Yesterday, Gordon Brown said that his ministers would have to go without any pay rise this year in order to set an example to the nation. Given the current economic situation the PM felt that a clear message needed to be sent out on public sector pay and the cabinet agreed. I think that Brown has made a very prudent decision, not just due to the economic climate but also due to his current levels of popularity.
Hearing this reminded me of the importance of leadership setting an example and of modelling desired behaviours. However, while senior management more often than not understand the importance of ‘leading by example’, not all of them actually do it. Or, it can be the case that they think they are, but when you talk to other people around the business, there is a big disconnect.
One of the most important roles of an internal communicator is to help identify if there are any gaps between perceptions and reality and to help support senior leaders in closing that gap. Leadership behaviour is arguably the single most important factor in driving culture and, as such, it is essential that companies get it right.
RSS feeds
Everyone understands the language of good example and virtue shown in deeds.
Posted by: Mei-Hsin Chen | July 04, 2008 at 10:07 AM