Communicating Change: What Leaders Say vs. What People Hear

In a rapidly changing business environment, leaders face not only market challenges, but alsocommunication crisis– information overload, jargon and obscurity. Even a well-intentioned announcement of change is often met with misunderstanding or lack of interest on the part of the team. We spoke to communications expertby Michael Carter(a former journalist and consultant who has been advising global business leaders for two decades on how to effectively communicate change) to find out why there is a gap between a manager’s intent and an employee’s perception – and how to bridge it.. In the context of change communication, this is particularly important.

View on communication of changes from practice

Editor: Nowadays, everything is changing rapidly – technology, the market, the way of working. Why is communicating change in such an environment particularly challenging for leaders?

Expert (Michael Carter):You are right, we live in times where changes are coming at a dizzying pace. I say that todayordinary communication is not enough, we need communication „on steroids“. Leaders face„information smog“– all the same e-mails, meetings,a flurry of abbreviations and buzzwords. As a result, in this noise, employees often do not eventhey do not capture the essence of the link. We are currently seeing managers hittingcrisis in communication: too many acronyms, too much noise, and woefully little real claritydochangeright.com. Moreover,what a leader says and what people hear are often two different things. As business language expert Ben Feller aptly noted,„it’s notwhat you say, but whatthey hear“ dochangeright.com. In other words – even the sincere intent of management can be completely lost in translation if communication is unclear.

In short, communicating change is challenging because the environment is turbulent and peoplehave limited attention span. When a companychanges like a seesaw, employees may have trouble concentrating on your message – they are distracted by stress, noise, their own worries. The role of the leader is thereforeto carve a clear path through this noise a to communicate the change so that it permeates and resonates.

Redaktor: What are the most common mistakes or pitfalls you encounter with leaders when communicating change? What causes the aforementioned difference between intention and understanding?

Expert:Unfortunately, there are quite a few of these mistakes – I myself once experienced many of them, so I know how insidious they are. Betweenthe most common communication trapsin my opinion they belong to:

• Corporate Jargon and Abbreviations:Leaders are immersed in professional terms, projects and abbreviations, andthey tend to feed them to the team as well. The result? The message of the key change will be drowned in a flood of incomprehensible expressions. As communication PR expert Darin Smith writes,. leaders oftenbuy in abbreviations. You leave thema barrier“, simply if the information is not comprehensible onthe first try. Clarity of expressiondoes not reduce credibility.. If people don’t understand your message,, on the contrary, strengthens it.It isillusion of communication.
• . It reminds me of a famous quote:„The biggest problem in communication is the illusion that it has already been understood.“(George Bernard Shaw). This applies a hundredfold when changing – if the leaderdoes not verify that people actually understandnew strategy or instruction, often finds out the opposite only when problems arise. Years ago I myself experienced that we were launching a big project and I kept talking about. It reminds me of a famous quote:“The biggest problem in communication is the illusion that it has already been understood.”(George Bernard Shaw). This applies a hundredfold when changing – if the leaderit does not verify that people actually understandnew strategy or instruction, often finds out the opposite only when problems arise. Years ago I myself experienced that we were launching a big project and I kept talking about„transformation of the business model“. Everyone was silent so I assumed it was clear. A few weeks later, the team admitted to me that actuallyno one was clear about what exactly was expected of them– they just didn’t want to ask. It was a cold shower for me and since then I always prefer the messageI will have the teams repeat in their own words, than I would live in sweet ignorance.
• Smoothing or ignoring unpleasant topics:Sometimes leaders tend toavoid the „hot potato“. Whether it’s a potentialnegative message(for example, possible layoffs), or a controversial issue that they are afraid to open – by keeping silent or trivializing such topics, the leader canshoot yourself in the foot. People make up information in their own way and usually in the worst way. Gallup research warns that ineffective communication leaves room for rumors that increase uncertainty among employeesgallup.com. Ifmanagement does not communicate openly, a vacuum is created which quicklywill fill in the „shuskanda“– often distorted and excessively pessimistic.
• Monologue instead of dialogue:Another mistake is that the manager considers communication as a one-time notificationtop to bottom. He sends an e-mail to all employees or presents a PowerPoint and considers the matter covered. Suchdirect currentbut does not guarantee that the messagegrabs. If people are not given the opportunity to respond, ask questions, express concern, they often staysilent (and apathetic)– and the leader has a false feeling that „everything went smoothly“. Actually maybe justthey did not voice their confusion or disagreement.

Of course, we would find more of those mistakes, but these four –overly complicated language, presumption of understanding, avoidance of sensitive topics and one-sided communication– are among the most widespread. The good news is that they can be avoided.Realizing them is the first step– and the second is to replace them with better communication habits.

Editor: So let’s get to the better approaches – what works? What advice would you give leaders so that their team really understands and buys into their vision instead of remaining apathetic?

Expert:Here isa few principles of effective communication, which have proven themselves in practice and which I also teach clients:

• Speak the language of your people.Simply andunderstandable, without managerial gibberish. Try to avoid unnecessary abbreviations and foreign words – if you use them, explain them. Don’t worry that simple language will reduce your authority. Quite the opposite,clarity builds trust. When leadership says“Raising CX with KPIs on QE2”, most employees will just nod incomprehendingly. Instead, say something like:„We want to improve the customer experience – that’s why we set two specific metrics and will track them this quarter.“Understandable and concrete.If you are unsure whether people will understand you, have someone read the sentence to you.„Would an intelligent person outside our bubble understand this?“– if not, reword itprdaily.com.
• Adapt both form and content to the audience.You communicate differently with IT developers and differently with salespeople in the field. Different with the whole company and different with a small team.Consider what the audience is most interested in– and start with just that. Ask yourself:„If I were in their place, what would I want to know first? What would bother me?“Answer these questions before they are asked. For example: If you are announcing a major change in strategy,the specialist will be interested in, whether he will lose his job or whether his job will change – try to cover these questions in your message. Equally important ischoose the right tone and channel: sometimes an e-mail is enough, other times a personal meeting is necessary; sometimes a formal announcement, other times a more relaxed conversation. Effective leadersthey have a feel for the audience– they can estimate how many details and what form of communication people will appreciate.
• Create a dialogue and listen to feedback.As we said, one-way communication is a dead end. Instead,ask the team for questionsand discussion. Make it known thatno question is stupid or off limits. For example, you say:„Any concerns or concerns you have are important – let’s address them.“And thenreally listen. When people ask questions or express disagreement,don’t take it personallynot even as an attack. On the contrary, be grateful – it means they care enough about the change to talk to you about it. Listen to critical comments without getting defensive. Reactwith respect and sincerely. If you don’t know something, admit it andpromise to find out the answer gallup.com. This is how you builda culture of trust, in which unpleasant thingsthey don’t sweep it under the rug, but they solve on the level.
• Check for understanding.Don’t leave it to chance. After the big announcement, take your time andcheck if your message came out the way you wanted. Ask the team for example:„Try to summarize in your own words what will change and why – let me know if I have explained everything clearly.“It may sound strange, butit works– often it is revealed during such an exercise that you are different peopleinterpreted the message differently. It is better to find out now and clarify than later to extinguish the consequences of misunderstandings. Comprehension checkis not a buzzword, but a manifestation of the leader’s responsibility for communication. There is a saying in the coaching community:“Communication only happened when the other party understood what you meant.”This means that until you are sure that everyone understands, you have not fully communicated.
• *Communicatecontinuous, consistent and multi-channel. One big presentation is not enough. If you want people to accept the change,talk about her repeatedly. For different people, the message „lights up“ in their heads at different times – someone needs to hear the informationseven times and in seven different waysclearpointstrategy.com, before he identifies with her. Use multiple communication channels: meetings, e-mails, internal chat, video message from the CEO, FAQ document… Repetition is not harmful,if the intention is clearand consistent. Of course, you don’t need to include ballast every day – but make sure thateveryone knows where the company is going and what is expected of them, is key. Legendary management guru John Kotter found that most transformations fail also because leadersunderestimate the communication of vision– it is often communicated byonly a decimal compared to the required range. Kotter nailed it:„Without trusted communication – anda good dose ofcommunication – you’ll never win the hearts and minds of your employees.“clearpointstrategy.comIn other words, if you think that alreadyyou communicate enough, communicate even more. Better to inform too often than to leave people with an information vacuum that breeds uncertainty.
• Be honest and empathetic.When communicating changes,you cannot avoid difficult topics– whether it is about the effects on people or admitting one’s own mistakes. The rule here is:clearly = kindly. As Brené Brown says,„Clear is kind. Unclear is unkind.“(Obscurity is cruelty). For example, if the reason for the change is that the business is struggling with results,don’t walk around hot messfancy words about „strategic reallocation of resources“. Say it straight, with humanity:„Our sales have fallen, we have to save and look for new opportunities, otherwise we will be at a loss in a year.“At the same timeacknowledge people’s feelings: „I understand that this news may cause concern.…“* and reassure them thattogether you can handle this change. When a leader openly admits even negatives and showshuman face, employees are more likely to believe the positives.Trust is created when it is seen that you are not hiding anything. And if there are things you don’t know or can’t post yet, explain that too: for example„I cannot give the details of the planned salary changes yet, because we have not yet definitively approved them – but as soon as they are, you will know them.“People also accept uncertainty better if they at least know,what are theon  and that theiryou don’t lead by the nosegallup.com.

These principles –simplicity, audience adaptation, dialogue and listening, comprehension check, regular communication a openness with empathy– they can do wonders with corporate communication. Sure, it sounds like a lot of extra work, but it’san investment that will pay off handsomely. When people really understandwhat, why and howis changing, not only are they more willing to accept that change – they often get actively involved themselves, come up with ideas and help overcome obstacles.

Editor: You mentioned that you also experienced situations where the team did not understand the strategy as the leader intended. Could you give a concrete example from practice?

Expert:Definitely. One story I like to share (anonymously of course) is about a manager namedTomas. He ran a medium-sized business and decided to introduce a brand newdigital strategy. He had a big vision: to transform a traditional business into a modern, data-driven enterprise. At the staff meeting, he announced„a new innovative strategy focused on digitization and optimization of processes using advanced analytics“. He sounded very confident and erudite – at least to himself. After the speech, there was silence in the room, no one asked anything. Tomas took it assign of agreement and understanding. He was even proud of how smoothly it went.

A few weeks later, however, he ran into a problem: the digital transformation project was stalled. People were submitting assignments late,some teams progressed in a completely different direction, than Tomáš expected. As he began to search for the cause, he came up withunpleasant discovery – most employees actually did not understand, what the new strategy is about. The interviews revealed that:a)Tomáš used terms that ordinary workers did not understand (e.g. “advanced analytics” – an ordinary worker had no idea whether this meant that he would receive new software or that it would be replaced by artificial intelligence), andb)no one was sure,what is expected of him personally. Everyone isfrom Tomáš’s lavish speech heard something else: The IT department thought it was mainly about new technologies, the marketers had the impression that direct communication with customers was going to be disrupted, and the rank-and-file administrators honestly had no idea,how their „advanced innovations“ relate to.

Tomáš was surprised – after all, he explained it clearly, didn’t he? The truth was thatcommunicated but did not communicate effectively. He realized that he had made several of the aforementioned mistakes: he spoke in a language that he understood,not the audience; did not check understandingand he did not invite the people to ask; andpainted a vision in abstract colors, instead ofgrounded on concrete examplesfor each department.

Fortunately, he was able to correct this mistake. He called a series of smaller meetings with each team separately.Translated byyour big vision into the speech of specificchanges in their daily work. For example, he showed the logistics team:„Look, until now you had to write out forms by hand – now introduce a tablet and an app that will do it for you, so you can solve real customer problems faster instead of paperwork.“He explained to marketers that a digital strategy does not mean they lose touch with the customer, but thatthey get better dataabout clients‘ preferences, so that they can tailor solutions to them. And so on.Simply, he turned the watchtower of the visionary into small coins of practical changes.

At the same time, he opened the discussion:„What bothers you about this change? What is not clear to you?“– and answered questions patiently. He had to find out some answers after the fact, but people appreciated his approach. Finallythey understood „why“ and „how“of that change. Team morale improved and the project moved forward. Tomáš later admitted to me that this was one of the biggest lessons of his career:Communication is not a one-time act, but a dialogue; and the point is not to speak nicely, butbe understood.

Editor: So what should every leader keep in mind when communicating change? Can you sum it up in one or two sentences?

Expert: Communication is one of the most important leadership tools for change– it does not pay to underestimate her. The success of changes depends not only on the right strategy, but mainly onwill people accept her as their. And that will only happen when they understand it, believe in it and feel part of it. Thereforeopenness, clarity and empathy in communicationthey decide whether the team your vision *will enthusiastically support or remain apathetic. The leader must also beboth a good storyteller and a patient listener. In conclusion, I would like to emphasize:Communicate so that itthey felt with their hearts and understood with their heads. When you can do this, you win – your team will support you even in the most tumultuous changes.