Understanding Communications:

A Key to EffectiveLeadership

Greg AndersonGreg AndersonUniversity of ChicagoUniversity of Chicago

Educause Midwest Regional Conference

Rules for living

Work like hell . . . .

Tell everyone everything you know. . .

Close a deal with a handshake . . .

Have fun!

---Harold E. ‘Doc’ Edgerton

How we’ll use our time today

Effective communication & leadershipCommunication Behavioral Style “Style flex”Planning your communicationCommunicating with other stylesActive listeningEmail & asynchronous communicatonsMeeting managementConducting difficult conversations

Your Change Signatureand communications

You have a unique change signaturethat represents your leadership style.Your communications are corecomponents of that signature.

Today’s Goals:

Enhance your leadership style by optimizingcommunication skills

Understand how your preferred style of workingcomes across to other people

“Read” other people’s behavior so you’ll know thebest way to work with them

Find common ground with people while maintainingyour individuality and integrity

Adjust your behavior in small ways that dramaticallyimprove results among different styles

Relate effectively—no matter how others react toyou

Reflect

Consider the leadership role your organizationexpects of you and how you fulfill that role

Think about an individual or group that wouldbenefit from either a start to a positiverelationship or would enhance an existingrelationship. How can you make a difference?

What behaviors does this individual or groupexhibit most of the time when dealing with youand/or others?

What is said, how are things said and heard,and what are the reactions in thesecommunications?

Give me six hours to chop down a tree,and I will spend the first four sharpeningthe axe.----Abraham Lincoln

Plans are worthless; planning isindispensable.-----Dwight D. Eisenhower

Spend time up front to plan and understandyour communications style and leadership

Planning

Distributed Leadership:

One model to consider

Distributed Leadership - Peter SengeLeadership is the capacity of a human community toshape its future –a collective versus individual

How do people collectively create? What makes a greatteam? The answer usually is: Several people who haveaccomplished something significant. It is a collective actversus an individual accomplishment.

Leadership is:•A collective phenomenon (not individualistic and notleader as hero)•Linking to innovation•Accomplishing things that have real meaning.

“An impact on a scale that matters”

Distributed Leadership - Peter Senge

LEARNING

Organization learning – “Learning means developingthe capacity to do something I couldn’t do before.”

We need the capabilities/capacities to help people dothings differently.

All learning is about doing Learning means being vulnerable. Don’t be so invested in being right.

“I’ve never let schooling interfere with my education.”--- Mark Twain

Distributed Leadership - Peter Senge

Competencies in the distributed leadership model

Vision: whose vision? When does it become shared?What is the personal and collective vision?

Relationships: the importance of networks (networkleaders); interpersonal relationships (sense of trust,candor, emotions); the quality of the human relationships.

New ways of working: highly distributed

Sensemaking: different mental models, how to shift thosemodels; the human perception of the world around them.

Distributed Leadership - Peter Senge

SenseMaking

BuildingRelationships

Creating a Vision

Inventing new ways of working

(Network)(Interpersonal)

Network Leaders

Highly distributed

Perception of the world

Personal & Collective

YinYang

Yin - who we arewith one another- relatedness

Yang - where we’regoing, directiveness,aim, aspirations

Think about Distributed Leadership

It’s complementary – John Kotter

Leadership is about coping withchange:

•Setting a direction

•Developing a vision

•Aligning people

•Communicating the newdirection - empowering

•Motivating and inspiring

•Keep people moving in theright direction

•Recognize & reward success

Management is aboutcoping with complexity:

•Decide what needs to be done

•Planning & budgeting

•Develop capacity toachieve the plan

•Organizing & staffing

•Ensure that staff achievethe plan

•Controlling & problem solving

Thinking about Communicationsand its consequences

The situation. . .

"What we've got here is...failure tocommunicate.”

-- From the film Cool Hand Luke.

“Do you want me to do my work or doyou want me to communicate?”

-- Heard frequently . . .

The consequences

Failure to communicate . . . leads to . .

Failure to collaborate . . . leads to . . .

Failure to execute . . . leads to . . .

Poor performance and loss of respect,credibility and integrity with clientsand sponsors

So, communication is…

Understanding between and among people;

An interdependent process;

Not necessarily agreement;

Constant. You cannot NOT communicate. Weconstantly give and receive communications.

Good communication is a habit: “Habit is habit andnot to be flung out of the window by any man, butcoaxed downstairs a step at a time.” - Mark Twain

Principles of communication

People are not mind readersPeople judge you by your behavior, not

your intentSuccessful Communication is dependent

on what is heard not what is said

How we communicate

What people can seeWhat people hearWhat we actually say

Communication is in the mind of therecipient: You’re just making noise ifthe other person doesn’t hear you.

Structure of communication

Every type of communication has three components:Every type of communication has three components:

Content:Content: what is the communication about what is the communication about ContextContext:: those attributes that surround the content those attributes that surround the content

and give it linkage and meaning with itsand give it linkage and meaning with itssurroundingssurroundings

Structure:Structure: the the ‘‘bonesbones’’ of the communication; how it of the communication; how itis organized, how it is delivered, and theis organized, how it is delivered, and theframework for interpretation.framework for interpretation.

Structure of communication

A Russian proverb says, “Once a word goesout of your mouth, you can never swallowit again.”

Or . . .

Do you want to be on the top fold of the NewYork Times?

Comparisons

Who was the primary speaker at theGettysburg Cemetery dedication onNovember 19, 1863?

What do we remember about thatspeech?

Lincoln was the secondary speaker. What do we remember about Lincoln’s?

Comparisons

Edward Everett, perhaps the most popularorator of the day. His 13,607-word orationlasted for two hours.

Lincoln was the secondary speaker, a bit ofan afterthought. His address was 272 wordsdelivered in two to three minutes.

In words, as in architecture, sometimes, . . .‘Less is More.’

It’s not just about words

Face to Face:Verbal (words) 7%Body language 55%Vocal (tone) 38%

Telephone:Words (verbal) 12%Vocal (tone) 87%Body language 1%

Every part of you is involved in communications -it defines who you are the type of interaction you

want with your listener

Communication is not just about words

Well DONE!

WELL, done?

Well done.