Keeping People Plugged In

It’s anybody’s guess how long the current economic malaise will be with us, or how deeply it will affect our employers and careers. Depending on whom you work for and your industry, you may either be feeling paranoid, secure, or something in between.

As noted previously here, these difficult times demand the best from everyone to help minimize the damage that this economy might visit upon an organization. Companies cannot afford to have employees distracted by fear of job loss, or by spending the workday looking for other opportunities.

Successful companies are those that keep employees engaged in the challenges at hand by communicating often and keeping them well apprised of the evolving situation. Conversely, when employees are kept in the dark, left to read the tealeaves and draw their own conclusions, they usually infer the worst and operate accordingly.

In this regard, I must remark on the communications of one senior manager in particular. An acquaintance of mine is on the sales team at this company and has shared a selection of email missives from his boss, the VP for North American sales. This man’s communiqués are effective, for a number of reasons.

It’s tough to stay in touch with a sales team spread across a large continent, so he relies on email, phone calls and an annual sales conference. He writes a weekly email update for his entire North American sales force, as well as miscellaneous notes now and then. In addition, there is a steady stream of timely personal emails and phone calls to individual salespeople. Collectively, this steady flow of communication keeps his team informed and plugged in – exactly what a manager should do, particularly during tough times.

Each weekly update highlights the recent sales “wins” and serves up ample helpings of plaudits for all those involved. It mentions current efforts to close a particular sale, or the on-going efforts of an individual rep to establish and build credibility at an account currently held by a competitor.

The updates also include year-over-year sales data, as well as mentions of sales people’s outside activities, especially those that give back to their local communities. Personal news is included, such as someone’s 25th anniversary with the company. And people are encouraged to submit ideas, evidenced by their frequent citations in the weekly emails.

But I was particularly impressed with a note this sales VP sent out last week about the state of the economy and how it is affecting the company and its future. Without coming right out and saying so, the VP was clearly answering a lot of unasked questions that are nagging at his sales force as they face diminished sales opportunities. No doubt he gleaned these through his regular interactions with them.

After writing initially about the economy’s effects on their industry, he went on to say that the company was, like most, facing significant challenges maintaining momentum in the face of a tough economy. It is making a number of cost cuts and difficult choices, he wrote. But, as he explained, each cut had been made intelligently, with a full appreciation of its impact. He also thanked the team for offering some very good suggestions for saving money and then cited those that had been selected by the executive team for enactment across the entire company.

He closed the note by reminding his team that they are best when they unite in a common effort, and expressed the opinion that they are, as a team, well positioned to ride out the storm and emerge stronger afterwards.

As an outside observer, reading these communiqués, the sense comes through clearly that there is a well-established avenue of communication between and among the head of sales and his team and, consequently, a lot of mutual trust. My friend’s positive attitude about the company and its long-term prospects reinforce my impression. He and the rest of the sales team are able to maintain the long view rather than focus on the negative of the moment.

There is a genuineness that comes through in these many communiqués, a real sense of empathy and understanding that is often missing in executive communications. I also know that the VP of sales is warmly regarded by his team and is very personable at the group’s annual sales conferences.

I regret I cannot reveal the company or the sales leader responsible for this quality communications. But I do feel I can cite it anonymously as an example of the kind of communications that need to be practiced – in good times and, especially, bad – to assure a common sense of purpose among employees and their management.

It’s not the only route out of a sour economy, but good communications sure go a long way toward keeping key people engaged in the task at hand, facing challenges head-on with their best talents. If more companies and managers operated as this gentleman does, I’m confident that fewer companies would be on the precipice, as there now seem to be.