Inform, inspire and influence

To be a great leader you have to be a great communicator.  If you review leadership history, you’ll find that the world’s greatest leaders are outstanding communicators. They share their ideas in a way that speaks to people’s emotions and dreams. You can be the smartest manager or executive in your organization, but you will not really grow unless you have the ability to inspire, motivate and challenge others.

Generally, a leader’s success is directly tied to his or her ability to focus on the six basic functions of management: leading, planning, organizing, staffing, controlling and communicating. But the one golden thread that ties all these functions together — and the most important key to great leadership — is clear communication. It shouldn’t come as a great surprise that a large number of organizational problems occur as a result of poor communication. The 2011-2012 Change and Communication ROI Study revealed that, “Leaders who are ‘highly effective’ communicators had 47 percent higher total returns to shareholders over the previous five years.”

In his presentation at the 2013 IABC World Conference, Jim Endicott, president of Distinction Communication Inc., explained why it’s now necessary for all leaders to have visible roles within their organizations, and because of that, why many need to develop as communicators. Endicott also talked about the following specific principles and skills you need to heed and develop in order to communicate successfully.

1. Everything communicates. The way programs, policies, tools, and initiatives are planned and executed communicates more powerfully than the marketing and information about them. As a leader, how you act and what you do communicates more clearly than the words coming out of your mouth.

2. There’s a big difference between information and communication. Communication influences thoughts, feelings, and actions. Information simply informs. And how you communicate depends on what you are communicating. If you are trying to engage people, be more personal in your approach or use of channels or platforms.

3. You can’t demand or mandate trust. You have to earn it, and it’s best created with right thoughts, right actions, and correct decisions. Keep in mind people will heed your call, follow your lead or forgive your mistakes if trust exists. So speak not with a lying tongue.

4. Engaging conversations are crucial to great leadership. Think dialogue, not monologue. Be more personal and engaging. It makes for more effective communication. As the saying goes, “People don’t care how much you know until they know how much you care.” Develop meaningful relationships with people to know what’s really on their mind before it’s too late to do anything about the issues or problems brewing in their heads.

5. Simplicity and brevity are always better than complication and confusion. Communicate with clarity. Be specific and avoid ambiguity. Learn how to cut to the chase and hit the high points and expect the same from others. Your goal is to weed out the non-essential and make your words resonate.

6. Adopting a servant’s heart is the way to go. Authentically concentrate on contributing more than receiving. Focus on the leave-behinds, not the takeaways. Sharpen your skill at learning and gathering information while communicating, transferring ideas, aligning expectations, inspiring action, and spreading your vision. You’ll learn far more than you ever would by focusing deeply on the wants, needs and aspirations of others than by focusing on your own agenda.

7. The strictness of a blocked mind is the greatest restraining factor of new opportunities. Keep an open mind. You take your leadership skill to a whole new level the moment you freely seek out those who hold dissenting opinions and opposing views. Your goal is not to convince them to change their positions, but to understand what’s on their mind. Avoid the fear of opposing beliefs, and be genuinely curious and interested. Have conversations with those who confront, dare, straighten and grow you. Your willingness to discuss things with an open mind and learn from the process — not the opinion of others — is what matters.

8.  The greatest form of communication takes place within a dialogue. Learn when to dial up, dial down, or dial off, when to shut up and when to listen. Engage in meaningful conversation, and don’t dominate the process. Understand that, and not a monologue. Appreciate that knowledge is not gained by fluttering your lips, but by removing your earwax. The best leadership communicator is someone who listens, and listens well.

9. Empathetic communicators show a level of genuineness and lucidity.  Shun connecting at the back of a cautiously made front wall held up by an ego that is easily broken. Don’t allow your ego to get the better of you. Communicate with sincerity and compassion, and not with the fulsome haughtiness of an overblown sense of self. Embracing this communication principle will help turn rage into respect and distrust into trust.


10. The “wing it” days are over, and being fast and slick do not translate into credibility. Know what you’re talking about before you speak. Develop yourself to be a subject matter expert, as you listen to those individuals who cannot add value to a situation or topic, but force themselves into a conversation just to hear themselves speak. As the axiom says, “It’s not what you say, but how you say it that matters.” Consistently address the “what” and the “how” of messaging and grow to be a communicator with form and substance.

11. If it looks essential, it must be essential. Package your communication with impact. Match the packaging to the level of importance you attach to the content of your communication. And if you follow up on your communication, it must be even more important. Disabuse your mind of the notion that once you’ve communicated, you are done. You couldn’t be more wrong.

12. Great communicators practice relentlessly.  Writers write and rewrite. Great orators like Winston Churchill and more contemporary speakers like Malcolm Gladwell practice and rehearse. Gladwell writes out every word of every speech. They are good at what they do because they work at it. 

Clear communication is the most important key to a business leader’s success. So to develop as a leader, you must learn how to be an effective, compelling communicator who informs, inspires and influences.



CEO excel awardees



Each year, IABC Philippines welcomes to the fold of communication excellence top leaders who use communication exceptionally as an integral part of their business strategy to achieve and surpass their organizational goals. In 2013, 12 names were added to the growing roster of engaging communicators. 



1. Amando M. Tetangco Jr., governor and chairman of the Monetary Board, Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas. He was given the lifetime achievement award. His efforts at communicating the positive developments that have supported the country’s economic growth strengthened confidence in our economy and played a role in the Philippines earning its first-ever investment grade status. 



2.  Erramon I. Aboitiz, president and CEO, Aboitiz Equity Ventures, Inc. and Aboitiz Power Corporation. A personal, sincere approach and strong passion for nation building made him the force behind the Aboitiz Group’s CSR initiatives in education, enterprise development, primary health and childcare, and the environment.



3.  Victoria G. Belo, MD, president and medical director, Belo Medical Group. There is no doubt that communication was pivotal in the growth of her company, by sharing her glamorous take on cosmetic surgery through traditional and social media. 



4. Peter Cowan, chairman and CEO, Unilever Philippines.  His leadership and effective communication of the company’s values within and outside the company highlighted and affirmed the performance culture of this consumer goods leader.



5. Pacita U. Juan, founder and president, EchoStore.  Her tireless engagement of stakeholders from various fields in a wide array of conferences has led to awareness of the concept of sustainability among producers and consumers.


6. Samie C. Lim, chairman emeritus, Philippine Franchise Association. The acknowledged “Father of Franchising” in the Philippines, he is a pioneer in promoting the franchising model as business strategy. 



7. Donald Patrick L. Lim, founding president, Internet and Mobile Marketing Association of the Philippines. Through his tireless efforts, Digital Brand Health, with its algorithms and digital metrics, has become a bona fide marketing tool, ushering digital marketing as an integral component of many brand campaigns.



8. Lilia B De Lima, director general, Philippine Economic Zone Authority. Employing her excellence in communication, she successfully harnessed the private sector to develop new economic zones, saving the government from having to spend to develop economic zones while giving the private sector the opportunity to develop and operate the zones.



9. Alfredo S. Panlilio, SVP and head of Customer Retail Services and Corporate Communication, Meralco. A transformative leader, he successfully assimilated the buzzword “customer-centricity” into the vocabulary of the company’s varied stakeholders. 



10. Jose T. Pardo, chairman, Philippine Stock Exchange. Together with his team, his efforts have put the PSE on the radar screens of global investors, and as a consequence heralded to the world the enormous potential of the Philippines as an investment destination. 



11. Jose Victor P. Paterno, president and CEO, Philippine Seven Corporation.  The unimpeded flow of communication in his company made for an efficient feedback loop, ensuring that the company responded swiftly to trends in the Philippine retail business. 



12. Ma. Maria A. Ressa, CEO and executive editor, Rappler. She has embraced social media, big data and crowd sourcing through the online news site Rappler.com, while instilling the old-fashioned discipline of objective, truthful reporting among the new generation of journalists.



13. Maria Lourdes N. Santos, managing director, Star Cinema. She has expressed a single consistent message: The Filipino triumphs through his hope, good values and love. Through the use of various media platforms, she led Star Cinema in its mission to provide the whole nation with compelling and life-changing narratives that will forever be part of the lives of Filipinos. 



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Email bongosorio@yahoo.com or bong_osorio@abs-cbn.com for comments, questions or suggestions. Thank you for communicating.