Why your employees need context from their leaders during big changes

Most change announcements tell employees what leaders have decided. But far fewer show them what leaders saw before deciding it. 

During Ragan’s Internal Communications Conference at Microsoft HQ in Redmond, Washington, last month, Sheryl Lewis, president of ROI Communication, said communicators are too often brought in after leaders have worked out the details and made the decisions. 

“Leaders often have a very different mindset about what it means to be trusted,” she said. “I think they often think it means having the answers: ‘I have the answers, and you’ll trust me because I’m in charge and I know.’” 

When Lewis asked attendees what they’d want to know before announcing a big change, the first answer was “Why?”  

She said it’s the first thing employees want to know, too.