Chapter 10 Communication Strategies Change Management Chapter 10 Communication Strategies

Communication Strategies The way change is communicated is important to the success of the change program What the change manager thinks is possible in communicating change (e.g. ability to control rather than shape information about it) will depend on their image of managing change

How do the various styles view communication? Director Ensure people understand what is going to happen and what is required of them. Communication strategies need to ensure that there is no message overload or message distortion Navigator: Similar to director but pay attention to identifying alternative interests that may disrupt the proposed change. “Tell and sell” communication techniques are used to try to win people over to the change. Caretaker: Focus is on letting people know about the “why” of change, that is, the inevitability of the changes and how best to cope or survive them. “Identify and reply” (reactive) communication strategy is used.

Styles ctd. Coach Focus is on ensuring people share similar values and are aware of what actions are appropriate to these values. The focus of the coach is “getting buy-in” to the change through shared values and the use of “positive emotions.” “Underscore and explore” interactions are used to engage in dialogue about the change. Interpreter Interpreters provide staff with a sense of “what is going on” through story telling, metaphors, and so on. They recognize that not all will buy in to the story of change, but the aim is to provide the most dominant account. “Rich” communication media are most favored. Nurturer The nurturer image leads change managers to reinforce the view that processes cannot always be predicted and that often outcomes will occur that are innovative and creative for an organization even though few people could have anticipated what these might be prior to their occurrence.

Communication Components Message Feedback Channel Sender/receiver Encoding/decoding Noise

Communication Problems There are many problems that can disturb the process of communication: message overload Too much information message distortion Problems sending and receiving message ambiguity Not specific enough (see Nelson & Coxhead, 1997)

Communication Context Use of language Imperative – sit down! Conditional – would you like to sit down? Empathetic – you look tired, why don’t you sit down Could also be condescending Power Who sends the message has communicative value Gender Getting credit – ‘I’ versus ‘we’ Confidence & boasting – women downplay certainty, men downplay doubts Asking questions – women ask more questions than men Unmarked categories: If gender, race, sexual identity, disability status are not identified in a communication then what do we assume Can be seen as exclusionary. Can we become less alpha male?

Emotion and communication Emotion also impact on how information about a change will be received. Emotional arguments Negative words about change failing, positive words about future Use of metaphors, music, colors, slogans, pictures, humor Display (appropriate) emotions during presentation Body language, facial expressions, speech tones, feelings Emphasize fairness and justice Ceremonies, pleasant atmosphere, use of teams A perceived threat can lead to negative emotions Try taking the staff’s perspective, Using threat-reducing behaviors, Personal reflection

Approaches to Communicating It is possible to overload employees with too much information on change especially where the communication is one way and does not allow input by the recipient. Communication strategies will vary depending on whether the focus on “getting the word out” versus “getting buy-in” Change through value propositions (Guaspari 1996) What’s in it for me People want: Accurate, timely information and feedback A logical explanation for the decision Open and honest communication and exchange of ideas Have a “value proposition” for workers (see Table 10.7)

Continuum A communication strategy continuum includes five approaches: Spray and pray Tell and sell Underscore and explore Identify and reply Withhold and uphold (Clampitt et al., 2000) These approaches vary in effectiveness of communication and the amount of information transmitted Underscore and explore is assumed to be most effective Group exercise 10.3

Contingency Approaches Contingency approaches to communicating strategy vary depending: on the type of change e.g. Developmental or incremental (involvement) Task-focused (top-down, formal) Charismatic (top-down, symbolic, emotional) Turnaround (top-down, formal, coercive) (Stace & Dunphy, 2001) on the stage of change e.g. Planning – logical,inspirational Enabling – logical, inspirational, supportive Launching – logical, commanding Catalyzing – inspirational, supportive Maintaining – inspirational, supportive (Reardon & Reardon, 1999) Is it really so easy?

Communication media Varies in “richness” depending on how personal its ability to communicate change Non-routine, difficult problems require richer communication styles For example, an email or memo is less personal (and less “rich”) than a face to face meeting

Communication processes How change gets communicated needs to take into account issues such as: Message Style, what information, how much detail, source (who delivers) Timing Channels The communication of change in large organizations will vary and draw upon a range of processes Supervisor briefings (10.11), tag teams, cascade process How effective are each?

Exercise Complete Exercise 10.3 (p. 305) What works best for you? Consider transformational & incremental What information would you like From whom would you prefer to get it? In what format would you prefer? Individual, group, other? What would be the best media source? How do these answers shape your view of communicating change?

Agilent Case Questions How would you describe Agilent’s communication process? Did they focus more on “getting the word out” or “getting buy-in”? Dunphy and Stace argue that communication in a turnaround situation should be top-down, formal and coercive. Why didn’t Agilent follow this advice? What are the limits to an open communication style when faced with ongoing rounds of downsizing? What else might be done to retain staff motivation?