Communication Barriers – CEO’s Disease

Communication Barriers – CEO’s Disease

Effective Communication is paramount to organisational success; Poor communication can be fatal!   The Problem Dynamic For over a decade I arm-wrestled with Federal and State contracts in the field of Social Services. Unsurprisingly, considering the complexity of these contracts, I also wrestled with staff, on a daily basis, trying to get them to deliver the contract within the prescribed parameters. I felt I was communicating honestly, openly and clearly, yet I could never find real traction in establishing a platform of performance that was required. The Diagnosis In mid 2011, after throwing my hands into the air in resignation, I came across the concept of “The CEO’s Disease”. It was a pivotal moment in my journey towards rebuilding my career and highlighted the significant issues caused by poor communication, whilst giving a diagnosis, a range of symptoms and finally, a cure. As I learned of this putrid disease, I became intimately aware that this disease had run rampant through my previous place of employ. I realised that it was nobody’s fault, it was a disease of unawareness and ineffectiveness, despite extraordinary effort and commitment. The Symptoms Effective communication, or lack thereof, can play a very large role in an organisation’s overall performance. “Poor Communication” consistently rates as one of the major disabling factors across vertical and horizontal business structures as indicated by the Sustainable Organisational Culture Survey. Moreover, perception of poor communication channels running vertically through the organisation (ie. from the CEO to the shopfloor) has significant impacts on morale, motivation and effort of people at the lower levels of the organisation. Often, the CEO and senior members of...