The substance and qualities of the Communication Leader

Interactive workshop at the EACD’s Summit, Brussels, 1st of July 2011Geraldine Davies, Ben Atfield, Peter van Minderhout

Introduction

We will answer three key questions:

1. What skills are necessary to reach and remain at the top?

2. How does your CEO judge your quality?

3. What training and education is available and necessary?

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What Skills are necessary to reach and remain at the top?

The essential skills / competencies break down into two groups:

1. The Tools: the key sub functional disciplines2. The Content: external demands and issues

And then there is “Personality +”

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What Skills are necessary to reach and remain at the top?

• The Tools: the key sub functional disciplines– Investor Relations– Internal Communications– Media Relations– Public Affairs– CSR– Brand Management– Digital & Website– Association Management– ETC

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What Skills are necessary to reach and remain at the top?

• The Content: The external (and internal) demands and the Issues your teams have to engage

– Crisis Management – Issues Management– M&A communications– Profit Warnings– CEO & Key Management profiles– Product / Service support– ETC

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What skills are necessary to reach and remain at the top?

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“Personality+”?

• Intangible Style & Gravitas • Zeitgeist & Your Voice

How does your CEO judge your qualities?

• Paul Adams Chief Executive, British American Tobacco

• Tom Albanese Chief Executive, Rio Tinto• Sir Win Bischoff Chairman, Lloyds Banking

Group• Donald Brydon CBE Chairman, Royal Mail

Group• Chairman, Smiths Group plc• Former Chairman, London Metal Exchange• Roger Carr Chairman, Centrica• Former Chairman of Cadbury’s• Ian Coull Chief Executive, Segro plc• Sir Christopher Gent Chairman, GSK• Former Chief Executive, Vodafone plc• Philip Green Chief Executive, United Utilities• Anthony Habgood Chairman, Reed Elsevier• Chairman, Whitbread• Steve Holliday Chief Executive, National Grid

• Dennis Holt Chairman, Liverpool Victoria Friendly Society

• Deputy Governor, Bank of Ireland• Dame Deirdre Hutton Chair, Civil Aviation

Authority• Former Chair, Food Standards Agency• Ian King Chief Executive, BAE Systems• Ian Livingston Chief Executive, BT Group• Trevor Matthews Chief Executive, Friends

Provident• Former Chief Executive, Standard Life

Assurance• Julian Roberts Group Chief Executive, Old

Mutual• Sir Stuart Rose Executive Chairman, Marks &

Spencer• Hector Sants Chief Executive, Financial Services

Authority

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How does your CEO judge your qualities?

What do CEOs want from their Communications Directors?

• Constructive criticism and challenge– Absolute trust & loyalty

• They want to enjoy your company– You will be spending a lot of time with them

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How does your CEO judge your qualities?

More Seriously:• CEOs want to use their Comms Directors as a

sounding board• They want them to be the external conduit, providing

stakeholder feedback• Most expect their Comms Directors to have a place at

the top table and have a say in the business’s strategy• And of course, they should know how to communicate

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Why education & training?

• Education provides a safe environment to experiment with new behaviour and to test new insights and/or ideas.

• Faculty –if excellent- will provide you a broader vision to look at things in new light.• You can obtain valuable insights by interacting with your peers from a cross-section of

industries.• Quality education focuses on the most actual challenges, provides you with perspectives and

stimulates out-of-the- box thinking.• Coaching –as part of education- helps to transform from one role to another and to grow

your career.• More good reasons?

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Growing demand for business skills unmet by current bench of available talentImportance of business acumen in communications

Today versus three years ago

Communications staff experience

n=94Average percentage of staff with experience in noted areas

Small pool of business-skilled communicators offers little hope of a hiring solution

Ideal communications staff profile, illustrative

2000• Media savvy• Journalism /

writing skills• Marketing skills

2011• Credibility with

line managers• Business acumen• Consultative /

diagnostic skills• Leadership• Impact

Hunting unicorns“They don’t teach business in communications programs and they don’t teach communications in business schools. Where are we supposed to find business-savvy communicators?”

VP, Corporate CommunicationsMedical Products Manufacturer

Source: Communications Executive Council

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Challenges for communication professionals with the ambition to grow their career

Knowledge Communication professionals must have business acumen

Skill Communication professionals must have the ability to act as business partners

Leadership Communication professionals must have a powerful and influential position

Attitude Communication professionals must demonstrate confidence and professionalism

Change agent Communication professionals must use the abilities above to change internal perceptions and to be convincing to their peers and –eventually- in the Board Room

To address these challenges, ECCE™ Academy offers communication professionals an exciting program containing a highly concentrated set of modules, executed by four top European business schools.

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ECCE Academy: perfect mix of business and communications

• Each module features an opening session on Wednesday evening, two sessions on Thursday, Friday and Saturday and a closing session Sunday morning

• A maximum of 25 participants per program, to guarantee an optimal blend of personal attention, group interactivity and learning

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Program 2012Personal Impact

14 – 18 March

AshridgeLondon

New insights into Corporate Communication

20 – 24 June

University of St Gallen Switzerland

Leadership Excellence & Success

5 – 9 September

INSEADFontainebleau

Business Strategy

14 – 18 November

IESEBarcelona

ECCE Academy: excellent faculty of top business schools

Miriam Meckel, PhD

Professor of Corporate Communcation

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Michael Jarrett, PhD

Professor of Organisational Behavior

Bruno Cassiman, PhD

Professor of Strategic Management

Fiona Dent MSc, MA, Chartered FCIPD, FHEA

Director of Executive Education

Low marks reflect communications’ questionable impact on firm performanceCommunications’ attribute effectiveness Communications’ economic impact on the company

Despite communicators’ efforts, business partners give tepid marks for service provision…

… and rate more substantive support even lower.

Neither effective

nor ineffective

Somewhat effective

Effective Highly effective

Head of Communications Assessment, 2010

Preponderance of communications’ activities have medium to low impact on company performance.

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n=2,383 Business partners; 384 Communications staff

Source: Communications Executive Council

About Ellwood & Atfield

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• The executive search and selection consultancy dedicated to the recruitment of communications and public affairs professionals worldwide.

• From offices in London and Brussels our recruitment relationships covers the EU and a global reach.

• Ben Atfield and Geraldine Davies• The specialists in Corporate Communications

About ECCE Academy

• ECCE Academy is an initiative of 4 senior business executives.

• In 2009 they started to share their ideas with an international group comprising both communication directors and senior members of a number of leading European business schools in a series of extensive interviews. The immediate and positive reactions they received led to the decision to establish the ECCE Academy.

• The foremost objective of the ECCE Academy is to offer an innovative, international platform for communication professionals to enhance their knowledge and experience as professionals, in order to raise the profile and importance of the communication role in driving business processes, as well as defining its position as trusted advisor to the company CEO and the Board of Management.

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Ashridge program overview14 – 18 March 2012

WednesdayWelcome & scene

setting

ThursdaySkills & self awareness

FridayStyle & other’s

awareness

SaturdayTools & strategies

SundayThe way ahead

Morning• My learning

objectives• Key skills for

effective influencingInfluencing style Influencing tools &

techniquesFeedback, action planning & briefing for module II

Lunch

Afternoon Registration Impact & impression management

Experiential exercise: influencing colleagues

Practical work on own issues

Red thread review

Evening Welcome & brief introductions Social event Group work Group work

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University of St. Gallen program overview20 – 24 June 2012

Wednesday Welcome

ThursdayTrust and reputation

FridayStrategy and Change

Saturday Social media

SundayBringing it all together

Morning

Rules of the Game• Mastering

communication in a changing media landscape

Strategy and communication• Shaping corporate

culture and engaging the organization for change

Social Media Journalism• Understanding the

challenges of new online constituencies

Social Media Literacy• Coping with increasing

work load and technological change.

• Application of learnings• Planning next module

Lunch

Afternoon Registration

Trust Management• Building, maintaining

and monitoring trust and reputation on- and offline

Most effective internal communications (newest insights)• Using storytelling and

cascades to align, engage and implement organizational change

Social Media marketing• Addressing stakeholders

through new, social media channels

Red thread review

Evening Introduction of facultySetting the Scene

Best and next practices; input by guestsInteraction & debate

Best and next practices; input by guestsInteraction & debate

Social event

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INSEAD program overview5 – 9 September 2012

WednesdayWelcome & scene

setting

ThursdaySkills & self awareness

FridayStyle & other

awareness

SaturdayTools & strategies

SundayThe way ahead

Morning• High performance

leadership• Conflict management

and dialogue

• Role of secure base & high performance

• Leading self and leading others at the edge

• The leadership brain• Leadership in Action II:

deliberate practice and role playing

Feedback, action planning with coaches, closing remarks & wrap-up

Lunch

Afternoon Registration

• The science of peak performance

• Leadership in action I: deliberate practice and ole playing

• Intro to leadership stories

• Creating influence through the power of the spoken word

• Analyzing leadership failure stories

• Leaders leading leaders• Leaders as coach

Red thread review

Evening Leading from themind’s eye

Analyzing leadership success stories

Life line exercise: understanding the inner mindmap of the leader

Social event

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IESE Barcelona program overview14 – 18 November 2012

Wednesday ThursdayBusiness context and the building blocks of

strategy

FridayUnderstanding and

influencing company strategy

SaturdayBecoming the

champions of strategy

SundayPutting it all together

MorningBreaking the Frame

Corporate strategy and business models

The CCO in the board room

Developing action plan: moving forward & the learning blog (“elevator speeches”)

Cracking a case: economics, marketing

Lunch

Afternoon Registration Cracking a case: finance, operations Strategy formulation The 1,000 days of a

manager

Red thread review

Evening Setting the scene Social eventPeer activity: My company’s business model and how I fit in.

Group work