspire or they will fail. One role of HR professionals is to recognize when there is an issue and help leaders develop this skill.

Why don’t more leaders communicate effectively? There are several reasons. Few business schools teach the techniques. Few companies devote significant resources to them. Companies tend to evaluate leaders on management and leadership criteria that do not emphasize this type of communication. Even if communication is mentioned in the professional development plan, the organiza- tion may not have the right resources. And individuals may resist devoting time and energy to communication when there are numerous business priorities.

The result is that executives often don’t “discover” they need to speak well until there is a problem. They arrive at a new level, and suddenly their skills are not up to the role. They may give PowerPoint presenta- tions on their business, but those are infor- mative, not visionary. And they do not know how to exude the passion or describe a big vision that gets people moving ahead together.

Recognizing this issue is often the job of HR. HR professionals can and should provide the necessary support and coaching for senior managers. There are three things it is important to know to be successful at this:

1. How to help their leaders develop and communicate their vision and values in a way that will drive business results,

2. How to rate the effectiveness of speech coaches and speechwriters so that HR can measure and evaluate the return on invest- ment (ROI) of this type of training, and

3. How to achieve buy-in from skeptical CEOs and leaders who don’t place a high priority on communication skills.

DEVELOPING AND COMMUNICATING A VISION

There is actually nothing mystical about vision. A vision is a picture of what an orga- nization could and should be.

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A hallmark of great leaders is that their vision includes big ideas. Big ideas get people excited. Nobody wants to do something small. Leaders want to feel motivated about coming to work, because what they do matters.

Some examples of big ideas that most of us are familiar with are Martin Luther King’s “I have a dream” speech and President John F. Kennedy’s vision for the space program: “We choose to go to the moon . . . not because it is easy, but because it is hard.”

Great business leaders also know how to paint a vivid picture of the future. They make it look easy. However, most of them have worked hard to develop and articulate their powerful thoughts.

The creative process of developing a visionary statement consists of four steps: observe, reflect, write, and speak. Here’s what I tell my executive clients about these

processes—and what HR professionals can tell their leaders.

Step One: Observe

In order to determine a vision, you must become an astute observer of your world. You have to immerse yourself in watching, listen- ing, and wondering. Pay attention, ask ques- tions, probe, discuss, and gather information.

Step Two: Reflect

Now you turn inward. For example, you look at important events in the company, or important events in your life and career, and

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ask yourself: What did I learn? What is this telling me? During reflection, you come up with stories and examples that form your vision and clarify your values. These stories enable you to speak authentically from your own wisdom and experience. In this reflect- ing stage of the process, it’s better to have someone listening and asking questions. A coach or trusted advisor can help you talk through a story or idea and find the signifi- cance of it.

Personal stories are a rich source of mate- rial that can crystallize a vision. When searching for personal stories with a client, we look at broad categories—both positive and negative—that usually yield some inter- esting images and help to communicate the vision and values that are important to the client. These include, among others, personal challenges, major changes, new experiences, lost opportunities, awkward situations, failed attempts, turnarounds, last-minute saves, inspiring people, remarkable achievements, and memorable events that may have occurred in a client’s life.

Some people are uncomfortable with the idea of talking about themselves in business speeches. However, by weaving personal sto- ries into their speeches, leaders connect with people. Their experiences are interesting to an audience because they say so much about the leader.

Step Three: Write

Because we live in a fast-paced world, with little time for reflecting and writing, many people want to skip this step. That is a mis- take. When you write, you discover how to say precisely what you mean. Many execu- tives ask why they can’t just speak off the cuff. That is an important skill. But when

The creative process of developing a visionary statement consists of four steps: observe, reflect, write, and speak.

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you are articulating a vision, writing it down is a critical step in the process.

One of my clients, the president of a col- lege, was preparing to give his inaugural address. It had been “wordsmithed” by an outstanding, talented speechwriter. But as he read the speech, we realized something was missing—the president, the person. He had graduated from this school, worked on Wall Street, retired, and served on the col- lege’s board of directors, who drafted him for the job. But nowhere in the speech was there any information about why he accepted the position, what made him want to do this at this stage in his career, what his education at the college meant to him, and what his vision was for the college, five or ten years hence!

As I interviewed him, we were able to identify two or three great stories that would tell people who he was and what he stood for. As he practiced the new speech, what came through was a leader and a person committed to the college’s success.

Step Four: Speak

If you have followed the process, speaking and communicating your vision is a natural outcome. Leaders are far more powerful and effective when they get up to speak because of this process. Then, the speaking must be scheduled. It does no good to create a vision without a plan to speak about it in many venues over a period of time. It takes several repetitions for most people to truly hear and remember the message.

Speaking well requires practice. All the preparation in the world will not wow an audience if the leader cannot speak fluently and confidently. There is no magic wand that will make a speech great—no amount

How Leaders Communicate Big Ideas to Drive Business Results Employment Relations Today DOI 10.1002/ert

of thinking, writing, or preparing slides—if the speaker has not rehearsed so that he or she looks and sounds like a leader on the platform.

The activities of observing, reflecting, writing, and practicing a speech are not usu- ally on an executive’s calendar—but they should be. A powerful vision, well articu- lated, attracts people to an organization, moti- vates them to take action toward progress, and drives business results.

EVALUATING THE ROI ON COMMUNICATION COACHING AND TRAINING

Poor communications can make the differ- ence between motivated, productive employ- ees and less motivated, unproductive ones. As part of our research for our book, Speak

Like a CEO, published in 2005, we conducted a survey on communication that helps prove this point. We asked employees about their bosses. Only 29 percent in our survey said they believed there were enough articulate voices of leadership in their organizations. And more than one-third said they would be surprised, or even shocked, if their boss were to speak in a visionary way and inspire oth- ers to follow.

Many leaders receive only vague feedback on their communication skills. When they do, it’s typically related to interpersonal skills. They receive very little if any informa- tion on how they present their ideas, other than some basic pointers on how to stand, what to do with their hands, or how to use PowerPoint.

Poor communications can make the difference between motivated, productive employees and less motivated, unproductive ones.

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All of these are important skills but they don’t get to the heart of some of the most important aspects of leadership and commu- nication. Over the course of working with many CEOs, I have developed a 40-point assessment tool to evaluate a client’s level of skill in communication. These are the skills related to content because it’s hard to be bor- ing when the content “rocks.”

Even though communication is often referred to as a “soft skill,” one can measure its effectiveness. Here are 14 points from our 40-point assessment tool that are important measurements to help you evaluate your leader’s content effectiveness:

1. Expression of vision: The ability to paint a picture or make it real.

2. Ability to articulate values, behaviors, or desired actions to be taken.

3. Clarity and focus of message: Do you instantly understand?

4. Interesting, compelling ideas: Do the ideas get people talking and excited?

5. Ability to move away from script or bullet points to a narrative: Too many people still read bullet points and don’t appreci- ate that they are the stars of their own presentations.

6. Concise, economical expression of ideas, not too wordy: This can be a very big hur- dle for those who want to rise to the top. They must be conversational in style but not waste words. Everything they say should have a purpose.

7. Use of language and grammar: It’s hard to believe, but today we work with top exec-

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utives who have not mastered the use of language or who use poor grammar. Sometimes this is because English is a sec- ond language or because they were not taught in school. Correct grammar and proper use of words are essential for an executive to project ideas with credibility.

8. Simplifying the technical or complex. 9. Use of stories, analogies, examples, and

other devices. 10. Use of visuals. 11. Use of humor. 12. Logical organization of ideas. 13. Attention-getting opening. 14. Powerful close.

Value of Time

One of the most important lessons for me in working with executives is the value of time. They are busy, demands on them are incredi- ble, and anyone in a big role is reluctant to take time away from business for skill develop- ment. One of the secrets I practice to get buy- in that also helps increase the ROI for this training is working in real time on current pro- jects. For example, if an executive has a board meeting on the calendar next week, that’s what we work on in the coaching session.

Keeping business goals front and center is another secret to getting busy executives engaged and keeping them motivated. When you work in real time on important pro- jects, you are sure to see real results at the next meeting, providing great return on investment.

Plan Ahead

Another way to ensure ROI is to set up coaching or training appointments well in advance and plan other activities around

When you work in real time on important projects, you are sure to see real results at the next meeting, providing great return on investment.

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them. If a major corporate meeting down the road will require considerable brainstorming and writing, then that content needs to be started now, and you should add additional times for content development and rehearsals to the calendar.

Don’t Make It Optional

This can be a real challenge. Many organiza- tions set up training as opt-in sessions and then are disappointed when the people who need it most don’t show up. This is a major challenge for HR departments because you want to be sure that people who attend train- ing want to be there, to feel it is voluntary. On the other hand, it’s often just too easy for people to sign up for something and get pulled away by an emergency.

Structure the Programs

Coaching should be a structured program of needs assessment, goal setting, and skill build- ing with a coach who guides the client toward achieving goals. Communication coaching pro- grams should offer a formal, organized approach to improving communication skills and strategies. We ask clients to work between coaching sessions on specific skills so they see steady progress. A coaching experience can be very powerful if there is a plan, if there is a structured program, because it will help engage the client and be a catalyst for progress.

Allow for Self-Evaluation

Most people we work with are fairly obser- vant and candid about their own perfor- mance once they see themselves on tape. If given the opportunity, you should videotape presentations on a regular basis. People

How Leaders Communicate Big Ideas to Drive Business Results Employment Relations Today DOI 10.1002/ert

develop these skills over time, usually over several years, and continuing assessment is valuable.

Give leaders a chance to score themselves. Allowing people to evaluate their perfor- mance and to articulate their own issues is, in my view, one of the keys to success in winning buy-in; people see it themselves, and usually resolve to do something about it.

ACHIEVING BUY-IN FROM SKEPTICAL CEOs AND LEADERS

As an HR professional, you know how impor- tant it is to be a business partner to the lead- ership team. Our HR clients who succeed in bringing in a robust professional development program to the organization, who win buy-in to spend resources on this, do a good job of

asking questions and articulating how their plans will help the business.

One important thing we have learned through years of communication coaching: Leaders do not decide to spend resources on what they should do; they spend resources on what they must do.

Organizations decide to invest, or invest further, in communication training and devel- opment as a result of one or several precipi- tating events or urgent needs.

For instance:

• You place a leader in a new role, or bring on a relatively inexperienced team, and need to get everyone off on the right foot.

• You receive negative feedback about a high-potential leader or a current leader

Coaching should be a structured program of needs assessment, goal setting, and skill building with a coach who guides the client toward achieving goals.

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who has other valuable business skills and you don’t want to lose him or her.

• A survey or feedback program reveals a serious breakdown in communication among individuals or a group.

• You want to groom an individual or emerging leadership group to move the succession plan forward.

• You have a new initiative, a major change, or a new project or direction that requires you to communicate your vision clearly and win buy-in from internal and external audiences.

• The company wants to achieve a specific goal, such as increasing sales, improving the stock price, enhancing customer rela- tions, or anything that would drive busi- ness results.

• You have a major upcoming event, such as an annual meeting, marketing confer- ence, keynote opportunity for an execu- tive, companywide employee meeting,

important board meeting, road show, or pending merger or sale.

• Part of the company’s business strategy is to position some experts as thought lead- ers in the industry and attract positive attention through media or marketing.

These precipitating events are a good time to raise the issue of communication develop- ment. Leaders will be more receptive to it and more willing to engage in a conversation about it, endorse it, and get behind it.

HR executives have an opportunity at this juncture to show they maintain a view from the top. By asserting how current situations

Suzanne Bates Employment Relations Today DOI 10.1002/ert

or events, as noted above, may impede corpo- rate success, they may press for communica- tion-skill development as a means to improve the outcome.

As an outside communication consultant, I have learned to ask a lot of questions that eventually lead to buy-in. By this method, I find out about challenges the organization and the individual executive face. I also gain better information, build rapport, demon- strate my expertise, and lead executives to reach their own conclusions, rather than telling them what they need.

Good questions to ask are:

• What do we want to achieve in the next one to two years?

• What is standing in our way? • How does communication play a role? • Where do you see our gaps when it comes

to communication? • What will happen if we do nothing? • What difference would it make to us if we

achieve these goals? • What is it costing not to invest in this? • How would you want to measure

improved performance?

As an HR leader, you’re aware that many of your executives don’t articulate a concern about their effectiveness as communicators. They are confident people who have risen to the top of their game. They feel comfortable getting up and giving a presentation. That, of course, does not make them inspirational speakers or leaders. Therefore, it’s up to the HR professionals in any organization to make sure that their senior executives, regardless of their level of confidence, are truly up to the task of motivating employees and communicating corporate messages to other constituencies.

As an outside communication consultant, I have learned to ask a lot of questions that eventually lead to buy-in.

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How Leaders Communicate Big Ideas to Drive Business Results Employment Relations Today DOI 10.1002/ert

Suzanne Bates is president of Bates Communications, a management consulting firm that helps business leaders and executives articulate their vision and values, speak with an authentic voice of leadership, and get a competitive edge in business. Her firm’s clients include Fidelity, Mellon, State Street, EMC, Blue Cross, Interactive Data, and Cabot Corpo- ration. She is also the author of Speak Like a CEO: Secrets for Commanding Attention and Getting Results (New York: McGraw-Hill, 2005), which has been translated into Rus- sian and Chinese. Prior to starting her successful consulting firm, she was an award- winning television news anchor and reporter. She can be reached at info@bates- communications.com or by visiting http://www.bates-communications.com.