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Taming the Grapevine in Three Steps

As I walked into a corporate cafeteria one day several years ago, I immediately felt that the weather inside was the same as outside: cold and gloomy. I grabbed my lunch and located a table of my pals. Before I even sat down, my friend Joe announced, “Kathy’s leaving!” I put down my tray. “We’ve been hearing that for a while now.” “Oh it’s a done deal,” piped in Cindy. “Kathy thinks big changes are coming and she doesn’t want to live through another shake-up. I don’t know if I have the heart or the stomach to go though another re-org either.” Harry looked serious. “I heard the entire sales force is being cut. Again. But this time it’s gonna be a real blood bath.” I sighed. “Well, there’s an All-Hands Meeting tomorrow. I guess we’ll find out then.” That brought a big laugh. 

The next day we heard from our senior leaders and not surprisingly, there wasn’t a word about Kathy or the sales team. Just a number of vague references to the company having to “change to meet increasing challenges in the external environment.” Oh, and of course, the need to focus, make our numbers, and get the job done.

Here’s the thing. Actually 3 things. 

FIRST, in the absence of communication, employees will make up their own stories and theories. And they’ll pass them on…quickly and relentlessly. Even when there is a nugget of truth about an upcoming change, stories without facts become rumors. They morph and gain speed and voices and volume until they come roaring back to bite everyone—management, staff, customers and shareholders alike. Not only does an activated Grapevine lead to wasted time, energy and churn, but it also has to be “undone” and that takes even more resources and energy. Definitely not the path to productivity.

SECOND, not all communications are created equal. Even in large corporations, where there are communication resources aplenty, communication plans often aren’t nimble enough to get out ahead of the rumor mill. Even if the message is sent out in a timely fashion, it’s often completely devoid of any real information—just the same jargon everyone’s heard before. Employees tune in and then—very quickly—they tune out.

THIRD, a good plan doesn’t have to be complicated. The question is, who needs to know, what do they need to know and when. A great start is to gather all the MIS-information from as many sources as possible to get a feel for what you’re up against. Then build a “message map” with this simple framework: What do employees need to know (facts, figures, what, when)…What do they need to do as a result (actions, next steps, behavior change)…Why do they need to care (why it matters and why they should commit to making the change a successful one). Once the team agrees on the Map, give it a test run with a small group to see what kinds of tweaks are needed. Finally, decide on the kinds of channels you’ll use to push it out—town halls, small team meetings, emails, Intranet, IM, etc.  

Is it time to tame your company’s grapevine? Don’t just spend your time and energy worrying about it—take action, and quickly. If you don’t, you’ll find yourself chasing the rumor mill in a race that you can’t win.

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Just One Thing.

One of my favorite non-fiction books is The One Thing by Gary Keller and Jay Papasan. It’s a simple but important guide about the power of focus—in the world of business, our personal lives and yes, the business of communications. I must admit, I’m kind of obsessed with this idea. My colleague Kelly knows that this is one of my go-to questions. “I know what you’re going to say, Molly—’What’s the One Thing?’”

“There can only be one most important thing. Many things may be important, but only thing can be the most important.” – Ross Garber

Why it Matters

Recently, I was asked by a client to help communicate an important new initiative to her teams; let’s call it Project X. The problem? The background documentation she provided to me contained 8 objectives, 12 workstreams and 3 new technologies. When we met,  I explained that it would be much more impactful to her teams if she could crystallize the focus of the project. I don’t mean just one talking point or one workstream. I mean the one thing that everyone needed to understand in order to make the initiative successful. After all, although Project X was certainly important, it wasn’t the ONLY thing that her teams were working on. If she wanted THEM to focus, then SHE had to focus.

How to Make it Happen

So how did we get there? I asked her to pretend that she had just presented Project X at an all-hands meeting. Everyone was exiting the room. Quick! What’s the One Thing she wanted them to remember? It took a few tries—this is hard—but we were able to nail a succinct, focused message that set the trajectory for all other communication tactics. It helped her to tell the Project X Story quickly and crisply and it helped her teams to deliver on this important work.

The next time you have something important to say or communicate, I challenge you to ask yourself: What’s the One Thing? It will take a few tries—maybe more than a few—but I promise, it will be well worth the effort.