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6 steps to turn good managers into great communicators

6 steps to turn good managers into great communicators By Bryant Hilton

The trick is to make effective messaging a key part of what managers already do. The payoff is enhanced staff engagement and retention. Follow these guidelines.

Employees prefer—and expect—direct communication from their managers.

Nearly every measure of employee sentiment or engagement tells us so.

It makes sense: Managers are closest to people’s day-to-day work and should have timely and relevant information for them, as well as being regularly available for dialogue and answering ques-tions

Meanwhile, employee communicators are working harder and harder—and on more platforms than ever before—yet they still face a “communications cliff” in reaching front-line employees.

Most engagement surveys and communications audits will uncover one major reason: Some man-agers are not actively communicating with their teams.

Technology goes only so far

Technological advances and changing workforces have made it possible for communicators to reach employees directly and with relevance. Think of your latest ultra-targeted email delivery program, social media channels for work teams, mobile applications and more. Yet nothing fully replaces the direct, two-way communication with a manager that employees want.

The solution lies in creating a system that helps supervisors become active and accountable com-municators. Execute it well, and it should pay off in stronger engagement, better flow of informa-tion and new relationships with “listening post” managers throughout your organization. It will also amplify your other efforts to inform, excite and engage employees.

One obstacle to that solution is that some organizations launch parts of a manager communica-tions effort but not an entire program. Here’s another: Manager communication strategies don’t factor in the time and resources needed to run a sustainable program. In short, “one and done” approaches to manager communications are rarely effective.

Here are some tips to help you turn your managers into effective communicators and keep the program running long after you launch it.

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6 steps to turn good managers into great communicators By Bryant Hilton

1. Take measurements.

As in any new communications effort, data can be a powerful tool. You’ll want access to informa-tion that helps you secure resources for your program, underscores the need for a manager com-munications program when you are building your overall communications plan, and emphasizes to managers that solid communication is a big part of being a good manager.

A wealth of online information documents low employee engagement scores, highlighting that managers’ relationships with their employees, as well as their own communication shortfalls, are at least partly responsible. Factor in what it takes in time and money to replace talented people, and you’ve got a good argument for a comprehensive manager communications program.

A communications audit will give you specific and actionable information about the need for better manager communications. You can conduct a simple audit, specifically addressing how manager communications is working, for very little money and time. You’ll gain information that will help you argue for more resources and overcome resistance from managers.

2. Get into your managers’ minds.

Some will resist assuming the role of communicator. Here are some common objections: • “I’m not paid to communicate.” • “You’re the communicator, aren’t you?” • “Where would I find the time to communicate?” • “No one told me I’d have to do this.” • “I have no idea what to say.” Or, “I’m not sure how I’d answer questions I may receive.”

To overcome these objections, share your mini-audit data about how employees want managers to communicate openly and regularly—and that leaders expect a qualified manager to do so. Make the “bottom line” argument by sharing the statistics about the loss in productivity and cost of hir-ing new talent when a good person leaves.

Then stress how you’ll help them to be better communicators as part of what they are already doing—not as an add-on to their crowded to-do list.

It’s also important to anticipate that different types of managers will have distinct needs for com-munications support. Front-line supervisors need information that is easy to find, digest and

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6 steps to turn good managers into great communicators By Bryant Hilton

share—they don’t have time to dig for details. On the upside, front-line supervisors often meet daily with their teams, affording them plenty of opportunities to communicate.

“Middle managers” often like context. How does the information you’re asking them to communi-cate fit into the bigger picture, and how can they best explain it? These managers may be among the most time-strapped, so offer a backgrounder or FAQ document.

Executives and other leaders often have their own agenda and voices that they want worked into communications. These managers might require bespoke programs and custom support. Often they are leaders of leaders, so their influence reaches deep into the organization.

If you can help key executives become active communicators, and they in turn require the same of the leaders below them, you’ll start to make significant change.

3. Make your training memorable.

All too often, a person is promoted based on technical ability, but the organization doesn’t offer adequate—or any—training on how to manage staff. Beyond that, most manager training pro-grams fail to address communications.

The good news is that internal communicators themselves can train managers about communica-tion. Running training on your own means you can get closer to managers across the organization and train them on skills on which you are the “resident expert.”

When launching this training, include “Communications 101” topics. They might seem basic, but they provide solid concepts and skills that will benefit your managers throughout their careers.

Among them:

• Use outcome-based approaches. (What do you want an audience to do, feel or know after you communicate?)

• Anticipate what your audience needs, in terms of timing, messaging, context and more. • Focus on two-way communications. Listening is as important as delivering information. • Get comfortable with saying, “I don’t know.”

As for the training itself, make it memorable. Have fun by including employee photos to illustrate the slides, insert real examples from your organization, and use exercises to make the training interactive.

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6 steps to turn good managers into great communicators By Bryant Hilton

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When feasible, go to managers where they work, and train in small groups of 10 to 12. Group the managers by similar level and location, but diversify otherwise. Whenever possible, you (or a team member) should deliver the training yourself. It’ll forge valuable connections throughout the organization.

4. Give them content, and they will use it.

Once managers are trained to communicate, establish a plan to deliver content they can use when communicating with their teams. Focus on making the material easy to find, use and understand.

Keep in mind the different types of managers and how they will access data. You may have to provide one set of managers a 100-word summary or three key points about a subject to get them to share. Others might share a few slides in a team meeting or speak in depth about a topic, if properly briefed.

To help them, plan for a manager-focused “cut” of content whenever possible. Provide it to man-agers in advance of a mass notification to employees. Your managers will feel prepared to answer questions and will anticipate looking for content to share.

Over time, your managers can become primary resources for telling you what staffers want or need to hear, helping make your internal communications more relevant, timely and effective.

5. Make the system sustainable.

The launch of your program and the training won’t be effective if you do it only once. To make it valuable, you must make it sustainable.

Plan for training new managers as they step into a post (new to the company or new to a manage-rial role). A partnership with HR can help you identify candidates for training. Over time, you’ll learn which content for managers is the most used—and most useful—so you can continually improve what you offer.

Once you have trained all current managers, start planning for “Communications 201” training. That may include spokesperson or messaging training, presentation training or something unique to your organization’s needs.

6 steps to turn good managers into great communicators By Bryant Hilton

6. Budget with purpose, and keep lots of data.

It takes time and resources to run a manager communications program well. If resources are available, you can hire experts to help with some or all of the training. If you hire a contractor, sit in on some sessions, even leading some. The connections you make with people in different parts of the organization will be invaluable.

If resources are limited and you must build the program yourself, identify which activities you can stop doing or must delegate so you have time to focus on launching a top-quality program.

Most of all, track your own data. How many managers have been trained? Where and when were they trained? What was some of the objective and subjective feedback? The information you col-lect will help you keep track of how effective and far-reaching your program is, give you ideas for improvement, and help you report to your leaders about the difference you are making.

When your organization next conducts an engagement survey, you’ll be able to cross-reference your records and see whether the managers you have trained are notching higher engagement scores. That’s information you’ll want to pass on to the top-tier executives.

Final thoughts

Adopt the crawl/walk/run approach. You don’t need perfection on day one; you just need a plan to establish and sustain a great program. With planning, you can turn your managers into active communicators, and they will amplify all your other employee communication programs.

Employees should hear companywide messages repeated by their managers. In turn you’ll wind up with expansive relationships that can give you the real-time pulse of your organization. Best of all, you’ll deliver on something employees always ask for—open and direct communica-tion from their managers—and thereby improve engagement.

That’s a great return on your invested effort.

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6 steps to turn good managers into great communicators By Bryant Hilton

Bryant A. Hilton

Bryant is a global communications leader who is passionate about the power of standout employee communications to help organizations achieve business objectives and become the companies that people clamor to join. He works with organizations to design and manage employee communications strategies that increase engagement, especially during times of transition, growth, and crisis. His firm Great Communicate, helps organizations find their unique story, create compelling efforts to tell it, build employ-er brands, and increase employee engagement.

Bryant brings his clients deep communications experience from working for and with a wide-range of global organizations. Those in-clude agency and corporate assignments, experience as a business owner, work with both small and Fortune 50 companies, and roles with global responsibility both inside and outside of the U.S.

Most recently he is helping a global software company maintain engagement and retention as the company undertakes a major shift in strategic direction to jumpstart growth and a new executive team charts the new course. He also recently enabled a global technology company maintain engagement year-over-year through the redesign of the employee communications strategy following that company’s acquisition by a global conglomerate and the launch of ef-forts to grow global headcount by 50 percent.

He spent four years leading global internal communications for CHC Helicopter – an offshore helicopter operator working primarily with oil and gas companies. There, as part of a corporate turnaround, the creation of an employee communications function increased job satisfaction scores by 22 points and overall engagement by 12 points.

Before that, Bryant led several communications roles for Dell including creating the company’s corporate responsibility communications function covering sustainability, diversity and philan-thropic efforts, and leading consumer market communications for the company in the U.S. and Europe. He began his career in Washington, D.C., working with Dittus Communications (now Story Partners), MCI, Ketchum Public Relations and the Personal Communications Industry As-sociation.

Bryant holds a B.A. in Business Administration from Georgetown University, and is proud to call Austin, Texas, home.

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Are you bored with your own communications?

Do you have constipated content, vapid videos or

underwhelming engagement?

Don’t panic. We can help.Long-time journalists Mark Ragan and Jim Ylisela created Ragan Consulting Group to help communicators tell amazing stories that audiences value and prove the importance of engaging content to their leaders.

No matter what your team needs—big or small—Mark, Jim and the entire RCG team will work with you to retool, refresh and even reinvent your communications. We offer customized coaching, virtual or in-house training and full consulting programs for:

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Don’t let your content become boring and bland. Let us help.

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Stories rule. Let us help you find, tell and share yours.

It all starts with a conversation.Email Rebecca Shaffer at Rebecca.Shaffer@raganconsulting.com

or call her directly at 312-960-4202.