Great CEOs and C-suite executives never underestimate the power and influence their message can have on the business. They realize a crystal-clear message — that generates strategically aligned decisions and actions — is what separates high-performing companies from the also-rans.
However, most CEOs underestimate what it takes to deliver a message employees truly embrace and the work required to convert that message into desired business results.
Great CEO communicators don’t make this mistake. They spend a significant amount of time working with experts to formulate their message. They get outside counsel to ensure that message is relevant and resonates with stakeholders up and down the organization. They also put control mechanisms in place to ensure the message does not get diluted as it filters its way through the organization and into the customer experience.
One of the great CEO communicators was Jack Welch, retired business executive and former CEO of General Electric. Like him or hate him, he knew how to convert a message into action. In the book, “Jacked Up,” the author describes how Welch took the time to review every senior-level presentation his top team delivered at the company. Some would say he did this because he was a control freak. However, great CEO communicators see the genius in this disciplined action.
Welch put this process in place to make sure his message was understood by leaders, translated correctly and delivered consistently up and down the organization. Great CEO communicators realize this is just one of many methods they must put in place if they want the message to manifest itself into desired business outcomes.
A recent Harvard Business Review article stated, “Understanding the importance of being understood is what makes great CEOs great communicators.” However, in today’s always-on, noisy and hyper-connected business world, being heard (much less understood) has become extremely challenging for CEOs.
That’s why CEOs must be extremely intentional about formulating and managing their message. To do this, they need to get outside counsel, put rigorous pull-through processes in place and follow a disciplined cadence.
That’s Your OnMessage Minute.
