When I hear ‘communication failure,’ my initial thought is, … something went wrong and we don’t know what to blame it on
Season 5, Episode 4 — Click here to download the transcript
It is commonly assumed that ineffective communication can lead to unsuccessful change efforts, while good effective communications can bring about change success. But is that really a correlation? Are the success of change efforts and success of communication campaigns really correlated? One would certainly think so, given the way we talk about it. How readily one makes claims that the failed change meant that the leaders must have communicated it poorly.
Well, I’m here to challenge that notion because I’ve seen it both ways where change failed despite a highly effective and well executed communication campaign and where change succeeded despite no one within the organization really knowing that change was happening. So really, to what extent is there a relationship between the success of the change effort and the success of its associated communication?
In this episode, I present a storyline that I have personally seen replicated in many organizations — one where the communication effort was essentially separate (though still interdependent) of the intended change. In this, the leader initiates a communication campaign for change before the change effort is conceived. In essence, the communication effort stays ahead of the change effort — the communications are launched while the change effort is in pre-launch, and when the change is launched the leader has effectively moved on to the next idea. The implications are that the success or failure of each is not necessarily correlated, and I’m here to talk about how a change can succeed despite poor communication and how a well-executed communication effort can excel despite the change effort failing
Works Referenced:
Burke, W. W. (2017). Organization change: Theory and practice. Sage publications.
Gilley, A., Godek, M., & Gilley, J. W. (2009). Change, resistance, and the organizational immune system. SAM Advanced Management Journal, 74(4), 4.
Kotter, J. P. (2012). Leading change. Harvard business press.
Lewis, C. S. (1966). The inner ring. London: Logres Press.
