Why Bosses Dont Get All the News

Not long ago, a friend who works in television complained that the industry has no interest in real business stories. And, I had to agree with him, since we don't see much coverage that doesn't involve stock prices or some sort of scandal.

But, there has been one important exception. A few years ago, the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) began airing a business show that became as popular as some of its regular prime-time fare (American and Canadian television networks followed up with their own versions of the program).

Fast Company magazine told us about the BBC program, which sees CEOs leaving their corner offices for a stint on the front lines. And, as they work on the front lines, the cameras are rolling.

For many, if not all CEOs who participated, the experience was a great eye-opener. According to the magazine, "Almost without exception, CEOs learn a lesson in communication. 'We find people at the heart of every organization who know exactly what's right and what's wrong with it,' says [Robert] Thirkell [who produces the show]. 'But between them and the bosses is a layer of people -- those whose careers depend on sanitizing that information. Bosses are always surprised at how much knowledge exists further down the ladder.'"

With that in mind, let's spend a minute or two thinking about the barriers to good upward communication. But, rather than blame middle management, which seems to be one of the themes of the program, we'll look at structural issues.

First, upward communication involves the aggregation of information or data. For example, a supervisor reports on the collective efforts of five front-line staff, a manager aggregates the data of five supervisors, and a vice-president aggregates the information provided by five managers.

As the information gets aggregated this way, it loses most of its context and richness. By richness, I'm talking about the anecdotal and personal knowledge that front-line workers gather and build from continuous interactions with customers or users. Obviously, most CEOs don't have time to read reports comprised of hundreds of anecdotes; they want summaries of the information.

Second, as information or data moves upward, it tends to be slotted into pre-existing categories. Employees on the front-lines know and understand the nuances of each customer story; it reflects, to a greater or lesser extent, the personal relationship between worker and customer. But, there's no place for nuance in weekly reports.

Third, upward communication normally deals with compliance, rather than competitive or operational intelligence. Managers use information moving up the hierarchy to determine how well instructions have been followed. When they want competitive or operational information they often use different means, such as bringing in consultants or commissioning studies.

It's always tempting to attribute communication failures to moral failures by managers, but if you really want to understand communication failures, you should start by looking for structural hurdles.

In summary, CEOs who spend time on the front lines will undoubtedly be in for many surprises. But, if they want to get the news from the front lines, they'll need to address the structural nature of upward communication.

About The Author

Robert F. Abbott writes and publishes Abbott's Communication Letter. Each week subscribers receive, at no charge, a new communication tip that helps them lead or manage more effectively. Click here for more information: http://www.CommunicationNewsletter.com

abbottr@managersguide.com

More Resources

Unable to open RSS Feed $XMLfilename with error HTTP ERROR: 404, exiting

More Coaching Information:

Related Articles

Coaching Can Help Teachers At A Crossroads In Their Careers
Teachers enter the profession with the desire to help others, but after years in the field it can lose its luster. If it's no longer offering satisfaction the way it once did find out how you can get the joy back.
The Role of Grief Group Facilitators
Technically, there are two types of grief groups. Informational and support groups are for individuals who have an interest in the grief process.
Personal Development Profiles
Personal development profiles, also known as personality profiles, are a tool I frequently use before starting a course of coaching with a client. The client answers a series of questions about preferred behaviour styles and their responses generate a report which outlines their strengths, areas for improvement, blind spots, their contribution to the team, ways they could improve their communication and how to deal with challenging people.
5 Tips to Improve ANY Performance
Seeking improved performance at work? Wishing you could finally achieve your sports-related goals? Merely looking for a way to get more out of everything you do? What follows are five basic skills (basic in that all top achievers know these skills and apply them in some form on a weekly basis) that will dramatically improve your performance.1.
The Value of Career Coaching and Its Effect on Productivity
Athletes the world over have coaches. Yet, workers whose very livelihood depends on their ability to perform well on the job are often unaware of the merits of a career coach.
Five Steps to Vocational Passion: A Disciplined Plan for Major Mid-life Changes
There's a famous song lyric that asks: "Is that all there is?" Every seven seconds, an American turns 50 years old. So there's a good chance that song is running through some of their heads.
Curbing the Public Nuisance (Part 1)
He's been around since the dawn of humanity. His profession is even older than the world's oldest profession.
That Little Bit Of Extra
The "little bit extra" is a very powerful concept to put into practice today in every aspect of your life. The difference between being ordinary and being extraordinary is that little bit EXTRA.
Business Coaching - Ten Ways of Dealing with Mistakes You Made
You can either choose to dwell on what happened and get stuck in the past or you can choose to start using your energy to build your future. Either choice is okay.
Crisis: Danger or Opportunity?
I have often heard motivational speakers say that the word crisis in Chinese means both danger and opportunity. In investigating the facts, I have found running arguments on the web as to whether or not this is true.
Simple Tips to Move Forward on the Job
Someone I know wants to move into another job in the same company. It is not a management job.
Body Language Speaks Louder Than Words
Has it ever occurred to you how much you are saying to people even when you are not speaking? Unless you are a master of disguise, you are constantly sending messages about your true thoughts and feelings whether you are using words or not.Studies show that your words account for only 7% of the message you convey.
Its Game Time! Four Powerful Lessons in the Game of Life
I turned 29 last week, and if statistics are right and I die on or around my 78th birthday, I am almost 40% done. In a numbers game, that is pretty close to half way.
A Simple Strategy for Managing ADD
As an ADD Coach, I usually begin my conversations with new and potential clients by saying, "Tell me about yourself and why you're looking for coaching." Most people answer with a long list of their ADD challenges.
Leadership Coaching - Easier Said Than done
Recently at a Pharmaceutical meeting in Europe, one of the presenters shared the results of a recent study that demonstrated that Managers who were trained in Eight Step Coaching Skills were out selling DM's who were not trained in the program. This quantitative data seems to support that the cornerstone of success lies in effective leadership coaching and diagnosing the needs of the Representatives.
The Top 10 BEST Things About Having a Coach
Obviously, there are many wonderful things about having a personal coach to support and encourage you. Everyone develops their own working relationship with their coach, and each situation is unique.
Relaxation Couldnt Be Simpler
Many people use their sofa and TV to help them 'switch off and relax'. In reality, television programs can suspend you n stress for yours, with depressing or thrilling storylines, violence and madness!True relaxation is achieved when all tensions and thoughts are eliminated.
Profitable Idea Generation in 4 Steps Using Improv
A large percentage of business are stuck, tied to narrow ways of thinking about themselves and their products. In the business environment you can't be stuck and survive.
We Are Exactly Where We Choose to Be
The idea for this month's newsletter came from an unlikely encounter: I recently had lunch with a new friend named Rick Rockwell. You may remember him as the bachelor from the first-ever reality TV show, "Who Wants to Marry a Multimillionaire?"During our meeting, Rick described some of the knowledge he gained from doing the show, along with a few of past his experiences in business, ethics, and of course, primetime romance.
The Tolerance Effect
While working with a client several months ago, we went through a process of identifying areas of personal strengths and weaknesses. Through this exercise, we discussed various characteristics and ended up deciding that there was opportunity for improvement in her level of "tolerance".