Ivy Sea Founder and President Jamie Walters was interviewed for the Winter 2001 issue of Collegium, the alumni magazine for St. John Fisher College in Rochester, NY. The article was entitled, "Getting the Balance Right," and has been reprinted here with permission. Walters is the author of the forthcoming book, Big Vision, Small Business: The Four Keys to Success & Satisfaction as a Lifestyle Entrepreneur (Ivy Sea Publishing, June 2001), and is a graduate of that university.

SJFC: In the years that you have been involved in the business, what changes or trends have you seen in how your clients communicate their messages?

JW: Interestingly, we’ve watched organizations move from communicating very little, from the top of the hierarchy downward, to communicating very little but doing it in a tidal wave of information. Surveys have shown that people are absolutely overwhelmed with information from a wider variety of sources, but still don’t feel they have the information most crucial to their work and their desire for connection with their work. We have more options, but not necessarily more sense of how to communicate effectively. I guess that goes to show that more doesn’t equate with better.

The unfortunate problem with this is that the organizational norm now is non-stop upheaval and change, and the indiscriminate flood of information only exacerbates stress levels, confusion and lack of productivity. Employees are spending more time at work and less time with their families and within their communities. Many corporate support programs, while perhaps well-meaning, add to this problem by offering services -- such as onsite dry cleaning, dinner take-out and even on-call corporate chaplains -- that further isolate employees from the community outside of work that allows rejuvenation and balance. Both employees and customers are increasingly stressed out, which is neither respectful nor productive, ultimately. With so much expected of employees and customers, efficient, respectful and mindful reflection and communication becomes even more important. This is both a bottom line business issue and a business responsibility. Our work at IVC focuses on raising this discussion and finding better approaches to meeting business goals while treating people humanely.

SJFC: Do you believe that technology has created an even larger divide between the way older professionals (age 40+) and younger professionals approach business challenges?

JW: I’m not an expert on this subject, but there may be an increased tendency toward impatience in those who are more saturated by technology, and certainly young workers who’ve come into the workforce with the prevailing myth of internet riches have a high expectation for very high, and often unrealistic, salaries. But with the Dot.Com bubble bursting pretty viciously, and many of those companies going out of business, even we in San Francisco are seeing a shift in priorities among younger workers. The perception is that there’s a difference between age groups, but there are many similarities, too. A lot of younger workers want mentors, learning opportunities and meaningful work, just like many of their older counterparts.

There always seems to be monumental differences between the experience of one generation and the ones before or after it. It’s all relative. There are certainly older individuals who aren’t comfortable with technology, and I imagine they may feel somewhat disenfranchised. And yet, there are also entire industries, business categories and even localities where the more advanced technology is used minimally if at all, lessening the exposure of even younger people. There are thirty year old attorneys who have their secretary print out their email, and seventy year old individuals who are inseparable from their Palm Pilot and who maintain their own web site.

If there are gulfs between older and younger professionals, factors such as major cultural events, the perception toward government, the composition of the family reality, and the prevailing business myth and reality as they come of age play as great a role in shaping worldview as does a person’s specific technology exposure. As we’ve seen en masse out here, growing up playing computer games doesn’t mean you are adept at building businesses or relationships.

SJFC: Is communication a lost art? In other words, do you see an erosion in the communication skills of those around you or those you serve?

JW: No, I don’t believe communication as we define it is a lost art, but there may be the threat of erosion if not an actual erosion. I think that the perceived erosion of skills is actually an erosion of the level of care people have about others - a much more significant issue. Communication æ as a requisite skill for healthy community and good relationship æ requires constant vigilance and tending in an increasingly technological or electronic age. One issue is that, as the use of and fluency in communication technologies increases, other-focus, mindfulness and interpersonal skillfulness seem to decrease. People get more brusque, more impatient with one another. There is less silence, fewer moments with no intrusion. Concerns about uncivil or inappropriate behavior increase, both within and outside of the workplace. I don’t believe this is coincidental. We’ve certainly seen this connection out here in the San Francisco and Silicon Valley areas, where you have very high levels of technological proficiency co-existing with increasing aggression and preoccupation, such as higher incidences of road rage and things like a record-breaking number of motorists running red lights and hitting pedestrians in pedestrian walkways. It’s disconcerting.

Another key issue is that technology is one medium of communication, it is not synonymous with communication. Because you send an e-mail or create a web site or host an online conference doesn’t mean you’ve communicated effectively or even used the various media effectively. Communication is the result of intention coupled with visual and auditory cues, as well as the words or content of our messages. Technology as a medium often removes two of the three æ body language and voice tone, and we haven’t even talked about the importance of the kinesthetic æ touch. There are a lot of people who are not aware of the distinctions, but then again there are individuals who believe that, because they’ve spoken, they’ve communicated, so the challenge isn’t specific to technology. So it’s a matter of getting right in your heart and mind, and then effectively using various communication pathways or media to skillfully and mindfully share information and build relationship. That hasn’t changed, and there is still a lot of opportunity for greater skillfulness, more consistent respectfulness and deeper relationship.

SJFC: What was your career path leading to the founding of Innovision?

JW: Most of my experience before founding InnoVision Communication (IVC) and, more recently, Ivy Sea, Inc., was in public affairs and marketing communication, starting on the legislative staffs of New York State Assembly Speaker Stanley Fink and California Assemblywoman Lucy Killea, and moving into other public and private sector organizations. Just prior to launching my business, I helped establish and manage the Superfund Communication Relations program for the Commonwealth of Virginia’s Department of Waste Management, which required significant outreach to legislators, members of the media, citizen groups and residents in some forty communities in some stage of hazardous waste cleanup. Having watched both of my parents move from other-employment to self-employment, I knew that would be my path as soon as I had enough experience to feel I could offer something of real value to my clients. Connecting my Faith and Life Work with my livelihood work is a high priority for me, so that and my passion for good communication and fostering respectful, rewarding workplace interactions fueled the vision and mission of my company.

SJFC: How does your firm's philosophy set it apart from your competitors?

JW: Many other firms approach organizational communication from a niche or technician perspective, such as advertising, public relations or marketing communication; or as newsletters, web sites or meetings. We take a step or two back and focus on building healthy community and relationship within and between organizations, starting within the hearts and minds of individuals and extending outward to the connections with others. We occupy space that bridges several traditional turf areas: corporate communication, organizational development and management consulting.

We’ve elected to remain a small organization, so we’re selective about the clients with whom we work. We enjoy practicing what we preach and building strong relationships with our clients; they’re not just accounts or revenue.

Another distinction, to be very direct, is that we have little interest in projects that are really just "feel good" palliatives that mask disrespectful business or workplace practices, regardless of the revenue potential. We’ve turned down lucrative projects if we felt the ultimate result of our work would not promote ethical or healthy ends. Fortunately, there are many organizations that sincerely want to create respectful, productive, satisfying workplaces and interactions with customers, vendors and others, so we stay busy helping those organizations find ways to meet those goals.

In addition, we’re very committed to regular pro bono work, and to maintaining our award-winning, free public resource web site, Ivy Sea Online (http://www.ivysea.com). The web site, in addition to drawing content partnerships with Inc.com and other online concerns, has been used to good ends by people all over the U.S. and as far away as India, Singapore, Turkey, the Balkans, Israel, South Africa and many other regions of the world. The feedback we receive from them is deeply gratifying and humbling.

SJFC: What-if any-influence does your firm's geographic location have on its success? Do you believe that business can really been done "from anyone's basement" in the year 2000?

JW: San Francisco certainly has an impressive reputation as a cosmopolitan city, and there are many organizations headquartered here. Also, this city and Northern California has a reputation for being more tolerant in many ways, and you can more easily mingle spiritual subject matter in business dialogue than is the case in some other geographic regions. Back east, there are areas where you suggest that ethical or spiritual dilemmas exist with some traditional business practices and people think you’re insane to question the Profit Deity, but we’re able to discuss the costs in bottom line terms to make the point even to hard-core profiteers.

As for doing business from someone’s basement, it happens all the time, and technology makes it much easier to present a very professional, current business image regardless of size or location. It’s more a matter of how you operate and present yourself. This is why many analysts and business leaders view technology as a potential equalizer, and it’s why you see many large organizations modeling or just buying up very small, innovative organizations. Large companies like Apple were founded in the garage, and many small companies that provide the majority of net new jobs, innovations, non-traditional work opportunities and positive contributions to the community operate from small, funky locations or out of someone’s home. I love those statistics.

SJFC: Thank you.

JW: Thank you.

For more information about St. John Fisher College, visit the university's web site at www.sjfc.edu

Remember, this information is food-for-thought, not customized counsel. The most effective interpersonal and organizational communication program is one that's been tailored to meet the unique needs of your group. If you have questions, connect with a leadership and communication advisor or e-mail us at info@innovis.com for suggestions.