{"id":10683,"date":"2022-11-08T06:46:00","date_gmt":"2022-11-08T14:46:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/recruitloop.com\/blog\/?p=10683"},"modified":"2023-05-11T14:58:46","modified_gmt":"2023-05-11T21:58:46","slug":"prepare-managers-communicate-change","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.zippia.com\/employer\/prepare-managers-communicate-change\/","title":{"rendered":"How to Prepare Managers to Communicate Change"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><!--Skip-->\n<link href=\"https:\/\/static.zippia.com\/galleries\/css\/htgaj.css\" rel=\"stylesheet\"\/>\n<p>Just when you think everything is routinely humming along, here comes another change. Maybe your company is acquiring a smaller firm, senior managers have decided to restructure the organization, or it\u2019s time to introduce a new IT system or business process.<\/p>\n<p>When it comes to most issues, especially when change is involved, employees are inclined to look to their managers for answers when they need to take action or make a decision. And if you make it easy for managers to do what you want them to do, you increase the likelihood that they will do the right thing.<\/p>\n<p>Employees want managers to provide useful, just-in-time information, usually in the form of answers to questions. Your role as communicator is to keep managers in the loop, so they&#8217;re ready to share information and respond to employees. <\/p>\n<p><b>Key Takeaways:<\/b><\/p>\n<ul class=\"large-bullets\">\n<li>\n<p>Start by keeping managers in the loop regarding upcoming changes in the company so that they will be prepared to communicate them to employees when the time comes.<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li>\n<p>Provide written resources and documentation, such as toolkits and Frequently Asked Questions lists, so that managers have information that they can refer to.<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li>\n<p>Make sure that managers have ways of answering employees&#8217; questions that are clear, concise, and reassuring if necessary.<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><img alt=\"how to prepare managers to communicate change\" src=\"https:\/\/www.zippia.com\/employer\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/how-to-prepare-managers-to-communicate-change.png\" style=\"width:100%;\"\/><\/p>\n<h2 class=\"fancy\" class=\"fancy\" id=\"how-to-prepare-managers-to-communicate-change\">How to Prepare Managers to Communicate Change<\/h2>\n<ol class=\"ordered-list-large\">\n<li class=\"ordered-list-large-item\">\n<p>\n<strong>Brief managers before the rest of the organization.<\/strong> When you&#8217;re rolling out a new program, prepare managers first.<\/p>\n<p>They&#8217;ll have the inside scoop and feel knowledgeable enough to answer questions. If the topic is complex and the change is significant, invite managers to participate in a face-to-face session. Or, if time is short and managers work at multiple locations, host a web-based briefing. Whichever format you choose, make sure the session offers managers a chance to ask questions and interact with leaders.\n<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li class=\"ordered-list-large-item\">\n<p>\n<strong>Develop a toolkit.<\/strong> Now that you\u2019ve given managers a thorough understanding of what\u2019s changing, provide them with communication tools, conveniently packaged in an electronic download or posted on the intranet. Include the following components:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>\n<p><strong>An elevator speech:<\/strong> a short summary (two to three sentences) used to quickly and simply explain what the change is, why it\u2019s happening and what it means for employees.<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li>\n<p><strong>Talking points: <\/strong>short, conversational scripts used to explain specific parts of a change in greater detail.<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li>\n<p><strong>Suggested methods and techniques<\/strong> for communicating change. Managers will naturally think about communicating during meetings, but you can suggest other methods for how managers can communicate change. For example, if your organization has an internal social networking platform, suggest managers answer questions on that forum.<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li>\n<p><strong>Clarification about the manager\u2019s role in <\/strong>communicating change to staff members.<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li>\n<p><strong>Visuals to illustrate a process or system change. <\/strong>Create a visual map of all the steps (and who is responsible for each) to help managers understand what\u2019s changing. (Or, if the organizational structure is changing, include an org. chart.)<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li>\n<p><strong>Frequently asked questions<\/strong> (and answers) are so important to managers that if you can\u2019t do anything else, make sure you create FAQs. See #3 for more on this extremely useful tool.<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li>\n<p><strong>A one-page overview <\/strong>about the change for managers to share with team members.<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li>\n<p><strong>A feedback form<\/strong>\u2014or link to an online survey\u2014to measure the usefulness of the toolkit.<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<li>\n<li class=\"ordered-list-large-item\">\n<p>\n<strong>Provide FAQs.<\/strong> Although you may think Frequently Asked Questions are an old-fashioned communication method, extensive research with managers has found that FAQs are their favorite tool. That\u2019s because FAQs help managers predict the tough questions employees are likely to ask, while giving them the information they need to respond knowledgeably and honestly. This sets up managers to be the first source employees go to for information.<\/p>\n<p>Here are a few things to keep in mind when creating manager-friendly FAQs:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>\n<p><strong>Ask real questions<\/strong> that employees will ask, testing your FAQs with managers first before you finalize them.<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li>\n<p><strong>Get rid of <em>corporate speak<\/em><\/strong> and jargon. Instead, write the way people talk. The best FAQs sound like a real person (a smart one) who anticipates and answers all your questions. The worst FAQs sound like a Dilbert cartoon: great to make fun of, but not helpful.<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li>\n<p><strong>Treat FAQs as a process<\/strong>, not a product. Of course you\u2019d like to respond to as many pertinent questions as possible right from the beginning. But you probably won\u2019t have answers for everything. So create a process for a) asking for additional questions and b) continually updating FAQs throughout the change process.<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Here are five questions to think about when drafting your FAQs for an upcoming initiative or change:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>\n<p>What is the change and why is it important?<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li>\n<p>When will it occur?<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li>\n<p>Who will be impacted?<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li>\n<p>What do I need to do differently?<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li>\n<p>Where can I go to ask questions or get more info?<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<div ckmz=\"zippia\">\n<div class=\"row\" onclick=\"location.href='\/employer\/?src=inlinePostAJob-10683';\" style=\"font-size: 14px;color: #333; background: #fff; width: 100%; border: 1px solid #d8dee2; border-radius: 0 0 5px 5px; padding: 20px; justify-content: space-between;box-shadow: 0 18px 20px -20px rgb(0 0 0 \/ 15%); margin:0px; cursor:pointer;\">\n<div class=\"col-sm-8 col-xs-12\" style=\"-webkit-text-size-adjust: 100%; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0,0,0,0); --vh: 12.87px;font-size: 14px;line-height: 1.42857143; color: #333; font-family: Open Sans,serif;font-style: normal; box-sizing: border-box;\">\n<div style=\"display: inline-block;margin-top: 10px;font-weight: 600;font-size: 20px;\">Get Started Hiring Now<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"col-sm-4 col-xs-12\" style=\"font-weight: 600;font-size: 16px;line-height: 24px; text-align: center; text-transform: capitalize; color: #fff; background: #ff6000; border-radius: 4px; height: 48px; border: none; font-family: Open Sans,serif; display: -webkit-flex; display: flex; -webkit-justify-content: center; justify-content: center; -webkit-align-items: center; align-items: center;\">\n<a href=\"\/employer\/?src=inlinePostAJob-10683\" style=\"color: white!important;\">Post A Job<\/a>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<h2 class=\"fancy\" class=\"fancy\" id=\"examples-of-supporting-managers-in-communication\">Examples of Supporting Managers in Communication<\/h2>\n<p>How can you this advice into practice? Here are two examples of how organizations set managers up for success:<\/p>\n<div class=\"example-answer\">\n<p><strong>The five-minute manager:\u00a0<\/strong>One multinational organization set up a program to send all managers a weekly email with a maximum of five minutes\u2019 worth of information for a manager to share in any weekly staff meeting. By providing brief, highlighted information, the communication team made it easy for managers to include communication in their regular interactions with team members.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"example-answer\">\n<p><strong>Support for a new compensation plan:\u00a0<\/strong>A pharmaceutical company revamped its variable pay plans to create a single global program for managers called the Long-Term Incentive Plan. The challenge was to introduce this program so that managers themselves would understand the changes and be prepared to answer questions from employees. The HR team created an informative piece highlighting the components of the plan, and invited managers to web-based meetings that focused on complex plan components such as restricted stock units and performance share units. The meetings were designed to present information, but a considerable amount of time was allocated for Q&amp;A.<\/p>\n<p>Questions asked by managers during the sessions were collected, and at the end of all sessions, an FAQ document was created and distributed for managers to use with their employees. As a result, 95 percent of managers attending the web meetings said they understood the new incentive plan.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/li>\n<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<h2 class=\"fancy\" class=\"fancy\" id=\"final-thoughts\">Final Thoughts<\/h2>\n<p>Remember, employees look to managers to communicate key information during times of change within the organization, and managers will look to you for how to implement that communiation.<\/p>\n<p>Are you ready to help managers communicate change? Provide them with the information and tools they need to be knowledgeable and prepared.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Here are three ways to help managers succeed when the time comes to communicate any form of change in the business.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":282,"featured_media":10685,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[100,150],"tags":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v20.9 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>How to Prepare Managers to Communicate Change<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"When it comes to change management, here are 3 ways to help managers succeed when the time comes to communicating the changes to the business.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" 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