someTitle
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C H A P T E R F O U R
Competency 4: Communicating Vision
This vignette speaks to the heart of successfully implementing vision. Leaders
must engage various stakeholders to help them understand the rationale for change;
leaders must, in essence, create a compelling call to action. To illustrate this point,
Elizabeth Pa
is was ecstatic. A year after facing many difficult is-
sues with her board and several months after hiring her new execu-
tive vice president and chief operating officer, John Vardez, she had
successfully led the development of Vision 2025, the organization’s long-
ange strategic plan. Vision 2025 incorporated a $300 million rebuilding and
enovation program, the creation of a more distinct ambulatory business
unit, and a comprehensive approach to population health management that
was coordinated through their health plan. It also included an agreement
to partner with two other health systems in two other large cities to create
a collaborative, allowing access to a far greater population base than just
Barkley, as well as several new horizontal integration initiatives that could
truly create the “health system of the future.” This latter part of Vision 2025
was the most challenging to describe. While the financial challenges to fund
this project were enormous, an even greater challenge in Pa
is’s mind was
the essential requirement that the entire physician and employee commu-
nity understand what this collaborative meant and be totally engaged in the
change initiative.
Pa
is had discussed this challenge with her executive coach, who
encouraged her to keep focused on linking changes to a systematic com-
munications strategy. She began her weekend with the goal of developing a
set of outlines that would captivate the physicians and employees when she
started her town hall meetings next month.
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44 Exceptional Leadership
consider this statement based on Greek history: When Pericles spoke, people said,
“How well he speaks.” But when Demosthenes spoke, they said, “Let us march.”
In the previous chapter, we discussed what it means to develop vision. Devel-
oping and using vision as an instrument of organizational change requires effec-
tive communication of that vision—turning a set of strategic and often complex
concepts into a compelling story of where the organization is, where it will go, and
how it is going to get there.
We call this competency Communicating Vision for several reasons. First, we
want to distinguish it from the more general concept of communication, which can
e almost as
oad as leadership itself. In this chapter, we specifically address how
highly effective leaders communicate vision, and how they create an environment
where staff and physicians feel compelled to move with them toward that vision.
WHAT IS COMMUNICATING VISION, AND WHY IS IT
IMPORTANT?
Communicating Vision throughout any change process is essential to its success. At
the same time, it is also incredibly challenging to effectively pull off. Most leaders
outinely underestimate the amount of communication necessary to drive change
efforts; as a result, many employees inevitably feel lost and confused by the change
process, which can make them cling even more closely to their old but familiar
habits.
Effective leaders not only communicate about day-to-day issues but also about
vision. In his book Leading Change, noted scholar John Kotter XXXXXXXXXXdescribes
the level of vision-related communication in comparison to total workplace com-
munication during a change effort. In his estimation, vision-related communication
tends to comprise only about one-half of 1 percent of the communication people
eceive about their work. With this much competition, communication had better
e captivating!
Communicating Vision means that you distill complex strategies into a
compelling call to action, inspire and help others see a core reason for the
organization to change, talk beyond the day-to-day tactical matters that face
the organization, show confidence and optimism about the future state of
the organization, and engage others to join in.
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Chapter Four: Competency 4: Communicating Vision 45
Spending time communicating future vision also helps ensure that everyone is
on the same page. It aids in collaboration and enhances the coordination of work
effort.
WHEN HIGHLY EFFECTIVE LEADERS COMMUNICATE
VISION
Although there are as many communication styles as there are communicators,
several qualities make any communication style stronger. Keep these in mind, and
your communication will begin to reflect them.
Communicating Clearly
Discussing clarity in vision communication may appear trite—after all, who would
argue against communication clarity? However, in reality, few among us are as clear
as we could be, as frequently as we could be, though most of us would like to think
otherwise.
We can compare Communicating Vision to marketing. Think about the mar-
keting slogans that you have found most memorable. What did they have in com-
mon? Chances are they were straightforward, novel, even catchy—and without
a single vague or unnecessary word. If they were really good, they stuck in your
mind—you could not help but think of them. These same structural elements can
e usefully applied to vision communication. You want these ideas to be compelling
and to stick in people’s minds.
Communicating Widely
Effective leaders ensure that everyone who will be responsible for moving the
vision forward hear it. They also use a wide variety of communication methods to
describe vision so that the message fully permeates. This skill separates exceptional
leaders from their well-intentioned but less-effective counterparts. Because com-
munication can be labor intensive, shortcuts become tempting—placing a message
in a corporate newsletter and considering the communication process finished, for
example. This may make sense if all staff are required to read the newsletter and if
the expectation is effectively monitored, but it is hard to justify otherwise.
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46 Exceptional Leadership
Highly effective leaders will take the communication process even further.
Beyond simply ensuring the message is heard, they will ensure that the message
is discussed. For example, they might instruct managers to explicitly incorporate a
discussion of the vision into their next staff meeting and then report back on what
was discussed. Such cascading communication structures can go a long way in
making sure key messages are reliably received.
WHEN COMMUNICATING VISION IS NOT ALL IT
COULD BE
When communication falls short of captivating, often one or more of the following
may be the reason.
Lacking Clarity, Focus, or Information
Clarity can suffer because of a number of problems. The communication may lack
clarity because the vision itself lacks clarity. Alternatively, the communication may
lack focus; it may contain too many elements for people to easily wrap their heads
around. Still another problem stems from communicating too little information
about the how of the vision. The further the vision is from the cu
ent state of affairs,
the greater the need for some indication of the path the organization will take to
get there. Without this path, staff may dismiss the vision out of hand—a risk made
far more likely if there is recent history of abandoned visions.
Lacking Meaning for the Audience
The challenge of making a
oad organizational vision meaningful at department
and subdepartment levels is usually beyond the capabilities of any individual leader.
Effective leaders know this and work with managers to develop local interpretations
of how the efforts of a given division, department, or team will fit into this
oader
vision. Without this careful linkage, staff may only receive the corporate take on
the vision and may have difficulty viewing their roles as part of that vision.
Another frequent problem is the articulation of a vision that does not clearly
express how the vision affects everyone, and how everyone affects the vision. This
isk exists any time a vision communication places special emphasis on a specific
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Chapter Four: Competency 4: Communicating Vision 47
aspect of operations. Common examples include vision statements that draw special
attention to the physicians, nurses, profitable service lines, or quality improvement
initiatives. If poorly communicated, the vision will leave the counterparts (e.g.,
nonphysicians, non-nurses) feeling excluded.
Communicating Infrequently
Although communication plans can (and should) be designed to be highly efficient,
they are still typically time and resource intensive. Communications is a tempting
place to cut corners, and so corners are often cut. The best prevention here is to
a
ange a review of all internal communications coming from the corporate level
to ensure they make some mention of future plans. Think about it this way: Any
time the vision of the future state of the organization is not mentioned, the status
quo will take center stage.
MISUSE AND OVERUSE: HOW COMMUNICATING
VISION CAN WORK AGAINST YOU
Overcommunication of the vision is not nearly as frequent as undercommunica-
tion. When communication fails, it is usually because of a problem with the com-
munication itself rather than it being too frequent. The following patterns will cause
your communication to be ineffective, regardless of frequency.
When Communicating Vision Is Not All It Could Be
Communication in the realm of strategic vision can fall short for any of the
following reasons:
• Lacking clarity, focus, or information
– A visual picture is not created, either because it is unclear or it
contains too many elements.
– Lack of thought about the how makes the vision seem too far-fetched.
• Lacking meaning for the audience
– The importance of individual roles is not adequately addressed.
• Communicating infrequently
– The vision is rolled out and then rarely refe
ed to again.
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48 Exceptional Leadership
Communicating Vision as an End Rather Than a Means
Occasionally, leaders may be accused of talking a great game and getting people
excited about an idea or strategy that they are ultimately unable to implement.
Leaders may routinely be caught up in the excitement of thinking (or dreaming)
about what the future could be like, but the actions needed to make this future
happen are conspicuously absent. The vision is