Clarity is a leadership differentiator
We live in information overload, with news and commentary never more available or more confusing. For leaders, it demands a shift from seeing the engagement challenge as about volume to instead being about clarity, above all why what’s being said matters.
Research published by Harvard Business School last month analysed how more than 300 leaders in purpose-driven organisations navigated economic, political, and technological disruptions. Their finding was that for leaders to sustain authenticity under pressure, they had to communicate clearly about what is known and unknown, make explicit any trade-offs anchored in core values, and be clear on responsibilities. Effective leadership that aligned with the values of their organisation relied on communicating with absolute clarity so teams and stakeholders had the specific information they needed to make sense of the situation.
It underlines my recent reflection that in global politics we’re seeing a US government media strategy that, by being the loudest, has become one of the least trusted. The takeaway is that, in times of pressure when information is confusing, people want leaders who communicate with clarity and coherence about what is (and isn’t) happening. It is not about having absolute certainty but instead communicating with honesty, directness, and clarity, particularly on when to expect a further update.
Too often, when organisations are navigating a crisis or going through significant change, the instinct is to increase the volume and quantity of communications rather than focusing on what people need. The outcome can be that the audience - colleagues, residents, partners, policy makers, even media - disengage because there is too much to make sense of. The information being shared has failed to answer the question that matters most: what does this mean, why is it happening, and what will happen next.
In my experience, there are three ways communications can be incoherent. By telling people what is happening without saying why it matters. Communicating with false confidence and certainty when outcomes are still evolving. And finally, by prioritising volume rather than focusing on the specific details audiences need including having the space to absorb and ask questions.
The test for leadership communications is not how much information is being shared. It is whether, after the last update, your audiences could explain what it meant and why it mattered.
Natalie Orringe / strategyimpact.co
