Turning Managers Into Communicators Workshop

October 10, 2019

Ultimate Software

Weston, Florida

Bryant A. Hilton

Engaging employees.

Navigating change.

Austin, Texas

Introductions

Who are you?

Where do you work?

What do you want/need from your people managers today?

Are your people managers doing enough to communicate?

NO: 100%

Agenda for today

• Morning• Introductions

• Objectives and alignment

• What we’re up against

• A programmatic approach

• Finding and using data

• Understanding manager personas

• Afternoon• Building manager training

• Providing content for managers

• Considering channels

• Building program sustainability

• Plans to bring your program to life

Objectives for Manager Communications

Amplifies IC efforts/messages

Translates for resonance

Increases alignment

Increases engagement

Reaches the “front lines”

Builds future leaders

Manager Communications

• How to build a program

• Overcoming objections to participation

• Strategize program mgmt., maintenance

• Making this part of your overall IC efforts

• Get rid of bad managers

• Take on accountability for manager ability

• Replace your HR or Training departments

• Give you another project to add to the list

What we will cover today What we aren’t setting out to do

Manager Objections

Where would I find the time?

I have no idea what to say

I don’t get paid to communicate

I don’t want to

No one told me to communicate

You’re the communicatoraren’t you?

I am NOT getting on stage

Biggest challenges managers have in actively communicating?

• Lack of time, lack of awareness.

• Uncertainty about what, and when to communicate.• Communications is an afterthought for managers.

A Quickly Changing World

One-half of S&P 500

Will be Replaced in

the Next Decade

The winners of the future will be

those who can out-change the

competition and the market.

65%of children today will have

jobs that don’t exist yet

- World Economic Forum

1/3 of U.S. Adults Engage in

Some Form of Independent Work- The Federal Reserve

43%of employed Americans who spend at

least some time working remotely

-Gallup

Making the Connection for Employees

• Direct connection, a “real” relationship with manager

• Relevant, timely information

• Understand how their roles fit into company direction

• Feeling supported, heard, safe

• Everyday speak

What Employees Really Want

Enabling Great Manager Communication

Finding, using data

Understand personas

Provide training

Provide content

Sustain the system

Exercise:

What’s the biggest barrier in your organization that

currently stops managers from communicating?

What are the top one to two things you need

managers communicating about?

Questions?

Suggested reading

Building Your Training

You, IC, Leading the Trainings

▪ You know this topic “inside out”

▪ Differentiation = success

▪ Establishes you as a key resource

▪ New connections and stories

▪ Cost-effective

Reaching Managers

▪ Go to your managers

▪ 10-15 people per session is ideal

▪ 60 minutes is a “sweet spot” for first training, 2 hours if possible

▪ Ideal group mix: same location, similar level, varying departments

▪ HR can be a great partner in assembling groups

▪ Do tell the managers’ managers first

▪ Keep track of progress

What to Present

▪ Importantly, make it stand out – different from other trainings

▪ Visually appealing slides but light text

▪ Keep it conversational, you can always provide handouts later

▪ Make it your own – photos from employees may be all you need

▪ Have a “presenter’s guide” to go with the presentation

▪ Include “Communications 101” topics the first time

▪ Include other topics you need to impart

▪ Stay flexible – modify the content according to the audience

Benefits

▪ Cost-effective

▪ No “waiting around” to be included in other trainings

▪ Quality control

▪ Expanding your internal network

▪ Listening posts

▪ Influencer network

▪ Attracting story ideas

Communications 101

Conceptsto include

Outcome-based

approach

Anticipate timing

Process not

a product

Communications

is dialogue

Anticipate audience

Comfort with

“I don’t know”

Plan messaging

Know where to get help

Plan for Manager “Trip-ups”

• Giving feedback

• Translating information

• Finding the right info

• Listening as much as talking

• Getting comfortable with ‘I don’t know’

Sample Training Slides

Communicating for Success: Doing More, Going Further to Engage our Teams

Communication Why –What - How• Core skills

• Planning tips

• Realistic approach

• Resources and support

• Exercises

Why This Matters. Why You’re HereOur people consistently say they want managers to be a primary information source.

Communications is a Process• Who do you need to inform?

• What is best way to reach them?

• What do you want them to do?

• How will you make it specific?

• Are there any risks?

Focus on Desired OutcomesWhat do you want your team to

Know? • Feel? • Do?

Delivering Effectiveley• Be concise, clear and memorable

• Have clear examples

• Avoid jargon, cliches

• Link closely to desired outcome

• Try to share through storytelling

Communication is Dialogue• Actively listen

• Address questions, concerns

• Welcome feedback

• Be available

Communication Channels• Many channels available

• Select carefully

• Face-to-face always preferable

• E-mail not always the answer

Sample Additional Materials

Speakers Guide for Other Trainers

Exercise 1 • Match events to channels

• Work on own for 10 minutes

• Team will share/discuss results

FORMAT

EVENT Email

Presentatio

Town Hall

Meeting

Feature in

Landing

Brown Bag

Meetings

Segment

Bulletin

Posters

Conference

Huddle

Page on

Landing

Staffing

changes

achievemen

t (best

practice)

Local News

Update

Business

Positive

Media Story

Earnings

Update

Engagemen

t Survey

Debrief &

Planning

HR Benefits

Change

Strategy

Update

Technology

Platform

(AMOS)

Think of a real story that...

• Illustrates our purpose, strategy

• Details notable challenges, wins

• Focuses on your people

• Has lessons for team

Exercise 2

Additional Considerations

• Possible to get help to build, conduct trainings

• Keep IC responsible for training as much as possible

• Do something to make it your own

• Don’t miss chance to build internal network

Exercise:Considering information about barriers, manager

audience, communications topics and data needs

you collected earlier…

What’s the best way to train managers in your

organization? / How will you start tackling?

Questions?

Providing Managers With Great Content

Key topics for managers to cover▪ HR-type topics

▪ Organizational change

▪ Company strategy alignment/enhancement

▪ Organization wins

▪ Team news/priorities

Adding Manager Element to All IC▪ Pre-briefings

▪ Manager-only briefings

▪ Additional “cuts” of existing content

▪ Ready-made presentation material

▪ Let managers share the news

▪ Leverage manager network to enhance conversation in all-hands, etc.

Considering Manager Audiences▪ Think in elevator-pitch, summary, and

conversation cuts of info

▪ Consider briefings that work

▪ Help managers learn storytelling – make it easy to contribute

▪ Add the FAQ

▪ Be explicit with the “how to” instructions

▪ Make it easy to access information

▪ Don’t overcomplicate it

Repurposing Content – Both Ways▪ Executive presentations re-purposed

▪ Turn team stories into organizational ones

▪ Develop “meeting minutes”

▪ Create content once, use many different ways

▪ Help introduce managers – keep a human element

Modeling Good Behavior

▪ Manager spotlights

▪ Manager peer groups / best practices

▪ Manager-generated content in company channels

▪ Competitive element – if it’s fun/productive

Some examples

CONFIDENTIAL GO FURTHER. DO MORE. COME HOME SAFELY.

FY15 Performance Management – Meeting Minute

• PMP is underway -- importance:

– Opportunity for two-way dialogue with manager

– Feedback to help you achieve personal and team goals

– Investment in your career

• Current deadline: Self-evaluations (due by May 15)

– Does not take long to complete

– Prepares you for live discussion meetings

• Participation:

– All CHC people welcome

– Requirement for non-CLA team members

Elevator-pitch for Stand-up Meetings

Manager Briefing re

Org. Changes

92Key elements: Background, How-to Use, Talking Points, FAQ

Storytelling Guide

• Stories about transformation can be written in a problem-solution-outcome

type format. (After studying process X, we assessed that it cost twice as much

as it should because of Y. We implemented the following solution, and got

these results.)

• Be sure to cover:

o Who?: What teams, individuals will benefit?, who was involved in the

effort?

o What?: What was the project? What was being solved for?

o Where?: “A team at X base realized they had a solution for Y… ”

o When?: How long did it take? When will results be known? Etc.

o How?: The problem-solution-outcome set-up can answer this

question.

• Include a clear, demonstrable improvement outcome. (We saved x$, we cut

turnaround time by X, a team’s jobs are easier now because…, this is

industry-leading because…).

• People like to read about the experiences of people involved, so

include quotes.

• Pictures are worth a thousand words. Photos of teams working on

projects and of our locations are helpful. Photos from a smartphone

are useable.

• People pay attention to stories with some drama – time pressure, a

goal that needed to be reached, a move that was industry-first for us,

etc. How would you share this story with a friend or relative? That

will help unlock details that our people will want to know about.

• People also pay attention to descriptions of experience they can

relate to – the “human factor.” Including details about how the

effort you are describing made work easier/better/more interesting

for you and your colleagues helps bring a story to life.

• Finally, tie the story back to our strategic framework or current

priorities. (For example, highlight if the effort helped advance an

operational priority: improving TAT, maintenance planning, reliability,

fill the bins)

Introducing Managers

Guiding Managers to Have Discussions In Team Meetings

Discussion: Reactions to the results

• What was validated?

• What was surprising/unexpected?

• What do you want to learn more about?

• What reflects changes/issues over the last 6 months?

• What initiatives might address some of the results?

Discussion: Overall Strengths

What are some overall strengths on which we can build?

Discussion: Opportunities and Actions

What opportunities do we have based on our results?

What actions can and should we take?

Next Steps

We will choose one to three team actions we can take.

Those will be based on:

• Today’s discussion

• Biggest areas for improvement based on survey results

• Leveraging our strengths to help us meet business goals

• Alignment with company and functional goals

We will meet again XXXX to share those actions

• We will review progress against those in team meetings

If we feel strongly about more than three actions, we will prioritize and address the top three first

Considering Channels

Channels to Inform, Engage Managers

▪ Email works – but consider drawbacks

▪ Manager meetings, briefings, updates

▪ Private area of intranet/doc sharing

▪ Great for repository; consider access outside office

▪ Private social or mobile channels

▪ Great for reach; consider ease of finding information

Channels to Connect Managers and Teams

▪ Email cannot be the only connection

▪ Meetings work, even if not face-to-face

▪ Team areas on social/mobile networks

▪ MBWA / NIEHITO

ExampleUsing Leadership Communications

and Repurposing Content

Manager“cut” of

Executive Presentation

Exercise:• Continuing with information you have collected...

• What content is most important to get to managers so that they can help or reinforce communication of it?

• What tools or templates or channels do you need to develop to get it to them?

Questions?

Keeping The System Running After Launch

Keeping Training Going

▪ Reaching managers as they join organization, or become managers

▪ HR partnership

▪ Can you be part of on-boarding?

▪ Are new managers onboarded? Is that needed?

▪ Keeping track of it all

▪ HR, IT partnerships

▪ Leveraging manager network in organization

▪ Schedule and plan, and plan again

“One and done” won’t cut it

Keeping Your Training Fresh

▪ Reflection after each section

▪ Executive input

▪ Regular review by communications team

▪ Pulse feedback from trainees

▪ Seek out best practices

▪ Plans for “Communications 201”

Keeping it Top of Mind

▪ Leveraging manager network

▪ HR partnership / calendar

▪ Discussion on social / mobile channels

▪ Help managers sort-through: quarterly update?

▪ Leveraging leadership/executives

Measure, Report, Repeat

▪ Track managers trained

▪ Partner with HR on plan to reach all

▪ Report results to leadership

▪ Collect and use feedback

▪ Cross reference with future audits, engagement surveys

▪ Pulse survey to employees of trained managers

Making it Part of What IC Does▪ Work into annual/quarterly planning

▪ Review other IC plans, opportunity to work in manager comms?

▪ Manager communications won’t replace other IC efforts…

▪ ….But it does take time to manage

▪ ….Keep the amplification factor in mind

A Few Last Considerations

▪ What about managers who won’t take action?

▪ The 10/80/10 rule

▪ What resources do you need?

▪ Crawl, walk, run approach – make sure you can keep things going

Exercise:• Considering all you have planned, how will you build in

sustainability?

• Does your organization have a manager onboarding

program? Is that an opportunity?

Questions?

Bringing Your Program To Life

What are your plans to create a manager

communications program when you return

to office?

Partner up• 3-5 minutes to brainstorm

• 5 minutes to share with partner / support + add

• 1-2 minutes – each person reports to group

Workshop survey

Materials emailed

Keep an eye out for:

Bryant A. Hilton

Bryant@GreatCommunicate.com

+1-512-426-5608

LinkedIn: BryantHilton

THANK YOU

Additional Info:

Overcoming Manager Objections

Finding the Time

• Engagement = productivity

• This is about working smarter

• Employees want this

• Your managers expect it

• Imagine: Less time recruiting and interviewing!

We’ll Help and Support

I have no idea what to say

• Best “selling point” for training

• We want you on message

• We have the content

• This is about listening too

• A more informed team is a more engaged one!

You Are Rewarded

• Finding good people costs $$$$

• Opportunity cost of productivity

• Audit results – sell with data

• Part of “how” you work, not just another thing to do!

Your Team Expects It

• Good leaders communicate

• Productivity, engagement gains

• Why the training is here

• We’ll make it easy! And, we have a vested interest in your success!

That’s why we’re here

• Manager audit results

• Leadership expectations

• Part of manager development

• Imagine your team more engaged and aligned!

Don’t worry

• It’s primarily important for managers to be available to teams and listen

• Consistency is key

• Lots of mediums available

• Imagine – being a great communicator and never speaking in public!

Yes, but…

• This is a partnership

• Employees looking to you

• Your leadership expects it

• It could be the key to keeping good people around longer!

Turning Managers Into Communicators Workshop · 2019-10-14 · Regrettable attrition rate of...

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