By the Vision and Values Committee

The Vision and Values Committee is charged with reporting to the Director and making recommendations on vision and values within our department.

One of the findings of the committee is that our people want us to do a better job of communicating.  It is the committee’s recommendation that we could and should do a better job of communicating with our staff.

Through our leadership academies the department has found that the vast majority of our supervisors and managers view themselves as good communicators.  However, when we had them ask their staff how the team communication was viewed, they were surprised to find that in nearly every case the staff responded that they would like more and better communication.

One of the issues may be that knowledge is sometimes equated with power.  If there is a correlation, it is understandable that some folks may be hesitant to share. Who wants to give their power away?

The interesting thing is that most people who share information don’t lose power.  The more they share, the more they are respected and with that respect comes additional influence and power.

Another issue to consider is the importance of feedback.  Nearly all of us have been expected to do more with less. And as a result, it would be very easy to fall into the trap of sending messages (especially via e-mail or memo) without regard to really seeking and valuing feedback.   The potential harm in not actively seeking quality feedback is that not only may the message be unclear but equally important is that staff may not feel that their opinion or they themselves are valued.

Feedback may be an excellent place to start improving our communication because we have been practicing telling behavior for many, many years.  Genuine listening is a relatively new concept for some. One of Dr. Stephen Covey’s Seven Habits of Highly Effective People is to seek first to understand and then be understood.  His point is that successful people are accomplished at shutting down distractions and really hearing what someone is saying before formulating a response.

Here is a communication story that emphasizes that point.

There was a man named Earl who was watching television and saw a program that mentioned the percentage of Americans who have some degree of hearing loss.  Earl said to himself, “You know, I think my wife does not hear as well as she once did.”  So he decides to try an experiment.  He looks through the door into the kitchen and sees her standing at the sink facing away from him.  He says in a moderate voice, “Honey what’s for dinner?”  She does not answer.  He says to himself, “Aha! I think I’m onto something.”  He then steps into the doorway and says again, “Honey what’s for dinner?”  Once again she does not respond.  He says to himself, “I knew it!” He takes a couple more steps into the room so that now he is standing just behind her when he says in a clear voice, “Honey what’s for dinner?”  She immediately turns to Earl with a look of disgust on her face and says “Darn it, Earl, for the third time CHICKEN!”

If you agree that communications could and should be better.  Please make sure your action or inaction is not the cause.  Share as much information as can be legitimately shared and improve your listening skills.  It will only serve to make a stronger and more efficient team.

There is an old saying—the cows don’t stay milked and the grass does not stay cut. The point is there are some things that need to be done again and again.  Communications should be at the top of that list.  We must routinely find ways to do more and better.

Michigan Department of Corrections FYI 061506