A bishop and a manager walk into a conference room…

Organization communication dynamics at play in the business of supporting the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

The Initial Request• The organization is looking to simplify Church

messaging efforts, especially in digital channels.

• Part of this effort is the creation of a style guide to create a stronger user experience on member-facing websites.

• I was asked to research and recommend a process for implementing and maintaining this style guide.

So how’s it been happening up to now?

This is a new process under new leadership.

But we’ve been creating websites for twenty years.

How does this inform the new process?

So how’s it been happening up to now?

This is a new process under new leadership.

But we’ve been creating websites for twenty years.

How does this inform the new process?

This meant taking a step back to understand the organizational communication dynamics behind how the corporation works.

Traditional Bureaucracy

Bureaucracies are built for efficiency. Clearly defined titles and roles allow that to happen.

Individuals gain power in each bureaucratic structure (silo) through demonstrated expertise and experience: new titles and new roles.

There’s allocative efficiency in each department doing its own thing with its own bureaucratic structure (silo).

Referential power is given by the silo.

Referential power is given by the silo.

What happens when new innovations require cross-department collaboration?

What happens when new innovations require cross-department interaction?

Group members will attempt to establish referential power one with another (perhaps through functional theory or garbage can model decision making).

What happens when new innovations require cross-department interaction?

Group members will attempt to establish referential power one with another (perhaps through functional theory or garbage can model decision making).

When referential power can’t be established and collaboration stalls, the group will likely either disband or resort to reward/coercion power plays.

Individuals and departments use strategic ambiguity to consolidate power and exert influence on other departments.

Key Findings

Individuals and departments use strategic ambiguity to consolidate power and exert influence on other departments.

Individuals and departments use strategic ambiguity to consolidate power and exert influence on other departments.

Illusion of Precedence In our organization, precedent equals approval. Messages are not created equal and do not share equal priority. If a group can draw comparisons between their new effort and something that’s previously been done (whether it’s comparable or not is another issue all together), it increases the likelihood of approval.

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Individuals and departments use strategic ambiguity to consolidate power and exert influence on other departments.

Illusion of Scarcity Individuals/groups can minimize the role of input from others through creating timelines and resource constraints based on timelines that pinch the planning, research, and creative process.

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Individuals and departments use strategic ambiguity to consolidate power and exert influence on other departments.

Illusion of Authority To consolidate power, a manager might suggest a timeline or other elements of a product to their ecclesiastical leadership, and then communicate such to other departments in terms that imply that such was the request/requirement of the ecclesiastical leadership.

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Individuals and departments use strategic ambiguity to consolidate power and exert influence on other departments.

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• Illusion of Precedence

• Illusion of Scarcity

• Illusion of Authority

Individuals and departments use strategic ambiguity to consolidate power and exert influence on other departments.

Key Findings

Individuals and departments use strategic ambiguity to consolidate power and exert influence on other departments.

New initiatives involving multiple departments in a traditional bureaucracy make the most progress when they have clear executive sponsorship.

Key Findings

New initiatives involving multiple departments in a traditional bureaucracy make the most progress when they have clear executive sponsorship.

The organization is built to:

The organization is being asked to:

An executive sponsor creates effective relational power across the organization.

Culturally, we’re all invested in doing what the ecclesiastical leadership asks us to do. An executive sponsor has a direct line to that group.

Individuals and departments use strategic ambiguity to consolidate power and exert influence on other departments.

New initiatives involving multiple departments in a traditional bureaucracy make the most progress when they have clear executive sponsorship.

Key Findings

Recommendations

Provide clear data and documentation for each

decision.

Align the new style-guide process with the CSC.

Collect business objectives through

the process.

Clearly identify roles and process (create

referential power documentation).

Executive sponsor “road show” with

department leadership.

Thank You.