How To Cascade Messages via Managers To Employees

<h1>How To Cascade Messages via Managers To Employees</h1>Author: <a title="Marcia Xenitelis" href="http://www.articlesbase.com/authors/marcia-xenitelis/33637.htm">Marcia Xenitelis</a> One of the common mistakes people make when designing a change program is assuming that if a person is a team leader, supervisor or senior manager they should naturally know how to communicate face to face with their teams.  However communication skills are rarely one of the key competencies that is taught or measured by organizations.  There is however a very easy way to ensure that there is structure and content that make it very easy for managers at all levels to follow.   What is needed is structure and process and team briefing which is a formal communication cascading process via management is a tool that perfectly fits the bill. It has three levels of cascading messages:   1. The first is the CEO who at his executive team briefings decides which topics for that week he wants communicated to employees. 2. This is then circulated out to his direct reports who then have to communicate those issues and decide the top 5 issues for their respective divisions and then finally the top 5 issues for their teams. 3. So the only aspect of a team brief that changes is the last section which is how what is happening in the company and our division relates to the work we are doing in our team. This is the section that always changes depending on your team in the division.   The reason this works is simple.  The only aspect a manager has to think about is what is happening in the organization that will effect his team that week or month depending on the frequency of the team briefing process.  The rest of the information is already determined by the divisional head and the CEO.  The team brief should only take around 15 minutes so it can be incorporated into a regular team meeting.  And most importantly it is constant as the CEO has his Executive team meeting dates set for the entire year and this ensures that everyone from the Executive team to the frontline know what is happening in the organization.   The key factor to the success of team briefings is that they are driven by the CEO.  Whenever your CEO talks with managers and employees he should ask whether they had in fact attended a team briefing and how regularly they occured.This way if they are not he can say to his direct reports, "I am conducting my team brief with you now so there is no excuse for you not to do the same with your team members".   So these are the keys to making Team Briefings work.   1. Make sure that you put in place a simple process 2. Make sure that the CEO drives it and that his direct reports understand the importance to the CEO - not you. Afterall you are not their boss, he is. 3. Ensure that the topics are the type of content that management are comfortable and knowledgeable about 4. Provide a feedback loop, again this is part of the process, if there is a question that management do not know the answer to, there must be a formal easy process for them to follow to quickly obtain the answer and respond to the employee. 5. Team briefings should only take 15 minutes, they can also be incorporated into regular weekly meetings.   When it comes to cascading information in a face to face format via management remember that as with anything, there will be some topics that employees want to hear directly from the CEO and other topics they are happy to hear from their manager. Generally when it comes to significant issues such as retrenchments, closure of offices and mergers or acquisitions employees generally want to hear this from the person at the top. Day to day, week by week and month by month operational issues they are comfortable in hearing from their manager who manages their daily work.About the Author: Marcia Xenitelis is a recognized authority on the subject on change management and has spoken at conferences around the world. For access to case studies and more information on the types of strategies you can implement to engage employees visit <a href="http://www.changemanagementtips.com"><a target="_blank" href="http://www.changemanagementtips.com">http://www.changemanagementtips.com</a></a> for a wealth of free informative articles and resources.
Article Source: <a href="http://www.articlesbase.com/">ArticlesBase.com</a> - <a href="http://www.articlesbase.com/management-articles/how-to-cascade-messages-via-managers-to-employees-975690.html" title="How To Cascade Messages via Managers To Employees">How To Cascade Messages via Managers To Employees</a>

One of the common mistakes people make when designing a change program is assuming that if a person is a team leader, supervisor or senior manager they should naturally know how to communicate face to face with their teams. However communication skills are rarely one of the key competencies that is taught or measured by organizations. There is however a very easy way to ensure that there is structure and content that make it very easy for managers at all levels to follow.

What is needed is structure and process and team briefing which is a formal communication cascading process via management is a tool that perfectly fits the bill. It has three levels of cascading messages:

1. The first is the CEO who at his executive team briefings decides which topics for that week he wants communicated to employees.
2. This is then circulated out to his direct reports who then have to communicate those issues and decide the top 5 issues for their respective divisions and then finally the top 5 issues for their teams.
3. So the only aspect of a team brief that changes is the last section which is how what is happening in the company and our division relates to the work we are doing in our team. This is the section that always changes depending on your team in the division.

The reason this works is simple. The only aspect a manager has to think about is what is happening in the organization that will effect his team that week or month depending on the frequency of the team briefing process. The rest of the information is already determined by the divisional head and the CEO. The team brief should only take around 15 minutes so it can be incorporated into a regular team meeting. And most importantly it is constant as the CEO has his Executive team meeting dates set for the entire year and this ensures that everyone from the Executive team to the frontline know what is happening in the organization.

The key factor to the success of team briefings is that they are driven by the CEO. Whenever your CEO talks with managers and employees he should ask whether they had in fact attended a team briefing and how regularly they occured.This way if they are not he can say to his direct reports, "I am conducting my team brief with you now so there is no excuse for you not to do the same with your team members".

So these are the keys to making Team Briefings work.

1. Make sure that you put in place a simple process
2. Make sure that the CEO drives it and that his direct reports understand the importance to the CEO - not you. Afterall you are not their boss, he is.
3. Ensure that the topics are the type of content that management are comfortable and knowledgeable about
4. Provide a feedback loop, again this is part of the process, if there is a question that management do not know the answer to, there must be a formal easy process for them to follow to quickly obtain the answer and respond to the employee.
5. Team briefings should only take 15 minutes, they can also be incorporated into regular weekly meetings.

When it comes to cascading information in a face to face format via management remember that as with anything, there will be some topics that employees want to hear directly from the CEO and other topics they are happy to hear from their manager. Generally when it comes to significant issues such as retrenchments, closure of offices and mergers or acquisitions employees generally want to hear this from the person at the top. Day to day, week by week and month by month operational issues they are comfortable in hearing from their manager who manages their daily work.

Marcia Xenitelis is a recognized authority on the subject on change management and has spoken at conferences around the world. For access to case studies and more information on the types of strategies you can implement to engage employees visit http://www.changemanagementtips.com for a wealth of free informative articles and resources.

Rate this Article:

0 / 5 stars - 0 vote(s)

Re-Publish

Article Source: http://www.articlesbase.com/management-articles/how-to-cascade-messages-via-managers-to-employees-975690.html

Article Tags: Communication, Management, Change, Employees, Communication Skills, Change Management, Managers, Organizations, Employee Communication, Team Leader, Organizational Change, Communication Strategy, Change Program

Related Articles
Related Q&A

Latest Management Articles
More from Marcia Xenitelis

What Makes Revamped Office Furniture Can Become Just The Ticket For All Offices

By: Aleks G | 23/12/2009
In our modern society, there is never-ending conversations in the area the preservation of precious resources.

WordPress can make easy to use Content Management System

By: spinxwebdesign | 23/12/2009
WordPress is very versatile software program which can be used for many purposes. One of the biggest advantages of WordPress is, it is almost free and using it one can easily make a decent website. This article will present an overview on how WordPress can be used as CMS.

Ideal Bookkeepers and Bookkeeping

By: vish ks | 23/12/2009
The chief aim of any individual who sets up a business is to earn substantial income. In order to conduct business in the appropriate way, one needs to have at least some acquaintance with the different operations associated with it. Well, regarding bookkeeping activities, considering the current economic scenario, it would be prudent to hire the services of some professional bookkeeping firm.

Bookkeepers Adopt a Meticulous Approach

By: vish ks | 23/12/2009
All Companies must conduct an accurate analysis of the bookkeeping affairs for the faster growth of the Company. Bookkeeping as such is an assortment of multiple activities. Usually organizations and Companies employ a few accountants and bookkeepers for handling their accounts. But, the very concept of maintaining a huge workforce in the bookkeeping department is not recommended nowadays.

Operations Risk and Business Continuity – The Eurostar Case

By: Stanley Epstein | 22/12/2009
The recent Eurostar train failures in the English Channel Tunnel are an excellent example of Operational Risk. This event clearly indicates the unpredictable nature of this type of risk as well as the procedures that should have been in place to have avoided the extreme disruptions to the plans of thousands of holiday makers.

Build Your Salespeople’s Strengths And Use Them As Launch Pads For Better Sales Success

By: Ralph Burns | 22/12/2009
I used to work for a company that tried to change me into someone I just was not. In an interview, the HR manager said, “This company will help you overcome your weaknesses by thrusting you into different kinds of situations. We will help you grow to become a completely different person.” Here is the thing. There’s nothing wrong with “overcoming your weaknesses“. But to turn me into a “completely different person,” that’s something else.

Get Your Sales Reps to Sell Like Corky

By: Ralph Burns | 22/12/2009
What is the highest performing stock in terms of total return over the over the course of the past 40 years? It's not Microsoft. No, its not Cisco Systems. It's not GE. It's not even Intel.

How a Top Sales Manager Gets Their Salespeople to Sell More Stuff!

By: Ralph Burns | 22/12/2009
When do you do your best work? When you feel bad or when you feel good? The obvious answer is when you feel good. No one feels like doing much of anything when they feel bad. When people don't feel so good, they end up doing very little... not a good situation for you. So it begs the question: does the salesperson brimming with confidence sell more than the salesperson who lacks confidence?

Why Managers and Supervisors ARE NOT the Best Communicators During Times of Change

By: Marcia Xenitelis | 16/06/2009 | Management
Most of the programs fail to manage change within organizations...As managers & supervisors are not the best face to face communicators during times of change.

How To Cascade Messages via Managers To Employees

By: Marcia Xenitelis | 16/06/2009 | Management
Communication skills are rarely one of the key competencies taught or measured by organizations... here are some easy ways to ensure that Team Briefings work.

The Value of Employee Engagement Surveys as Part of a Change Management Strategy

By: Marcia Xenitelis | 16/06/2009 | Management
If you just change the paradigm from budget cuts... to opportunities, growth and involvement your organization's business results will be your barometer of employee engagement...

How To Engage Employees With Technology Based Change

By: Marcia Xenitelis | 13/06/2009 | Management
It’s prudent for any organisation to know that employees understand and embrace the reason behind the changes in technology. Here’s how.

Change Management and Employee Communication Strategies

By: Marcia Xenitelis | 11/06/2009 | Organizational
The important message for any change program... when it comes to organizational change, is that employees need to be involved in the process to be truly engaged...

Employee Communication: 6 Steps To Communicate Change

By: Marcia Xenitelis | 17/02/2009 | Human Resources
When the focus of your employee communication efforts is customer satisfaction it then is easier to establish the direct link between your strategies and business outcomes. It also creates a greater sense of engagement amongst your employees because they feel a significant increase in empowerment and understanding in how their role supports the customer experience and how they can change it.

Employee Communication: 3 Ways to Create Transformation in Organizations

By: Marcia Xenitelis | 26/11/2007 | Organizational
In an organization, employee communication helps to inform & engage employees in the process of change. Here are different techniques & approaches to ensure a transformation through employee communication strategies.