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Archive for the ‘Lessons Learned’ Category

Lesson 104 A Seminar on Internal Politics

Posted in Internal Politics, Lessons Learned on March 14, 2012| 1 Comment »

The Council for the Advancement and Support of Education (CASE) is offering one of the first (and maybe the first and only) opportunities for advancement professionals in higher education to engage with colleagues about the internal  barriers that prevent all of us from doing what we know how to do.

Some have cautioned me that enrolling for such a seminar could actually have its own political issues. For example, they assert that attending such a seminar could have negative consequences when you openly signal that you have political issues with the institution. Or, possibly the person who needs to sign off on your attendance is your political problem. If either of these apply to you, let CASE know. You might even ask for the invoice to read “Seminar on Becoming a More Efficient Manager!”  Truthfully, that is what it will be about.

Terry Flannery, Vice President for Communication at American University, will share her experiences expanding her overall influence at an institution that has been dealing with past leadership issues; B.J. Davison, Vice President for Advancement at Frostburg State University, will show you how to survive being the primary change agent at your institution; and I will share all my “lessons learned” in the “100 years” I have been working at advancing our work in many different institutions.

People in all types of organizations tell me over and over again that addressing political issues is the major problem they face. Politics determine who gets ahead, and who doesn’t. Politics determine who gets support for their ideas and projects, and who doesn’t.

The more I hear about these situations the more I realize that we have not addressed this topic as a course of study  in any of our academic programs. We have also not addressed it in staff development sessions at professional  conferences. And so now, CASE is taking the initiative. 

We hope to have enough of you join us for this inaugural problem-solving experience. Please let us know how to frame the topic so you can attend. Contact our CASE conference manager, Ed Groves, at  groves@case.org , for more information, or to give us your suggestions on how to meet your needs on this topic.

There is no doubt about it. It is a key topic on the top of all our minds. We simply must determine how to work with each other to address it.

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Lesson 103 To Name Change or Not?

Posted in Branding, Integrated Marketing, Lessons Learned, Planning on March 8, 2012| Leave a Comment »

It is not unusual for volunteers on the board of an organization to suggest that it might be time to change its name or identity.  They can often  think that the name is too long or that it does not say what the organization does clearly enough. Or, it might be that they just don’t like it. To the inexperienced, it seems like changing a name is a relatively simple and easy decision to make. A new and upbeat name will certainly bring new life to an old institution. Experience teaches, however, that it is probably the last action that should be considered.

There are many reasons not to change a name: First of all it is much like starting a whole new organization from scratch.  A new name has no identity until it is developed over time. It therefore is very expensive to do.  It costs a lot of money, takes a lot of staff time, and requires enormous amounts of communication and advertising to get the word out to everyone. All the history of your institution goes out the window with your name, and now you face what amounts to a new start-up.

Another reason is that all donors and supporters relate to the old name and know what it stands for well enough to be engaged. Many of them are tied to its traditions, operational style, mission, and vision. With a name change they can now feel disenfranchised and uncertain about the future. Foundations, government agencies, and even some individuals that support mostly established and proven organizations  may now feel that this one has become insecure and unstable. It certainly is now communicating that it is no longer comfortable with its long-established identity.

This is not to say that many organizations would not benefit from an uplift.  But rather than a name change, consider abbreviating it.  For example, will it work to use the letters in large type as the main name, and retain the traditional name under it in smaller type?  For some organizations its letters can become it’s name. Or, if possible, just shorten the name. Edit some of the words, but keep most of it.   

Another approach might be to slightly update the logo and brand design.  Changing these too dramatically, however, can have the same negative “start over” repercussion of a name change.  And many old timers might not like it. But a slight update in design can take the familiar and give it a bit of a contemporary or forward-looking twist. Small adjustments can indeed signal a new day and establish a new spirit for most organizations, especially when accompanied with exciting and newly inspired leadership.

Usually, if you do a pro and con discussion exercise with your group you will list more cons than pros. But sometimes a new start with a new name might be the best answer. It’s very rare, but it could happen when an organization has been allowed to fail too long, or when a consolidation requires that a new name be found.

In general, however, changing the name is the last thing you should consider. Simply put, it will usually end up meaning that you, your colleagues, and your volunteers, will be starting up a whole new organization.

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Lesson 102 Employee Emails

Posted in Integrated Marketing, Lessons Learned on March 2, 2012| 1 Comment »

How many times have I slaved over every word of a sensitive email blast to staff that announced a new salary scheme, or a benefits package, or revised budget priorities for the coming year? With all my effort to be totally fair and absolutely clear certainly everyone will understand the content, all questions will be answered, and the institution’s commitment to transparency will be fully realized… and appreciated! Right?

This is what I actually thought early in my career. So when a colleague this week complained to me that a very important carefully worded email produced complaining phone calls and negative responses, I recalled an extremely hard lesson learned about management communication.  

Plainly put, people won’t read these memos from administration, and even if they do, they won’t read them carefully. And they certainly won’t absorb them with an open mind.  Most will skim them, at best. And yes, as we have noted many times in other posts, they will comprehend mostly only what they want! 

After receiving memos like this many employees will even continue to deny knowing things they now know. They won’t accept knowing them because they did not actually hear them in person  from their manager. For many people, important transactions like this are  “not real” unless delivered in person. For them change producing information rings hollow and lacks credibility without eye-to-eye contact.

And what’s even more disappointing  is that for some, being able to say “they never told me,” or “that memo was totally confusing,”  becomes a license to reactivate their continuing complaints. And this, of course, is how old rumors gain steam. Now, a well-intended email, one that sought to clarify the situation, has actually backfired.

If an announcement is important, experience teaches that you must meet with your staff to inform them, and they in turn must meet with theirs. And these meetings must take place on down the line. You must rehearse the facts of the message, and furnish a fact sheet for immediate and later reference.  A narrative or “white paper” that requires reading and comprehension will not work. These meetings must embrace and insist on feedback, response, and discussion. 

No doubt an interactive process such as this will produce better results than emails alone.  But even so, some misunderstanding will always continue and must be dealt with over time. Effective communication is an ongoing process. Success only happens with repetition, dialogue, and time.

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Lesson 101 Protecting Your Brand

Posted in Lessons Learned, Strategic Communication on February 24, 2012| Leave a Comment »

When a crisis breaks you should think immediately about protecting your brand.  Before creating your fact sheet and writing talking points you should review your branding themes in your mind.  What differentiates us from our competition? And most especially, which of our branding themes define our culture and values? Now think, how will I reinforce these themes through the crisis talking points I choose?

Consistency of message, product, and distribution is the lifeblood of brand stability.  Once defined, the key to brand effectiveness is to always deliver the same experience, and the same quality. One bad meal in a restaurant and the business can lose a customer forever. And what’s more, the word-of-mouth of that one customer can literally destroy that brand for a huge number of people. You can either be admired because the way you handled a crisis is compatible with perceptions of brand expectations, or you can destroy all trust in your organization with a disappointing level of performance.

Once the crisis moment fades you should launch a “post crisis” initiative. Your purpose should be to re-build and reinforce your fundamental brand themes, with special emphasis on those that articulate your culture and values. State the themes, and then find and tell stories that reinforce them. Repeat the themes often to remind employees and constituents what your organization is all about.  And don’t forget to continue your new-found relationships with the news media so that you have journalists who know your values when other crises strike.

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Lesson 100 Communication Always Fails

Posted in Integrated Marketing, Lessons Learned on February 16, 2012| Leave a Comment »

This was a recent topic of discussion in my graduate seminar on integrated marketing communication (IMC). There were a lot of opinions, many of them formed from hard lessons learned in real situations. It certainly is very easy to conclude from experience, and from all the communication research and theory I have encountered over the years, that it’s virtually impossible for communication to ever be effective!

A careful study of the communication process will reveal that meanings are always in the minds of the people with whom we are communicating.  When I say the word “dog” I am only making a noise, or writing a series of letters.  The meaning for that word is whatever is in the mind of the receiver for that noise or collection of letters.  Dog lovers will have one impression, and cat lovers will very likely have another! There is also noise in the channel itself, which is likely to interrupt and confuse part of the message. And what’s more, when the message is a collection of words many analysts point out that most receivers only retain about 50% of the message… and which 50% they retain is determined by what each one wants to hear!

This is how rumors start:  Let’s say the receiver hears half the message, the half he or she wants to hear. When the message is retold, some of what is remembered is left out, and other ideas and examples from this new communicator’s experiences are added.  When this process is repeated several times, the message changes completely.  And this is not the result of anyone’s malice, but rather it is the inescapable result of the normal communication process.

For professional communicators there is the added complication of an already cluttered environment. It’s a media message environment so saturated that more information runs the risk of only contributing more clutter, resulting in more confusion. In other words, in today’s world more information is not necessarily better. This is not good news for professional communicators.

So is there any hope at all for successful communication? It seems to me there is some hope, but only if several basic conditions are met:

1. The message is very simple…say 4 or 5 key points, with compelling examples to aid recollection.

2. The receivers attention is gained before the message is sent.

3. The message is sent using several communication tactics simultaneously to cut through the media clutter and coverage on each individual audience segment with added intensity.

4. Interactive tactics with feedback and response features are included in the mix.

Communication success requires repetition. When an advertisement is beginning to sound old to you, it very likely is just starting to work.  When a branding theme sounds repetitive to you, it is just now getting through.  Strategic communicators need to think “dialogue”  when planning every important communication initiative. Send, get feedback, send again, and again.  Otherwise, at least 50% of your message will be lost… and you will have no idea which 50%!

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Lesson 99 “Teaching to the Test”

Posted in Lessons Learned, Public Affairs, Strategic Communication on February 10, 2012| Leave a Comment »

Teaching is why I got into higher education in the first place. Even with the many administrative positions I held over the years, I continued to teach and lead professional development programs along the way. If there is any lesson I learned about teaching, it is that you cannot “teach to a test.” It creates an ever-expanding negative atmosphere, and eventually learning  is no longer satisfying and fun.

Teaching is about finding the talent potential within each student and working hard to develop it. Some do best with abstract thinking, or artistic expression. And they are likely to demonstrate it better by writing essays, or expressing themselves artistically, or presenting material orally. Some subjects lend themselves to memorizing facts, but many others require seeing big picture trends, thinking critically, or solving problems that have more than one right answer. This type person has the same potential for long-term career success as anyone else. He or she, however, is likely to become unmotivated in a quantitative testing environment that features threats of punishment for everyone involved–students, teachers, and administrators. 

Students with learning difficulties, no matter their cultural background, generally lack basic self-confidence and will not respond well to calculated discipline and pressure.  But an ideal teacher will find their special abilities and interests, use intellectual freedom to nurture them, and locate other mentors and influencers to reinforce them. In schools like this, pure magic can happen.

And what’s more, the teachers become energized.  This is when teaching becomes an art, and teachers get hooked on a way of life.  They sacrifice to stay in their profession rather than burn out and bail out as so many are doing today.  Most new teachers in a “teach to the test” environment last only a few years because threats out balance emotional and professional rewards.

My story as a student is a case example. A professor in junior college helped me discover that if I would pick the courses where I could write essays and term papers I could excel. Armed with this self understanding, the further along I progressed in school the better I performed. And when I eventually learned that being a teacher was really a wonderful life of “living a subject matter I could master,” I was hooked on the very profession that earlier was turning me off.

The key, therefore, to improving K-12 education is to find young people early who want to make a difference, and then help them see they can really do this as teachers. Encourage them in developing their own best talents, and make  sure they are in a learning environment that supports their quest. Simply put, teaching excellence requires the flexibility to deal with each student and situation individually, and getting to do it in a system that rewards doing it well.

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Lesson 98 College Affordability

Posted in Lessons Learned, Public Affairs, Strategic Communication on February 3, 2012| Leave a Comment »

Everyone is concerned about the cost of higher education. Make no mistake, institutions are concerned too.  But finding solutions will be difficult.

The president’s recent proposal that institutions that fail to keep tuition low will be punished by receiving less student financial aid will only be constructive if it leads to honest industry and government dialogue. Otherwise, it sets a totally negative tone, and demonstrates no comprehension of the management realities facing today’s colleges and universities. 

First, it must be acknowledged that diversity of type is what distinguishes US academic institutions in all the world. Second, that diversity means that even now there is a quality institution somewhere accessible to most everyone desiring an education. That said, virtually every institution I know is also working hard to cut expenses, and to keep its net price as low as possible.

For solutions to be found, it must first be acknowledged that each institution has a different set of factors each year that determine budget and pricing.  For example, each  one  serves a specific market, and must respond to the expectations of those in that market. For many, maintaining a high level of academic productivity with top performing faculty and state of the art facilities is expensive. Also, certain types of programs cost more to offer than others, and so financial parameters will vary widely among institutions.

For everyone the cost of maintaining buildings and grounds moves higher every year. When utilities and vendors increase prices, everything else is affected. Universities are really small cities and have similar constantly increasing maintainance challenges. And it also must be noted that costs driven by the need to monitor and comply with over 25 categories of government regulations is counterproductive to keeping costs lows.     

An acknowledgement that each institution is different, that government-funded financial aid is critical, that the amount of regulation should reconsidered, and that universities are capable of creative cost-cutting initiatives, is the constructive way forward. As with so many of the issues facing this country, if government and higher education  will  accept that each has a role to play in this solution, and will sit down together to collaborate, I have no doubt that we can make higher education available to everyone.

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Lesson 97 Reinventing Yourself

Posted in Internal Politics, Lessons Learned on January 26, 2012| Leave a Comment »

What should I do when my boss takes another job?  I often hear this question, and I heard it once again this week. 

Should I immediately update my resume?  Will a  new executive bring in a new person?  Should I just go ahead and start looking?   This is a very disturbing time for everyone, and we have all been through it. But I have found that the best and most secure approach is to use it as a time to consider “reinventing” myself! 

What I mean by this is that each transition point will likely require a slightly new you to get through it. Your best approach to this “new day” is to retool your brain: Tell your new boss that you are excited about change,  your organization will benefit from it, and that you want to be a part of it.

This means you will need to shift your focus, exhibit a rebirth of new energy, accept the inevitability of change, and be more than ready to “walk a new talk.”  You cannot sell your soul, of course. But each new boss will bring new ideas, new priorities, and a desire to make his or her mark on the organization. The most secure place you can be at a time like this is to get excited about helping to make new things happen.

What you don’t want to do is act and look defensive. You don’t want to look like you are trying to protect your turf and the way you have been doing things. You should never say, “We don’t do it that way.”  Never respond to a suggestion with, “We tried that last year and it doesn’t work.” You must resist the inevitable strong feeling that the past is not being properly honored. You must be prepared to try it all again, and to do it with the attitude that you just might learn something new this time around. It’s difficult, but just do it!

Leading change, or helping to lead change, is always more secure than resisting it. Resisting change, however, is a sure ticket to losing your job. Make no mistake!

But, sometimes all this still just doesn’t work out.  You take the initiative but the new boss still wants a new person. Or, you tried, but find you are not compatible with this “new day.”  However, you are now a self-confident, reinvented you. Armed with an updated resume and a reactivated contacts network, you now really look like an energized professional ready for a new adventure, and that attitude always attracts the best opportunities.

 

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Lesson 96 Relocation Decisions

Posted in Leadership, Lessons Learned on January 20, 2012| Leave a Comment »

I got a call this week from a colleague trying to decide whether or not to take a job offer at another institution.  He wanted my help in making his decision. These transitions are never easy, and to talk with someone not involved in the situation is always helpful. But at moments like this no one can give you the answer.

I have found that if the offer makes you curious the best thing to do is “play it out.” Do the interview and take plenty of time to work through all the pros and cons. Resist any strong tendency to make a quick decision. Ask for several interviews. Realize you will probably make multiple decisions in your mind before you settle on a course of action. And know that several of those decisions might be total opposites. 

During and immediately following a good interview people often think they will take the job. They may even tell their potential new boss that they are certain they will take the job. But then they wake up at home the next day clearly knowing they won’t do it. Each new job opportunity has its own set of issues and complications. The idea of “sleeping on it” is a very wise one. If you take your time and play it out over time, the best decision usually appears almost like magic.

When that decision is to actually take the new job, never look back.  It is a new day now, and you must declare it so. For example, never arrive at the new job with an image in your mind what a perfect organization looks like… whether it is a university, an arts organization, a business, etc. Each organization has a distinct founding mission and culture that is the consequence of its history. Your job is to learn and completely absorb all that before you help articulate a new, and compatible, vision. Your success will depend on your ability to find and communicate this particular organizaton’s best “big idea.”

Your past experience will help you analyze your choices more effectively. But never say “we did that at my last organization and it never works.” Rather, you must be prepared to test it again in this new environment and with today’s market conditions. Then, use your vast experience to bring more depth and wisdom to your analysis.

All that said, however, my colleague did what I suspected he would. He told his potential new employer that he would take the job.  He went home and slept on it. Then, he had second thoughts the very next morning!  And the decision was easily made to stay.

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Lesson 95 Reactive or Proactive?

Posted in Integrated Marketing, Internal Politics, Leadership, Lessons Learned, Planning on January 13, 2012| Leave a Comment »

As I prepare to once again teach a graduate seminar in integrated marketing communication I am reminded of my ongoing challenge to make sure that these advanced students go out into our profession fully prepared to be “proactive” professionals.

In the past, many of my graduate students come to my seminars from jobs where they are assumed to be reactive tactics experts. Managers come to them when they want to get out a press release, or need a new brochure, or want to produce a video, or promote a special event. New communication  practitioners find themselves in the role of taking orders for products.They constantly hear: “Here is what I want, when can I have it.”

My challenge always is to show my students the potential for being able to counsel managers, and eventually senior executives, about new and powerful possibilities. Indeed, experienced thinkers in our profession have the power through strategic communication tools and integrated marketing processes to literally transform organizations with their planning advice. I must show them how this works, but then also teach them the political skills essential for getting themselves in a position to function on this higher level.

The implementation steps are really simple: (1) Clarify the organization’s competitive advantage, usually referred to as “big idea” or unique brand identity. (2) Use ongoing group processes to get a critical mass of internal managers and staff “on the same page” with regard to this positioning messaging. (3) Use multi-platform communication tactics simultaneously, and select them based on researched media preference of each target market. (4) Influence management presentations by preparing talking points and offering speechwriting services. (5) And focus on high visibility initiatives, based on immediate opportunities, and implemented using carefully formed action teams.

With this understanding of the power of the profession mastered, the challenge now becomes how to use political savvy and strategies to get into a position of being able to use what we know. This involves having a “teaching plan” in mind  to help others understand our potential. It also involves imagining how to accomplish this “teaching” one step at a time– in one-on-one interviews, in regular meetings, and in other groups we can form for this purpose. And finally, it involves understanding the simple basics of grassroots politics, and how they apply to organizations.

This last topic, internal politics, is what we never seem to teach in typical academic programs, or even in professional development seminars. But, I have now come to think that it is actually the most imporant topic I can bring to these students.

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