Managing in public: the strength of thread

Managing in public – where executives admit that everything they do or say will likely be public one day so why not make it so yourself -- is a 24-hour-a-day, seven-day-a-week assignment. To effectively manage in public, personal choices must be seen to complement or align with professional ones.

Communications skills are paramount. Not just being able to speak clearly and consistently, but to be willing to listen and to prove the point by integrating the best of what is said into management’s point-of-view. And not just being willing to listen, but being good at asking questions to draw out what others think – and adding the best of the answers into the point-of-view; all in support of the “thread.”

The thread is the unbroken (though not necessarily straight) line which runs from a company’s origin to the current state of its business leading to its aspirational goals. By its consistency and the company’s commitment, it confers an authenticity.

That’s because it is a combination of a company’s values, business model and approach and its goals. It informs and explains a company’s decisions. And just like the plot of a novel makes it easier to create characters that propel the story, the thread allows companies to showcase an authentic commitment and accelerate their success.

If the external benefits are clear (trial, loyalty and a bit of slack when mistakes are made), the internal benefits are equally significant. Lower turnover, a deeper recruiting pool, a well-understood mission and a clear commitment to its success can all derive when employees feel they have the full picture. It also seems to be true that when employees have the full picture, they are more willing to agree that there are some things – some few things – it is OK for them to not know because they are more willing to accept an organizing hierarchy.

Ironically, it is not the big issues that make managing in public hardest; it is the smaller, day-to-day things that can drive a manager to a bunker, a customer to blog or an employee to wonder what else they don’t know. For some managers, schooled at a time when the dominant management theory was, "if you want to be loved, get a dog," the shift can be disorienting.

Now having to be attuned to each individual's reaction to news of a finance-driven health policy change, a resignation, a request for special treatment (legitimate or otherwise), a promotion or pay raise or a team or sales lead assignment tests the willingness of managers to trust their people and, ultimately, themselves. In the air is the question: “Why do I need this grief?”

Well, because it’s not grief. It is a window into the ambitions of the staff -- what motivates behavior -- and so this day’s raw material for commerce. It is what makes managing in public a powerful company and business development strategy.