Decide the order of conversations before you write a word
Before any draft is written, agree on a clear cascade: who hears it first, who hears it second, and how many minutes separate each tier. For most internal changes, the order is: directly affected staff first (in person where possible), full team second (within the same morning), board and key external partners third, and broader community fourth.Before any draft is written, agree on a clear cascade: who hears it first, who hears it second, and how many minutes separate each tier. For most internal changes, the order is: directly affected staff first (in person where possible), full team second (within the same morning), board and key external partners third, and broader community fourth.
When the order breaks — when someone learns about a change from a peer or an outside source — the trust cost is immediate and lasting.When the order breaks — when someone learns about a change from a peer or an outside source — the trust cost is immediate and lasting.
Write it the way a trusted leader actually talks
The language of strong internal change communications is short sentences, plain words, and clear ownership. "We are reducing the team by five roles" reads as honest. "We are undertaking a strategic realignment of personnel resources" reads as evasion, even when it is not.The language of strong internal change communications is short sentences, plain words, and clear ownership. "We are reducing the team by five roles" reads as honest. "We are undertaking a strategic realignment of personnel resources" reads as evasion, even when it is not.
We typically recommend the executive draft the message themselves, then have one trusted advisor — not a committee — edit for clarity. Committee-edited change communications almost always lose the human voice that makes them trustworthy.We typically recommend the executive draft the message themselves, then have one trusted advisor — not a committee — edit for clarity. Committee-edited change communications almost always lose the human voice that makes them trustworthy.
Be specific about what you can answer and what you can't
Teams handle uncertainty better than they handle vagueness. A message that says "here is what we know, here is what we don't know yet, and here is when we'll know more" earns more trust than one that pretends every question has an answer.Teams handle uncertainty better than they handle vagueness. A message that says "here is what we know, here is what we don't know yet, and here is when we'll know more" earns more trust than one that pretends every question has an answer.
If severance details, role changes, or timelines are still being finalized, say so plainly and commit to a date by which you will share more. Then meet that date.If severance details, role changes, or timelines are still being finalized, say so plainly and commit to a date by which you will share more. Then meet that date.
Be in the room
Whenever possible, the person delivering the message should be physically present — for the team meeting, for the all-hands, for the days that follow. Email-only change communications, even well-written ones, communicate distance at the exact moment teams need proximity.Whenever possible, the person delivering the message should be physically present — for the team meeting, for the all-hands, for the days that follow. Email-only change communications, even well-written ones, communicate distance at the exact moment teams need proximity.
Plan to be visible and available for the 72 hours after the announcement. Block your calendar for short, optional check-ins. Most people won't take you up on them, but the offer itself does much of the work.Plan to be visible and available for the 72 hours after the announcement. Block your calendar for short, optional check-ins. Most people won't take you up on them, but the offer itself does much of the work.
Write the second message before you send the first
Strong internal change programs always include a second communication, sent two to four weeks after the initial announcement: what we've heard, what we've adjusted, what comes next. Drafting this message in advance forces the leadership team to commit to listening, not just announcing.Strong internal change programs always include a second communication, sent two to four weeks after the initial announcement: what we've heard, what we've adjusted, what comes next. Drafting this message in advance forces the leadership team to commit to listening, not just announcing.
Organizations that send this second message recover trust faster than those that go quiet after the initial announcement, even when the underlying decision was the same.Organizations that send this second message recover trust faster than those that go quiet after the initial announcement, even when the underlying decision was the same.