by mm46
I wouldn’t be surprised if the most popular “C” on the lips of everyone around the globe, at the moment is “Coronavirus” or “COVID-19”. Nevertheless, should this be the case, if indeed it is?
Whilst the current pandemic presents a challenge as well as a clear and present danger to everyone, the “C” that should be on everyone’s lips should be “Chief”. Now is the time for all Chief Officers in the public and private sector – Commander-in-Chief, Chief Executive Officer, Chief Operating Officer, Chief Responsibility Officer, Chief Human Resource Officer etc – to stand up and be counted; your people need to hear from you”.
“Chief “is not just the bit part of a title, it is more of an identity that embodies what the title holder is all about. In times of crisis and uncertainty, the leadership of the “Chief” is going to rise and fall on communication.
The “Chief” must maintain a high level of visibility and contact with the people; first, as a sign of courage (that demonstrates the ability to take decisive action, in spite of fear borne of misinformation) and secondly, as a signal of encouragement (that allays the people’s fear by giving them hope and the resolve to soldier on) in these grim times.
At the heart of such sacrificial leadership is communication. Instinctively, people want to feel something when they hear from their leader. They want to feel that their leader understands where they are coming from and is not detached from the situation; they want to know that “we are in this together” and that “we shall overcome this together”.
The Chief” as leader cannot be silent at this time”, neither can they be absent from the scene or invisible. In particular, they should not delegate the communication responsibility to their subordinates. After all, the “Chief” is the first line of executive command and decision-making, so, we must hear from them.
So what must our “Chief” be communicating to us right now?
For starters, they must make us believe that they feel and understand what we are feeling – it makes the “Chief” authentic. They must be seen to prioritise the cost of livelihoods ahead of the cost to business.
Following that, they must demonstrate decisiveness during uncertainty by cascading the decisions they have taken and the actions that will underpin them – the people will understand that the “Chief” is doing something about the situation.
Furthermore, the “Chief’s” utterances must remove doubt, fear, and misinformation that has the propensity to thrive in such crisis situations – it is the perfect riposte to the spread of fake news.
And Finally, the “Chief” must make available a series of dashboards that serve as an update of what is actually happening – it lets the people know how well the “Chief “ has the situation under control.
Chief . . . what would you score if your people appraised you now?