Q. What would you tell other leaders about defining a direction for a company?
Be relentless in your communication; be transparent and be clear. Live it, don’t just say it. Practice it every day. A key is to overcommunciate, which means being completely transparent and accessible and, as leaders, being accountable ourselves. It’s not putting yourself above anyone. You want your people to know that you’re right there for them and you’re in the trenches with them. Gregg and I both think that it’s just so important to make time for your employees, just like you’d make time with one of your clients or customers. You have to be disciplined about that. You have to make the time. That means doing whatever it takes to make that time, whether it’s scheduling time in your Outlook calendar, taking your people out for coffee or lunch. Just don’t put it on the back burner. You’ve probably heard the cliché that our best assets go down the elevator every night. At Brokaw, it’s more like a 16-foot spiral staircase.
Q. How do you make time to focus your employees on your vision?
Face to face is the key. Making time for face-to-face communication. Especially in this world today, where there is a thousand ways to reach someone, whether it’s Twitter or Facebook or Skype or whatever. Face to face is still the most effective way to communicate. It all goes back to making the time, being accessible to your employees, letting them know that the door is always open. In the case of Brokaw, we’re a small shop and our physical space is very open. I’m often out in the open with our employees. We almost share a little too much information, if that’s possible. We have two closed-door offices in our space, which we use for private meetings. Having open space in the office shows your people that you’re not above them, that you’re working with them. It’s another thing that speaks to our leadership style, being open with our communication and having an open environment, as well.
How to reach: Brokaw Inc., (216) 241-8003 or www.brokaw.com
