Getting the Ear of Your CEO
By Diane Gayeski, Ph.D.
Communication professionals can and should have frequent,
direct access to and influence on executive leadership.
Your CEO needs you, but are you ready?
Don't Wait to Be Asked
It is a misperception that CEOs are too busy, uninterested
or unreceptive. While some communicators (typically
speechwriters and financial communicators) have close
contact with executives, many other communication professionals
rarely see the CEO and may have many layers of management
between themselves and that "C-level" suite.
But you don't have to report directly to the CEO to
get his or her ear . . . and you don't have to create
the impression of going over your manager's head either.
CEOs actually appreciate it when communicators take
the initiative to advise and coach them, and they admire
professionals who take the lead and don't wait to be
asked.
The Tip Sheet
Over the past few years, I've done interviews with CEOs
on how communication professionals can more effectively
get the ears of their executives. As a consultant, I've
also tried to move up the chain of command to get my
ideas heard by the real decision makers. Here are some
tips:
- ASK -- make the appointment; invite the CEO to a
meeting or lunch. You may have the perception that
the CEO is too busy for you or is somehow out of your
league. In most cases, this just isn't true. If you're
asking for an appointment, be specific about what
you'd like to discuss and be clear that this is not
a complaint that should be handled by your supervisor
or someone else in the organization. A great way to
make contact is to invite the CEO to a department
open house, or to an interesting professional meeting
such as a local IABC meeting featuring a good speaker.
- Send the CEO an interesting book or article that
you believe would be important and educational. Just
put a sticky note on the material and note briefly
why you thought this was something that would benefit
him or her. You could use this as a door opener for
a meeting to discuss it.
- Get outside publicity for your ideas. If you find
that you are not getting attention for your new ideas
from within the company, write an article, make a
conference presentation or win an award. These tidbits
of good news and accolades are always nice to pass
on to the CEO, and again, these can be ways to initiate
a meeting. You might invite the CEO to attend an award
presentation, or even make a presentation with you
on a topic relating to exemplary communication practices
in your organization. You could also interview your
CEO for an article or presentation.
- Interview executives to learn more about your business.
Find out what is really bothering them. Use the opportunity
to show that you're more than a writer or a meeting
planner. You might initiate regular meetings with
executives to help you plan your communication strategies.
Many organizations have an internal advisory council
that assists with this sort of planning. Getting them
to understand more about what you do -- and the thinking
behind it -- opens their eyes to the importance and
complexity of your work. It also creates champions
for your communication initiatives, and you'll be
able to count on their support at budget time.
- Bring executives together to talk to their peers
about new communication ideas. One insight I developed
over my years in consulting is that often CEOs feel
a bit threatened by what they feel is their own lack
of knowledge or skill in communication. This may cause
them to be defensive and avoid direct contact with
communication professionals. They often open up a
lot more when they talk to their peers -- CEOs in
other non-competing industries. I've conducted executive
briefings and invited only a handful of CEOs from
vastly different businesses, and I found that they
more openly voiced concerns and questions in that
atmosphere.
- Ask questions and make comments that go beyond
your expected role. While your current role may be
limited to tactical functions such as keeping the
intranet updated or writing press releases, it doesn't
mean that you can't have input in more strategic areas.
If you see a problem or opportunity, speak up. Offer
to serve on committees that expose you to a broad
range of issues and individuals outside your own area
of expertise.
- Don't be afraid to be honest and assume the role
of coach, even if your CEO didn't request this. One
CEO I worked with credits his "learning partner,"
a young female executive in his company, with helping
him to grow as a communicator and to facilitate major
change in the organization. When he felt frustrated
by the organization's lack of momentum, she challenged
him directly and told him that he was the problem.
Rather than being angry, he appreciated her candor
and learned that his rather introverted personality
and quirky behaviors (like fooling with his moustache)
were being misinterpreted by employees. He saw that
he was being sheltered from bad news and took measures,
including bringing in consultants and heading up a
"learning organization" study group, to
improve not only his own style, but also the general
communication climate of the organization.
In my interviews with CEOs, they almost unanimously
felt that communicators were too reactive and not aggressive
enough in arguing for resources and other programs that
could improve their organizations. Perhaps as a group,
we're too polite and too good at listening! Using these
techniques will help your CEO and your own career progress.
Diane Gayeski, Ph.D. is professor of organizational
communication, learning & design at Ithaca College
and is CEO of Gayeski Analytics through which she assists
organizations in developing and assessing communication
policies, programs, and new technologies. She is the
author of "Managing the Communication Function:
Capturing Mindshare for Organizational Performance,"
published by IABC in 2000.
Discuss this topic with other IABC members at: www.iabc.com/memberspeak.
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