A better way for organisations to communicate hard messages

An organisation's lifecycle is not really a straight line. Just like share prices, and life in general, there are numerous ups and downs. Every successful organization goes through these cycles. And what differentiates the good ones from the great ones is the way the the great organizationshandle the lows to ensure a positive atmosphere, as far as possible.?

One of the lows in any organization is the way a negative news needs to be communicated. There are several situations in which a hard message has to be passed on to the talent in an organization. It is unavoidable. And the mood in the organization will go down. But there are ways to handle it in a better way.?

From the time of the day, to the way the message is written, everything can have an impact on the target audience, and if done in the right way, can reduce the impact of the bad news.

We can take the example of Netflix to prove this further. It was on January 14, 2022 that Netflix announced its most recent price hike in the US. It raised the monthly subscription price by $1.50, a substantial increase in prices when the economy was not really optimistic, and the news of layoffs were going around. But two things were different on that day. It was a Friday, and it was the Martin Luther King Jr. Day weekend. Even as Netflix became the most expensive OTT platform, this negative news did not create a huge ripple as its previous price rises.?

While there is research that supports this view, there is also a fundamental reason why organizations did this. The stock markets would be closed, which meant that the impact on the stock price was minimized.?

Beyond the day of the week, the time of the day also matters. Dont make the mistake of sending a bad news on mornings.?

And yeah, you really do not have to wait till Friday if the bad news is happening on Monday. It is better that you do not delay it.?

But more importantly, it is the way that organizations communicate the bad news. It is always good to be direct, and explain the rationale behind the news. Avoid small talk. And avoid lengthy diatribes. And more importantly, do not leave the communication open, and always, remember - always, end the message with positivity as far as possible. And yes, provide possible next steps.? It is like eating a spoonful of sugar after swallowing a bitter medicine.?

Bad news is always hard to digest. But there are times when you have to give it. And it is the way that you do it that matters the most. And that is what separates the good from the great organizations.

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