When Gary met Sally
We believe that the degree of change you attain in an organisation is related to the degree of engagement you achieve in your audience. This is based on a model from Bill Quirke. In our design of the model we use engagement rings to symbolise the ultimate objective of internal change communication.
To explain why, I’d like to work that symbolism into a very short story based on a premise you may be familiar with…
When Sally first wanted to reach out to Gary she did so quite tentatively – with a text message about an idea she had. Gary’s heart didn’t miss a beat, but at least he was now aware of Sally’s existence. This equates to your average e-mailer.
Maybe Gary sent a reply, maybe he didn’t. But it was okay, because Sally had a plan. Next she sent Gary a picture of a glass of ice-cold beer and information about the idea that could be of mutual interest. Thus Gary came to understand Sally’s idea a little more. This is your infographic or e-card or other visually enhanced communication.
By now Gary was talking to his colleagues about Sally and how, “like, kind-of-cool” her idea was, but he was nowhere near supporting it. So Sally hit him with her next move – a video of a microbrewery serving as a metaphor for the idea. Gary was smitten. This is your emotive explainer/launch video.
Next, Gary accepted Sally’s invitation to join some of their mutual colleagues at an exclusive event where they’d take the idea to the next level. Gary had a “#besttime” experience! He openly declared his involvement and his world became a musical montage of inspired colleagues aligned around a unified purpose. This is your face-to-face workshop or a conference.
But Sally didn’t stop there. Now it was time to demonstrate her commitment to the idea and ask for Gary’s in return. She arranged the time and place, opened a little box, flashed some sparkling comms and proposed a brighter future they could achieve together. This is your regular team dialogue meeting with a toolkit.
Gary soon became an impassioned advocate of the idea, an active campaigner, and an inspired champion of the brighter future! And they all continued actively communicating and collectively collaborating happily ever after.
To find out more about how you can use the ‘Communication Escalator’ to achieve commitment to change from the Gary’s and Sally’s in your organisation, follow the link to his book below, or contact kevin@actuate.co.za
https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/when-gary-met-sally-kevin-liebenberg/