September 16, 2010
Public (and private) speaking
Whether at your dealership or in you community, you need to express yourself effectively
By: Tom Gegax
When addressing people out in your community, you need to be in top form (just ask former Bridgestone Americas Inc. executive Mark Emkes).
One day, Eric Randa, our vice president of loss prevention, dropped off a three-page memo. I scanned it and called him back into my office. “Eric,” I said, “this is a great memo, but I need you to condense it and make it simpler.” In fact, I said, write every memo like it’s for the president of a company, someone who has to read a hundred memos a day and doesn’t have time to read two pages, let alone three.
Eric did exactly that. At the next executive committee meeting, I handed out Eric’s memo and said I wanted all memos done in that format — short paragraphs, subheads, crisp writing and lots of bullet points. “Tom called it the ‘President Randa format’ and everyone had a good laugh,” Eric recalled.
For all the effort to keep it plain and simple, the near universal use of e-mail, instant messaging and phone-texting tempts us to backslide into vagueness. Digital communication lends itself to shorthand and slang, with new abbreviations invented daily.
To avoid confusion, write full sentences that err on the side of polite formality. Also, treat e-mail the way a driver approaches her car — don’t use it if you’re tired or tipsy, or you may steer your business into a ditch.
I have a low tolerance for sloppy verbal communication, too. The breaking point for me was a high-level team meeting where a key exec stated a “fact” that threatened to reverse an important decision we were about to make. I asked if she was 100% certain.
“Absolutely,” she replied. That wasn’t the way I recalled the matter, so I asked her for supporting documentation. Sure enough, she had erred.
Bad information creates chaos and sabotages team goals. Recognizing, however, that this exec was already embarrassed by her mistake, I reined in my frustration and stressed to the team that success hinged on airtight info. Effective immediately, I said, we need to be precise with our language and extraordinarily careful not to confuse “probably” or “pretty sure” with “absolutely.” My executive’s red face and my own exasperation were a small price to pay for purifying the process.
Stepping up a level of communication, the bully pulpit can spread the word fast. Seize every opportunity to address your troops. One well-crafted speech saves time and magnifies impact. For that matter, don’t pass up outside engagements — speaking to community groups extends your company’s goodwill (and brand).
You just need to know how to perform like a pro.
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