CHAPTER 7 Squelch the Urge to Hoard

The art of communication is the language of leadership.

—JAMES HUMES, FORMER SPEECHWRITER FOR FIVE US PRESIDENTS

Many children grow up singing this song in church:

But somewhere between elementary age and the workplace, some people do decide to hide their light—their creativity, insights, passion—along with information, decisions, and reasoning that would help others do their own job better. Instead, they adopt an "every person or department for himself/herself" attitude.

Jack, a coaching client of mine and the vice president of a large auto manufacturer, seemed bewildered by the fact that his boss had suggested that he contact me for communication coaching as part of his career development plan. As Jack explained to me—several times—during our session, "I run the largest division in the company. We're responsible for more than 15 percent of the company's revenue—and a much larger share of profit than any other division."

But according to Jack's boss, CEO of the parent company, Jack's performance in his functional role was not the problem. On the contrary. His CEO summed things up this way: "Jack's a lone ranger. He sits in our executive meetings totally tuned out. He acts bored, aloof, arrogant. Never comments on issues his peers raise about plans or challenges they're facing in their own divisions. Runs a good organization. But seems totally unwilling to share his expertise with his peers. He doesn't seem to understand that part of what we pay him for is his thought leadership—his willingness to contribute ideas to the entire organization. See if you can't get that point across to him."

I did. As we talked, the notion that his organization paid him not only to run his division but also to share his expertise and information with peers seemed foreign to him. When I stated the idea to him directly, he looked as though I'd hit him across the face with a two-by-four. He sat stunned. Finally, he said, "Hmmm. Really? They expect me to help the other guys? Give them ideas about what I do in my division? Hmmm." He nodded, looking as if the concept of sharing information and "thought leadership" had never occurred to him.

And that was that. End of discussion.

You have probably heard this common communication complaint: "Everyone's working in silos. Nobody knows what's going on." People hoard information for many reasons—from innocent to sinister. They

•Think they have limited or no time to share information

•Can't decide what to pass on—what's significant and what's trivial

•Don't know what or why others need to know

•Withhold information to punish others

•Withhold information to feel smarter than others

•Withhold information to feel "on the inside" with special information

•Withhold information to cause others to make mistakes and appear dumb

•Withhold information to control a situation

•Withhold information because when they share it and get no response, they think nobody cares

All understandable reasons—just not good ones.

By definition, real leaders share strategic information. Because they focus on big-picture performance, problems, issues, and results, they understand that significant information doesn't "belong" to them. Just as scientists who finish a major study rush to publish their test results so that other researchers can build on their work, business leaders share their metrics, ideas, and solutions inside their organization so that other internal leaders can improve their own performance and build on these successes.

The more helpful information they share, the faster these leaders are considered "clearinghouses" for the latest thinking and buzz inside their organization—and often their reputation spreads outside the organization as well.

Understand your strategic role as a content curator.