If you don't tell 'em, they'll make something up.
Has this ever happened to you? A rumor gets started, picking up steam with every passing day until it penetrates the entire organization. It didn't matter that the rumor was untrue. For employees, perception became reality.
If you don't tell 'em, they'll make something up.
Has this ever happened to you? A rumor gets started, picking up steam with every passing day until it penetrates the entire organization. It didn't matter that the rumor was untrue. For employees, perception became reality.
A few months ago, I saw what happened when the employees in a large contact center believed a false rumor. The company is a large outsourcer that takes inbound customer service calls for several U.S. utilities. Word spread among the front-line reps that their biggest client was unhappy and had decided not to renew their contract. Once the rumor mill kicked into gear, it wasn't long before the reps were spinning multiple worst-case scenarios. Convinced that there was going to be a major lay off, employee morale tanked and so did their performance.
Luckily, the center's manager was an old hand at dealing with rumor-generated panic. She understood that Nature abhors a vacuum. Absent the facts, it is natural for people to speculate about what could be true. Enter the rumor hill.
The manager also subscribed to my "Rule of Five."
If you want a group of employees to really "get" an important message, delivering it once is never enough.
The same message should be delivered at least five times via five different communication channels.
If the message is extremely important, make sure you build in one or two live meetings with management so employees can ask questions and get clarification.
Even if you do deliver your important message multiple times, you'll be lucky if 70% actually "get it."
As it turned out, when the employees learned that the client wasn't going anywhere and had, in fact, just inked a new multi-year contract, they breathed a collective sigh of relief. Confidence was restored. Performance scores shot up and service levels went back to normal.
If you don't tell 'em, they'll make something up.
Has this ever happened to you? A rumor gets started, picking up steam with every passing day until it penetrates the entire organization. It didn't matter that the rumor was untrue. For employees, perception became reality.
A few months ago, I saw what happened when the employees in a large contact center believed a false rumor. The company is a large outsourcer that takes inbound customer service calls for several U.S. utilities. Word spread among the front-line reps that their biggest client was unhappy and had decided not to renew their contract. Once the rumor mill kicked into gear, it wasn't long before the reps were spinning multiple worst-case scenarios. Convinced that there was going to be a major lay off, employee morale tanked and so did their performance.
The Lesson: The best way to prevent damaging rumors is timely, factual information. If the information is important, be on the safe side and follow the Rule of Five.
Be happy. Enjoy your week.
Barbara Burke
2011 © Barbara Burke. All rights reserved.