Decoding Silence: The Unspoken Language in Strategy Meetings

As someone who's been at the helm of various enterprises, I've come to appreciate the diversity within teams and the profound impact it can have on strategy meetings. Let me share a lesson I've learned about harnessing the best from every team member.

In the realm of strategy development, success hinges on comprehensive insights from every member. While one-on-one conversations are ideal for subjective data collection, the heart of strategy-making often beats within team meetings. Here's why this insight is crucial: Individuals have distinct communication styles.

Throughout my journey, I've realized that individuals interpret questions, process their responses, and deliver answers uniquely. Some are quick and extroverted, while others are more introverted and reflective. Failing to recognize these differences can lead to missed information, possibly culminating in misguided decisions.

Allow me to illustrate with a story from a pivotal meeting during my time at Yorkville Printing. We were discussing a substantial direct-mail campaign for Esso Canada, a game-changing opportunity for our company. Almost everyone was engaged and contributing, except for one team member, Bob, our creative engineer. His silence had us concerned until he finally spoke up with a seemingly pessimistic "can't be done." The meeting concluded without a solution, and the deal was in jeopardy.

The twist? The next day, Bob walked us through a brilliantly redesigned Esso campaign. His initial "can't be done" was, in fact, a premature response while he worked out the solution in his mind.

This experience taught me that we were dealing with different communication styles within our team. Salespeople, often extroverted and quick responders, coexisted with engineers, who needed more time to process and communicate. It was a valuable lesson in managing diverse team dynamics.

As you embark on your strategy development journey, remember that team meetings are the crucible of ideas and decisions. As the one at the helm, it's your responsibility to foster an inclusive environment. Recognize and accommodate diverse communication styles to ensure every team member's input is valued and heard.

Embrace the uniqueness within your team. It's where innovation thrives.

Read more about mastering Strategy & Execution in my book 'At the Helm', where I share my strategy model built on decades of real-life experiences. https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0BZJTDYTZ/