Ivy Sea's founder, Jamie Walters, started the business in 1992 as a solo consulting practice, expanding in 1995 to a multiple-person firm. In addition to her work as Ivy Sea's president, her first book, Big Vision, Small Business: The Four Keys to Finding Success & Satisfaction as a Lifestyle Entrepreneur will be launched in August 2001 by Ivy Sea Publishing. In researching Big Vision, Jamie spoke with more than 70 small-business owners and advocates from throughout the United States.

At Ivy Sea, we see it all the time, whether with our clients, talking with colleagues or reading the trades: Major changes occur or problems erupt and it becomes clear in hindsight that the organization's leaders failed in a crucial area: proactive, effective communication. After seeing it in the fortieth headline or hearing it within yet another client organization, I wonder, "Are these folks just overwhelmed, torn by so many competing and seemingly urgent interests, or are they arrogant or stubborn and actually trying to be disrespectful to employees?"

Why do many leaders neglect communication?

What can a leader do to realistically promote dialogue and participation?

Why do many leaders neglect communication?

As a business owner, I understand that things are more complex behind the curtain than they seem to an employee not privy to the inner workings of the business. The closer you get to the top of the old pyramid, the more likely it is that you have a myriad of issues and interests vying for your attention. But as a communication advocate, having seen all too frequently the bottom-line costs associated with neglected communication, I find it very hard to understand why every organizational leader wouldn't be a proponent as well.

If proactive communication helps minimize rather costly problems, such as miscommunication with customers, employee turnover, poor morale, lawsuits for harassment and so forth, why do so many leaders get stingy when it comes to allocating dollars for this important area? Here are a few ideas:

• Proactive communication is preventative. Investing in communication before there's a crisis requires vision, so many leaders figure, "A crisis hasn't erupted today, so we don't have a problem with communication." Yet at these same companies, employees spend hours of time fueling the gripe-vine, sending off unproductive missives to colleagues via e-mail or posting them to web sites like Disgruntled.com. These same leaders would never suggest the company be without key insurance policies or its gaggle of attorneys, both of which come with a hefty pricetag and are tapped for many problems that better proactive communication could have helped avoid.

• Some leaders may not understand what communication really is. This sounds ridiculous, even arrogant, yet it's neither. But you've heard it: the leader that thinks good communication is a "snazzy" corporate logo. They may assume that if people are talking, they're communicating; if a web site is up, it's helping to build effective relationships with a desired audience. In many cases, neither is true.

Many leaders verbally -- and genuinely -- promote the concept of good communication, but few actually understand what good communication is and what the care and feeding for a state of good organizational communication requires. On one hand, this may be refusal to see something you don't understand. On the other hand, communication advocates can do a better job of raising the leader's awareness regarding the bottom-line impact of an investment in communication.

• A leader's personality may not be extroverted. A good leader doesn't have to be a raving extrovert to be effective or successful, but he or she does have to understand that if he's not the gregarious, outgoing sort, he'll have to purposefully identify how he can model good communication and foster good relationships within his organization using his own personal style of communication. Leadership requires that we stretch beyond our comfort zones, but a quiet, more understated person doesn't have to resign himself to sending memo after memo from the safety of his own office; he can be a great communicator in a way that makes the most of that quiet, understated manner, meeting with people in small groups or one-on-one instead of speaking at conferences or town hall meetings. Find a way that matches your style, but do find a way.

• Many employees don't really want the responsibility. From some leaders' perspective, many employees clamor for involvement and participation, but don't seize opportunities for themselves or rise to the occasion when the opportunity's offered. After awhile, the glazed eyes and chin drool become tedious, and the leader figures, "Heck with it. I'll decide and let everyone know."

This particular "aha moment" really blew my mind. As a communication proponent who wanted to walk her talk in her own company, I figured that if you create the right environment, employees would blossom into their own. Some did; others were crushed by the weight of the responsibility of making an active contribution to the health of the organization. It's a matter of personality.

So how can a leader realistically promote dialogue and participation?

Given these challenges, it's easy to see why a leader might choose to neglect communication, but he does so at his own and his organization's detriment. As an organizational leader, what can you realistically do, given the above, to foster proactive involvement -- a culture of participation -- within your organization? Here are a few possibilities:

• Assign participatory roles in keeping with personality styles. Assigning roles based on a person's personality, rather than in conflict with it, is always a good idea because it helps make the most of a person's strengths while offering realistic opportunities for growth. For example, in many engineering firms, good engineers are promoted to managerial positions, but the qualities that make a good engineer are very different from the qualities that make a good manager. When looking for employees to add depth-of-voice to your organization, choose personality styles that are ready blossom with that particular opportunity.

• Offer a variety of ways employees can participate. Having the entire staff at a strategic brainstorming session is neither practical nor desirable, but seeking perspectives from the entire staff is both possible and beneficial. The difference is in the means -- the vehicle you offer to specific types of people (personalities) or employees (roles). A small group might be asked to participate in an organizational strategy group, while others might be invited to respond to a survey or participate in more individualized interviews.

• Promote informal discussion, then watch and listen. In addition to your slate of formal participation vehicles, informal dialogue can be valuable for a number of reasons: 1) it promotes a culture of collaboration and satisfaction; and 2) the informal discussions often yield information that ultimately coheses into trends that might otherwise be missed by the more broad-sweeping brainstorms. Both are valuable to keep your organization -- via the dialogue within it -- energized and forward-moving while being enjoyable in the present moment.

This information provides food for thought rather than counsel specifically designed to meet the needs of your organization or situation. Please use it mindfully. The most effective leadership and communication plans are those that have been tailored to meet your unique needs and organizational culture, so don't hesitate to get individualized assistance from a qualified adviser.

For more on dialogue skill-building

For more Ivy Sea skill-building resources

IntraPersonal and Mindset Mastery Portal

Organizational Communication CyberWorkshop

Inspired-Leadership Resource Portal

Brain Food Cafeteria

or e-mail us at info@ivysea.com