Q. What are the keys to getting messages through the whole company?
I’ve tried to be hands-on as much as I can be. I attend meetings of our various committees. But I also recognize that with some 378 people, that can’t always be done effectively. So I certainly rely on my other leaders in the firm … to communicate directly with people that are on their committees.
The key is to be as direct and personal as possible, but recognize your limitations and then utilize the structure of the firm to take up where you can’t be.
I would directly meet with those leaders and express my thoughts and decisions so that they can know for sure what I’m thinking and how I’m approaching the situation. So I would have certainly directly communicated with them before they would meet with their committee members. I don’t expect them to take what I say word-by-word to their committee members, but what I want them to communicate is the general message. They would always have latitude to do it in the way in which they see fit.
Q. Who do you empower to carry on your messages?
People are either recognized as leaders by titles or by their work ethic and their abilities. So I certainly would not hesitate to go to somebody in the firm who might not be on the executive committee but whom I know has good communication skills and ask them, for example, to chair a meeting of associates to discuss various matters. It’s recognizing abilities and leadership qualities and not just titles.
Your perception that that person is recognized by co-workers as somebody who understands and excels in his position — that would be one way to identify such a person. But also if you could couple that with communication skills, that would be also a large part of the decision-making. Imparting decisions or thought processes about where the company’s going can be best suited to somebody who is good in communicating to others.
Language skills — how to present ideas and thoughts to a group of people — are very important. But also, I envision that there would be a back and forth, perhaps question and answer. So [look for] somebody who has not just the ability to give the initial message but somebody who understands the vision of the company and can respond to questions that are posed by other employees.
… Over time, you get a sense for people who have the abilities to communicate, understand concepts and then pass those concepts along to others.
How to reach: Dickie, McCamey & Chilcote PC, (800) 243-5412 or www.dmclaw.com
