Communicating strategy is not enough – socialise your strategy

Posted on | May 14, 2012 | Comments Off

So you told them about your strategy, told them again, and then again once more for good measure.

But here is the rub – they still don’t get it. Their behaviours, language, actions still are not reflecting the new behaviours, language or actions that you were hoping for.

Now I could trot out clichés about the biggest mistake in communication is thinking that you have already communicated. However all that would happen is that you would tell them again. Now how is that going to help. It that worked they would have got it the first time.

So what do excellent executives do at this point?

They focus on something completely different. They think about “socialising their strategy”.

Now just for a moment think what that means? You purpose is not simply to communicate your strategy. You have to socialise it? It has to become part of the social fabric of the organisation. It becomes a way of thinking and acting. It becomes how people talk about it.

Imagine the strategy being discussed, debated and explored on Facebook, Linkedin or next to the coffee machine. Imagine people posting their thoughts about it on their websites. Discussing it with their friends.

Imagine you wanted to change a your neighbourhood? How would you go about it? Imagine you wanted to change the way people interacted? What would you do?

Socialising your strategy is a shift of emphasis and a change in the way people think.

Socialising strategy demands that yoiu do something deeper and more significant than merely talk.

Socialising strategy requires a more thorough, intensive and even obtuse approach to getting the message out.

Socialising strategy causes executives to change how they think about the problem.

Just try it for a while – I think you will be surprised what a difference it makes.