I had the pleasure of participating in a discussion among fellow change managers and communicators about Elon Musk’s Twitter acquisition, the state of the company, and the ripple effects on corporate social media outreach. As these professionals questioned how Twitter will handle B2B strategies going forward, how data will be protected, and how users are being impacted, I thought to myself, "This is a communications and change management disaster of epic proportions."
Imagine being an employee who’s laid off inexplicably and/or watching other people losing their jobs en masse. Company technological norms are thrown out the window, your office closes and opens on a whim, and the head of your company is setting the precedent for handling internal company business in the public eye.
Imagine being a news or issue advocacy organization that relies on Twitter to get your message out to and encourage two-way communication among your audiences. But standing on the outside looking in on a company that appears to be imploding, how can you continue to consider this medium as a serious, viable part of your communications and outreach strategies? What other social platforms will you consider using if Twitter becomes the next Yahoo?
You'll hear me talk about how important communications and change management is to federal government enterprise IT projects. Those technologies might not have the global impact that Twitter has, but they are alike in that changes to those technologies (and the staffs that manage them) mean changes to business processes that are integral to a federal agency office or company. And these changes impact people from different stakeholder groups with varying degrees of influence.
After a contentious acquisition that played out publicly and painfully, Elon is now spearheading a company with some of the world's best and brightest employees (the ones who are left, at least) working on technology that reaches users around the world. As a communications and change management consultant, my advice to someone in Elon's position would be to bring on professionals to help him achieve the following:
Plan change and communicate with intent. Employees and other stakeholders expect a degree of change during an acquisition or the inception of a major project. They also expect that leaders have assessed the current state of the company and devised changes that will benefit, not hinder, the company's health and future growth. Instead of announcing a rapid succession of changes, take the time to plan these changes and solidify messaging to communicate the reasons behind the changes. Why are changes necessary now? What is the benefit of the change? Then, communicate these changes to stakeholders in a methodical way that addresses questions, concerns, and pain points. Give stakeholders a chance to ask questions and engage with you (civilly) about the change.
Engage champions. There are individuals among your stakeholder groups who understand the change and its potential benefits. Empower them to communicate on the company’s behalf to other stakeholders who might be resistant or apathetic. There should be alignment between the messages stakeholders receive from leaders and champions to ensure that everyone is on the same page about what to expect as the change is implemented.
Execute the vision. Take the steps to implement the change while providing stakeholders with the information (and training, if necessary) they need to adjust. Be available to provide and receive feedback. Bring stakeholders along with the change instead of pushing change down on them.
Keep an ear to the street. How is the change going within your company or organization? Is the change having the outcome you expected? Continue to solicit feedback from your stakeholders to get the answers to these questions. This should help you refine your communication and/or approach, if necessary.
Damage to Twitter’s brand and trustworthiness among its stakeholders has already been done. However, by slowing down and implementing these strategies, it might not be too late to right the ship and adjust the company and its stakeholders to the new reality.
