Category: Blog

Today it was announced that a number of long-serving officers in the armed forces have been made redundant – notified by email.

Recently my colleague Kate wrote of her brother's experience in finding out whether he still had a job from the armed forces via a website. This impersonal notification will send shivers down the spines HR professionals, so many of whom have had to bear such dim tidings for thousands of employees during the recession.

Sadly, public and private sector redundancies in this new era of austerity are inevitable.  Yet the implications of quick-fire redundancy affect far greater numbers than those made redundant themselves.  In the case of the armed forces, negative PR rages on externally, affecting the public reputation of the organisation.  Internally, plummeting morale and resentment will cost them dearly in productivity, efficiency, respect and performance.  In any organisation, of any size, those left behind often feel guilty that their colleagues have been removed.  The fear factor of 'me next?' – particularly in the private sector – can result in people jumping ship, a costly exercise at any level.

The ramifications of 'how' redundancy is handled, outside the technical process, can make a huge difference to the mood and engagement of a wider workforce, whether an immediate team or indeed – in the armed forces' case – the entire organisation.  Leaders seeking high performance organisations must be prepared to create the most efficient infrastructure possible .  But in shedding jobs, treat people as human beings, with respect and care.  Good leaders will prepare everybody first with an honest story of the forward ambition of the organisation which builds pride and an understanding of the higher purpose as well articulating the need for changes yet to come, so people can understand why it's all happening when it does. And with any contentious email, before hitting 'send', think very carefully about how the rest of the workforce will react.

I was intrigued by David Malone’s documentary on the secret lives of waves (Wednesday 2nd February BBC4).  In it David explored our fascination with what makes our oceans swell and subside, and enables surfers to do their thing.  He revealed that the wave as it travels across the sea is not made of water, but of energy transferred from the ocean winds.  This energy can travel thousands of miles, before the sea runs out of water and the energy is once again transferred to sound, heat and sand shifting.

The concept of an object: a wave, also being a process: the transfer of energy, was then extended to us as human beings.  We too transfer energy from what we eat, drink and breathe, and in turn process it into activity and regenerating ourselves.  Maybe our fascination, David concluded, is not because we are like waves; it is because we are a wave.

At The Storytellers, we have been using the graphic of a wave to illustrate the phases of our programme.  It was developed to illustrate how the story of the journey a business is on, starts at the top of an organisation; with the vision of the senior team, then travels down to connect the people who will make that vision happen.

But, just like David’s ocean wave, maybe the real meaning is about the transfer of energy.  The elite athlete coach Jim Loehr, in his book ‘The Power of Story’ talks passionately about human energy: ‘The most precious resource that we human beings possess’.  It is fundamental to our existence, and we will only produce a finite amount, for a relatively few years.  So how we choose to use it, and the way we apply it, is one of the most important decisions we make.

One of the qualities of great leaders is their ability to transfer their energy for achieving something to others.  To persuade other human beings to channel this precious life source into a common purpose.  And as Jim knows, from working with sports people at the top of their game, that energy, if successfully channelled can achieve extraordinary things.

What has Silent Witness got to do with connecting an organisation to their business story?

The BBC series involves a team of forensic pathologists, lead by a Professor Leo Dalton. The basic storyline involves the police finding one or more dead bodies, and the ‘paths’ then have to figure out who the murderer is. On a rational level this has a certain interest, as the clues emerge and the audience is asked to guess ‘who done it’.

But the challenge is that forensic experts are detached from the crime. They are dealing with facts from dead bodies on a shiny metal table. It’s hardly the scene to get a hanky out.

So, the writers add an emotional connection. In the last episode this involved Leo knowing the mother of one of the victims (an old flame), and the crime taking place in Sheffield, where Leo’s partner and daughter were tragically killed. Now he’s personally, as well as professionally involved. And because storytelling creates empathy, so are we.

In creating the narrative of a business journey, we and our clients can often seem like forensic pathologists, searching for the rational argument that links together the why, what and how. But if you can bring that rational story to life by linking it to the people involved: employees, customers, suppliers, and show how it related to their personal desires, challenges, ambitions etc. Then you’ve got the making of a really compelling story.

In 2002, my brother joined the army as an officer after graduating from university with an MA and then passing out of Sandhurst. After passing out he was immediately sent on active duty, and has since served, in various roles, for almost a decade. His original commission is now up and he is waiting today to find out whether he still has a job. He will find out from a website.

In so many ways the web has made life easier in the 21st century: creating business opportunities, internet shopping, keeping in touch with distant friends and family, sharing photos, democratising the media… and replacing difficult conversations with impersonal electronic communication.

Nobody wants to have to tell someone they no longer have a job.  That's hard.  And, right before Christmas, isn't great timing.  But, come on!  It has to be done by a person and not through a website or an email.  That is unacceptable and it's lazy.

We all know that public spending cuts are going to be painful and are likely to result in public sector redundancies across the board.  That being the case managers in the public sector need to know how to communicate both with those who are staying and those who aren't, in human and respectful ways.  There is no quicker way to lose the trust and effort of employees than to treat colleagues as if they are simply assets on a spreadsheet.  And there's no quicker way to undermine the credibility of leaders than by bypassing them in the communication of such sensitive information.

Websites and email can be great tools for providing supporting information and advice, but it is vital that managers (in both public and private sector) have the communication skills and confidence to hold difficult conversations with their workforce.  If organisations are not willing to train leaders to talk honestly with their employees, then chances are those leaders are not managing difficult conversations around poor performance or career development effectively either.

I'm sure there's a very good legal excuse why my brother's announcement is being made through a website, but when we expect so much from our armed forces – and civil servants – we owe it to them to talk to them the old-fashioned, face-to-face way.

Sorensen, who died last week, was arguably one of the greatest modern speech writers.  As one of JFK's closest aids, he co-wrote his inaugural speech in 1961, and was credited with the famous line: 'ask not what your country can do for you; ask what you can do for your country.'

His death reminds us of the contribution that these men and women of words make.  'The right speech,' Sorensen said, 'on the right topic, delivered by the right speaker, at the right moment, can ignite a fire, change men's minds, open their eyes, alter their votes, bring hope to their lives, and, in all these ways, change the world.  I know.  I saw it happen.'

So have we…