Ordinary Greatness by Pamela Bilbrey

Author:Pamela Bilbrey
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Wiley
Published: 2010-05-11T00:00:00+00:00

Cascade Messaging

Remember the game once played as children sitting in a circle with one person whispering a sentence that is then whispered to the next person and so on until the last person receives the message? When the last person shares what they heard with the group, the final message is typically nothing like the first message. So it is with organizational communication. As messages are passed along or “cascaded” through the organization, via different leaders with different styles and different interpretations, the original message becomes convoluted.

One of the most common organizational communication issues we see is how leaders convey information. For instance, after attending a monthly management meeting, leaders share the highlights with their staff all in the name of transparency—a good thing. However, it is highly possible that each leader in the room heard the information differently and drew their own conclusions about which highlights should be shared with staff. Each leader goes out with the best intentions about sharing, but the messages are different and often conflicting, creating misalignment in communication. An effective practice we have observed is the inclusion of a final item on the agenda of the management meeting that reviews in very specific terms the key messages that should be cascaded once the leaders leave the room. Before everyone leaves the meeting, there must be clarity on the messaging to be shared and a commitment to the agreed-upon action steps.

We recommend that each cascade communication be put through a four-step filter to ensure its relevance and its ability to connect with the intended audience.

• Message. What are the key points that need to be communicated? How does the message connect to the interests and needs of the recipients?

• Media.What venues can be used to get the message out?

• Managerial Effort. What is the role of leadership in the cascade messaging effort?

• Repetitive Messaging. How will the message be reinforced?

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.