How Technologies Make Leaders - Choosing your Digital Voice

France celebrated the 80th birthday of Charles De Gaulle’s speech on the BBC on June 18th, 1940. How did this modest general (unknown to most Frenchman then) return as France’s liberator four years later, serve as France’s president between 1958 and 1969, and become the most well-liked leader of the last 100 years in the eyes of the French?

It has a lot to do with how he created a distinctive voice and shaped his leadership through radio - the most prevalent digital channel when De Gaulle built his leadership. 

De Gaulle was a patriotic 49 years-old general eager to continue the fight against Nazi Germany from the French Empire. After France’s military defeat by the Wehrmacht in May and June 1940, he escaped to London. “You are alone,” the British Prime minister Churchill told de Gaulle, “I shall recognize you alone.” Soon after, De Gaulle addressed the French people. In a short and poignant address on June 18th, he asserted that the war was far from being over, that it would soon become global and that a superior mechanical force would defeat the Nazis in the future. He wholeheartedly called upon fellow Frenchman to join him to continue the fight.

Although few listened to this initial speech, De Gaulle would become a regular radio speaker. In fact, between 1940 and 1944, he spoke at the BBC more than once a month for a total of 67 times. His powerful voice became the voice of freedom in many households in occupied France. Put simply, radio technology made De Gaulle. From London, De Gaulle progressively established his moral leadership. Later, many Frenchmen were pleasantly surprised to discover his tall, statuesque figure when he finally returned alongside of allied forces in Paris as France’s liberator in 1944. The man matched the voice.

Fast forward 24 years. After a long break far from power, De Gaulle returned to become president. By then, TV had become more popular. In 1968, 61,9% of French household possessed a TV. De Gaulle increasingly and skilfully embraced this medium during his years as President. But in 1968, when major strikes paralysed the country and many feared the country would return to chaos, De Gaulle turned back to radio. Once again, the French gathered around their radios to hear his speech, in which he called for new election and demanded that the situation return to normal. Soon after, millions of De Gaulle supporters marched on Champs-Elysées. The strikes stopped, the student movement that had started the unrest quickly disappeared, and De Gaulle’s party won the majority of the French parliament by a landslide.

De Gaulle’s choice to use radio rather than TV was no mistake. A talented communicator, he knew he expressed his authority and leadership best through radio. His story bears three lessons for every leader: 

First, choose the digital channel that matches best your strengths and persona and stick to it. Steve Jobs is remembered for his keynotes and stage appearances, Obama skilfully pioneered short videos on social networks in politics. More recently Donald Trump or Elon Musk’s choice of Twitter match their unfiltered and raw communication style. Leaders should ask themselves which digital channel best fits their personality and presence. Effective leaders clearly identify the digital technology that “speaks” most to them and the medium becomes an intrinsic mark of how they lead.

Second, the latest digital technology is not always best. In De Gaulle’s case, although TV was more prevalent than radio in 1968, he returned to radio because he knew his authority flowed through it. Effective leaders should think what digital technology best enables them to create a deep and meaningful relationship with their audience. They should pay attention to how comfortable they feel when using the technology selected (i.e., communicator digital maturity). They should equally consider how their audience feels with this technology (i.e., audience digital maturity). The technology that overlaps most between a communicator and his or her audience will carry most magic.

Finally, less is more. With radio (like with podcasts that attract a growing number of listeners), the focus on one’s voice and the scarcity of visual stimuli command focused attention from the audience. In the same way scarcity of stimuli creates value, so does infrequent use of technology. From 1945 to 1968, De Gaulle would not speak on the radio, at all. But when he used this medium again in 1968 after 24 years, his voice magnetised the French as it did during the war, leading through technology that best augmented his voice.