CHAPTER 3

Transparency

For several years, I worked independently and exclusively as a full-time consultant. If you have ever managed a similar business, or know someone who has, you understand the concept of transparency. Everything a consultant does and says is subject to scrutiny, and rightly so. Clients make a considerable investment when they affiliate with a consultant, and especially so when they share or hand over responsibilities to an independent consultant who lacks the backing or established track record of a big-name firm. Business is at stake, and so, too, is reputation.

This isn’t really a story about me, though. This is a story about one of my friends, who is a serial entrepreneur. Her career is one series of high-minded, high-risk adventures after another. She has often-brilliant ideas, pulls the right team and sufficient resources together, gets the plane off the ground, and then moves on to the next challenge. She would never join a consulting firm; she’s absolutely the captain of her ship, and happily and profitably so.

What does it take—beyond vision and a ton of hard work—to move so efficiently and effectively through the innovation process, like my friend does? Transparency. She’s fully confident in herself, in what her team can do, and in facing any challenge that might come their way. She freely admits she is not perfect, and that mistakes may be made along the way. But, through it all, my friend remains transparent to her clients and colleagues. She’s accessible and responsive, yes, but she’s also open and candid—about whatever strategy is on the table, about the structure within which the strategy is being employed, and about herself, as an individual inspiring and guiding people, through strategy and structure, toward measurable results. Back home in South Dakota, we’d call her a straight-shooter.

There was a time, nearly a century ago, when the individual was seen as the center of business communication and corporate ethics. In the decades since, though, we have come to understand and appreciate that responsible, value-based communication involves project teams, departments, executives, and really everyone who has a vested concern in outputs and outcomes (DeKay 2011). The leader of such efforts, like my entrepreneurial friend, must proactively engage with stakeholders, being as fully accessible and forthright as possible. Too much is at stake, otherwise. In these challenging times, we put our trust and faith in leaders whose values we know, and, therefore, whose words and actions we can believe.

The word “transparency” has become a cliché in business. Let’s look beyond that cliché, then, and examine specific leadership actions, in the spirit of transparency, that help build breed confidence and trust. First, though, we need to define transparency in the context of responsible communication.

Defining Transparency

Sharing information. Not having hidden agendas. Being forthright. These are some of the simple definitions that come to mind when we think of transparency. At an international conference on the subject, scholars proposed that a more precise of transparency involves two dimensions: being visible and being inferable (Michener and Bersch 2011). In the example of information or data, being visible would mean being easily located and complete; being inferable, then, would mean being thorough enough to draw verifiable inferences. How do these concepts relate to leadership and responsible communication? For argument’s sake, let’s play with the concept. As a leader, are you as visible as possible, and are you sharing a complete picture with your team or stakeholders? Likewise, is that picture robust and multidimensional enough in order for others to draw solid conclusions? In other words, being transparent in your communication as a leader might simply mean being forthcoming, sharing as much as you possibly can, and making sure that what you’re sharing is infused with enough input in order to provide a complete picture.

Let’s say you have been asked to sit in on a town hall meeting with customer service employees. Rumors are circulating that the service staff will soon be trimmed. There is some truth to that rumor, but there are several complexities and considerations that cannot yet be addressed with those who may be impacted. How do you approach such a conversation (and it should be a conversation, not a canned presentation)? First, you make the effort to attend that meeting, and to be fully engaged while there. You share as much information as you can, within legal and human resources constraints. And, as you answer questions and address concerns, you proactively remind those attending that the decision process is still in progress, and that nobody should yet draw any conclusions. You do your best to put people at ease, and to recognize that this is a difficult time. You are, in fact, there to listen to concerns and, to whatever degree you can, carry these concerns forward into the decision making. Will people get all the answers they want and need? No. But, they will get the sense that they are valued, that you take responsibility for what is happening, or what may happen, and that you understand or at least acknowledge the pain such a change might bring.

John Bernard, in his book Business at the Speed of Now, identifies seven rules for what he coins “total transparency.” All seven rules are important, but specific to responsible communication, four of them carry exceptional weight: seek facts, not blame; speak the truth and respect fully; think ­organizationally, not departmentally; and engage fully ­(Bernard 2011). As a leader and a responsible communicator, you will arrive at your own working definition of transparency, one that fits your role, your values, your organizational culture, and your competencies. Keep Bernard’s rules, and the principles from this chapter, in mind as you do; incorporate and integrate all that you can. The more transparent you can become, the more impactful your leadership will likely be.

Why Transparency Matters

Transparency can directly impact the bottom line. According to a 2011 Corporate Executive Board survey, organizations that worked to eliminate employees’ fear or retaliation for honest feedback earned, on average, total shareholder returns of 7.9 percent, versus 2.1 percent for those organizations that did not (Bock 2012). Is there a guarantee that transparency will improve profitability, or even performance? Of course not. But, think of the good that may come, financially and otherwise, from improving your leadership transparency.

Conditions are tough for any organization, and seem to be getting tougher all the time. There is no doubt that organizations need transparent leaders who help build and manage reputation. In fact, when it comes to communicating about values-based issues like corporate social responsibility initiatives, the credible, reliable involvement of leaders has shown to be essential to fostering a positive organizational reputation (Jadhi and Acikdilli 2009). Transparency for leaders like you, then, ­involves being knowledgeable, engaged, and consistently involved or, at the very least, consistently open. Not making yourself transparent, especially with ­values-driven strategies, casts a dark shadow over otherwise good work being executed by the organization.

This book argues that the dynamic, ongoing dialogue you should be having with stakeholders is how corporate values and ethics will truly come to life. This give-and-take is the stuff of authentic relationship-building, true problem-solving, and tangible performance improvement (Llopis 2012). Failing to communicate and stay transparent may result in your employees taking unethical actions or changing their reporting standards (Halter and de Arruda 2009). Beyond the organization, your lack of transparency can send mixed or faulty signals to investors, policymakers, news reporters, and the general public. As a leader, you must sincerely put your values into action, and put your strengths to work.

Let’s pretend your organization intends to exit a particular geographic market. You know customers in that area will be unhappy, and that the news media will be critical. If you have shareholders or other ­investors, they may get jittery. And, if you’re in a regulated industry, you also have that consideration, too. This sort of exit process takes considerable time and fairly involved strategy. How do you maintain a spirit of leadership transparency when you know full well that the time will soon come to announce an end to that part of the business? You have to put your faith and trust in other leaders in your team. Be as transparent as you can with them, and, when you’re finally at liberty to announce plans, notify and engage stakeholders as quickly and consistently as you can. Why? Because being transparent means stepping up, being visible, and providing multidimensional information so that people can draw solid conclusions. Transparency is about showing respect for very real human concerns and needs. Transparency is about leading with dignity and character.

Put Your Strengths to Work

How do you best put your strengths to work, though, in terms of transparency and responsible communication? It’s a tricky challenge, to be certain. One approach is simply to keep four considerations forefront in your mind: ethical intent of what is being considered, ethical means for realizing that objective, the responsible ways to communicate about the initiative, and, ultimately, the ethical outcomes (Tilley 2005). This model, the ethics pyramid, is how those who work in public relations incorporate ongoing ethical reflection and evaluation in their work. They think about the intent of decisions being made, they scrutinize the methods and processes by which certain decisions will be fulfilled, they determine the most consistent and fair way to communicate, and keep a watchful eye on end results, gauging whether values-based objectives were truly met or not. This process is not always linear, nor necessarily conscious. But, we know from corporate communication and public relations practice that this pyramid model is constantly in play.

You are not a full-time communicator, though. You have other priorities, other demands on your time, and certainly other skill sets. What should you do regarding responsible communication, and how can you help? More importantly, why should you care, when you have so many other obligations to fulfill?

Crises are often what draw leaders into communication. That is not leadership. Real leadership is acknowledging that, even in the most routine of times, you are often the most powerful person in a room or situation. Whatever you do and say—or don’t do and say—sets the tone for everyone else involved in the situation, or who may ultimately be impacted by the situation. People take their cues from leaders.

In your aspiration to be a responsible communicator, the best move you can make is to start with your strengths top-of-mind. Are you a ­relationship-builder? A motivator? A pragmatist? Whatever your leadership style, be conscious of your underlying competencies. Perhaps your strength is industry knowledge. Or analytical thinking. Or emotional intelligence. Whatever strengths define you, those are the strengths you should play on, and play up, as you communicate. They are the authentic you.

Granted, your communication style may not necessarily be the most effective for every situation. However, merely stepping up and being a solid, consistent leader—regardless of circumstances—is vital (Gentile 2010). Imagine that a colleague at work passes away unexpectedly, causing emotional ripples in the office and a very real hole, talent-wise, within the organization. The situation might make you uncomfortable; after all, you are human, just like your employees. But, you cannot ignore the situation or brush it off with disregard. You may not be one who is comfortable expressing emotions, but do the best you can. Be the person you are, and be that person consistently, in good times and bad. Lean on your personal values and those of your organization; look to them for inspiration in those times when the words don’t come easily.

People need to know who you are and what you stand for, and they need to see you consistently live those values at work, and throughout diverse challenges. Being yourself, and being consistently active and responsive as a communicator, is the kind of authentic leadership that brings meaning to a tired word like “transparency.”

Advocating Honesty 24/7

Of course, more communication doesn’t necessarily generate or guarantee greater levels of trust among stakeholders. Corporations and other organizations have increasingly disclosed more information about social, ethical, and environmental performance, for example, but public trust has not grown accordingly (Dando and Swift 2003). At a corporate level, the link between transparency and accountability has to do with responsiveness and consistent improvement. That is, actions tend to speak louder than words. The same can be said of individual leaders. The more that leaders like you are consistently involved in communication, the better. Likewise, the more responsive you can be when issues arise, the better.

Let’s imagine you manage emissions for a large factory located in a populated valley. Your business might make quarterly or even monthly reports about these emissions available to the public. Simply releasing this information will not necessarily win the public’s support. The truth is that emissions are still happening, and no amount of communication is going to change that fact. What would really win the public’s confidence is being as honest as possible about the environmental impacts, being responsive to the public’s concerns, and making concerted efforts to reduce emissions, even in small increments, over time. This dynamic good faith effort will likely be more powerful, in terms of winning public support, than any amount of static reporting.

As a leader, you can apply this same approach to your own words and actions. Simply managing to the numbers, and rewarding or penalizing based on performance, will not significantly improve employee buy-in and spur organizational growth. What is more likely to drive morale and positive change is honesty about economic challenges and organizational circumstances, and responsiveness to employees’ concerns and suggestions.

Just like organizations, their individual leaders must be seen as having integrity, respecting stakeholders, and being open and responsive in their communication efforts (Rawlins 2009). Being proactive, rather than reactive, helps prevent concerns the public might have about legitimacy and intent. Additionally, a proactive spirit help demonstrate an unwavering commitment to values (Arvidsson 2010).

Stay Accessible and Responsive

Remember that responsible communication is an ART—stay Accessible and Responsive while amping up your Transparency. Being consistent in your communication is, indeed, important for establishing legitimacy (Massey 2001). That’s not just from a corporate perspective, but from the perspective of individual leadership, too. For example, Airbnb founder Brian Chesky handled all aspects of his business, including communication, in the startup’s early days. He did so, admittedly, in order to manage consistency and make maximum impact (Carr 2014). But, even despite the best intentions, no leader can control things indefinitely, and that is especially true when it comes to communication. The leaders who practice responsible communication know that being consistent is far more important than trying to control or contain the communication process.

Indeed, change is continual in business. What is paramount to responsible communication is a solid understanding of issues management. Any smart leader monitors issues and trends, and moves quickly to action as necessary. The problem comes when a leader assumes an issue or crisis has been resolved, because honestly, the “resolution” of an issue or crisis is really just the beginning of whatever the next phase might be (Jaques 2009). Managing issues, and advocating for responsible communication, comes with an acceptance that few issues are ever fully resolved. You must take a long view while staying responsive and decisive in the moment.

Take the case of a large-scale distribution center. Suppose an approved path for drivers to bring trucks to your facility may prove inefficient over time, for whatever reason. You could make a rerouting decision that’s in your company’s best interest, and disregard others’ concerns. Ultimately, that decision you make in isolation will come back to bite you, assuming the new path has ramifications on traffic volume and movement, not to mention neighboring businesses, residences, and/or local laws or policies. A responsible communicator would monitor traffic issues and public complaints in the area, what competitors are doing in other markets to streamline deliveries, and other information that would help inform a values-based decision. There would also be considerable value in floating the proposed new route by stakeholders before moving ahead with implementation.

You absolutely should not wait for an issue to develop, or a crisis to unfold, to get involved in communication. As a leader, you should continuously monitor issues and trends, such as economic conditions, competitor performance, demographic trends, customer satisfaction, employee engagement, shareholder sentiment, or whatever might ultimately impact your business. As a responsible communicator, you should help identify and proactively address possible counter-arguments to your organization’s performance or stance on important issues and indicators. Doing so can help curb perceived hypocrisy and negative attitudes (­Wagner, Lutz, and Weitz 2009).

Where should you have learned the communication skills you need? Most business schools teach the competencies necessary for leaders like you to foster values and facilitate mutually beneficial activities with the community (Pies, Beckmann, and Hielscher 2010). It is your responsibility, though, to take these lessons to heart, and to live your values daily. Being a responsive and decisive leader is perhaps the ultimate contribution you can make to your business—and to society, as a whole.

Reflection Questions

Responsible Actions