2019 is full of anniversaries for me. Three of these relate to my work – 2019 marks my twenty-fifth year working in communication, fifteen years working in change and five years involved in coaching. Wow - where the heck did that time go?
Alexandr Bormotin, Unsplash
In November 1994, I moved to Helsinki, Finland and took up my first job in comms as a marketing communication officer for Nokia. I probably learned more in the almost four years I was in that country than I have in my entire career about the tools of the job, about myself and how I – and others – respond to change. I also (of course) learned heaps about living in a country where in winter, temperatures regularly hit minus figures and daylight is at a premium.
Fast forward through roles in marcomms, PR, writing and internal communication and most of my work today is related to change. I work with organisations to better support people when change is introduced, through good communication and engagement and wellbeing.
On that theme of change, it’s clear that many things in our society have changed beyond recognition in the last 25 years, the most obvious being the rise of smart phones and technology. When I first moved to Finland, we had a team mobile phone which we used to make and receive calls. By the time I left Finland just four years later I was texting and playing 'Snake'. Things moved quickly.
However, as much as things have shifted rapidly, I’m also interested in the things that haven’t really changed in that time. Often, when we talk about organisational change and paint a vision of what the future might look like, we focus on the big-ticket items that will be different and sometimes overlook the things that don’t or won’t change. So, with that in mind, here’s my five things that I’ve seen stay pretty much the same in the last 25 years.
The work that comms teams do is still highly pressured, whether that’s in media relations, internal and change communication or public affairs to name but a few specialisms. Today, we have the added bonus of social media in the mix to increase the intensity of our ‘always on’ culture. However, what has changed for the better is an increasing willingness to talk about the pressure this environment can bring and its potential impact on people’s mental health. Which can only be a good thing.
Communication cannot cover up poor strategy, poor planning or poor leadership. I’ve seen (and been one of those) communicators being brought into projects very late in the day and ending up trying to backfill tactics into a situation where the strategy or plan is not as clear as it should be. And, they often ask questions that no-one else has thought of. Although it’s not an ideal approach, I’ve worked with some fantastic communicators who have helped to define and shape strategies this way and that is still true today.
This approach usually succeeds in the end, but just think how fabulous it would be if they were involved right at the start of the process?
Mentors and good bosses are essential. No-one should have or put up with a bad boss. I count myself as being really lucky that I had a couple of outstanding bosses in the early days of my career and have had some great mentors – and coaches – ever since If you can’t find a mentor or coach inside your organisation, look outside to your network and find someone who may be able to help.
Rebels inside organisations can really help to drive change, push innovation and fundamentally shift conversations. They may not have been called Rebels back in the 90s, but I definitely worked with a few of these folks. Basically, these people with the ability to introduce another perspective and encourage people to look at things differently can really help drive the right change, rather than just delivering more of the same.
People are what make things happen and really lie behind the success of change. Despite our increased focus today on projects, process and technology, people pretty much always hold the key to success, whether that's inside organisations or in our wider society.
So, in all the change we have faced (and continue to face), what have you seen in your career that’s stayed the same? I’d love to know!
Finally, if you want to hear a very brief introduction to my own experience of moving and living abroad and how that influenced my career, have a listen to a PechaKucha talk I did about this a while back.