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Five Tips For Listening To Employee Needs Better During A War For Talent
In my many years as a leadership and communication consultant, I’ve often heard from leaders that they’re doing their best to listen more—to their employees, customers, peers and direct reports.
Yet when I probe a bit more, I find that what they view as listening is often just scratching the surface. Rather than truly getting to the bottom of what their organization needs to be successful and build a stronger employee culture, they go through the motions with a haphazard or incomplete effort to hear what’s on employees’ minds. In some cases, there’s even fear of what they’ll hear when they ask.
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15 Tips For Hosting An AMA Session For Your Business
One of the most popular social media trends right now is the “Ask Me Anything” session, where influencers, celebrities and other prominent figures will candidly answer questions submitted by followers or fans in an online forum. But AMA sessions aren’t just for famous individuals. Businesses can also leverage the trend on any social platform as a culture- and trust-building activity.
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The Pandemic Was A Wake Up Call For The Power Of Employee Communication
In my decades of work as an employee communication and leadership advisor to Fortune 500 companies, I can’t imagine a more tumultuous time for leaders than the past two years.
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PRSA Strategies & Tactics
January 2022A Change of Heart Leading Into the New Year
When I look back on lessons learned from the past two years with all the upheaval in business and the world, the top point that jumps out is how much leaders learned about the power of effective communication.
This may appear to be a self-serving observation coming from someone who has spent his entire career talking about the critical need for strategic communication. But it doesn't come from just me. This idea was abundantly clear as I conducted interviews with more than 30 leaders from top companies for my new book, "Heart First: Lasting Leader Lessons from a Year that Changed Everything."
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Ragan
December 15, 2021Report: Company leaders and employees are operating under a striking disconnect
The progress made by corporate leaders in adjusting to pandemic-related challenges may not be quite as rosy as they think.
A huge disconnect appears to exist between the views of executives and those of employees regarding the future of work, according to a new “Global Workplace Report” released by NTT.
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SmartBrief
November 10, 2021Leaning into leading with heart
David Grossman is the founder and CEO of The Grossman Group, an award-winning communications consultancy based in Chicago. Through his work, he helps organizations unleash the power of communication to engage employees and drive performance. He recently wrote a book that outlines some of his vast experience in leadership with companies such as Amazon, McDonald’s, SC Johnson, Microsoft and more.
SmartBrief recently had the chance to ask him some questions about that book, Heart First: Lasting Leader Lessons from a Year that Changed Everything. Here is the insight that he shared:
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Julie Winkle Giulioni
Septmeber 28, 2021Heart First Leadership in Unprecedented Times: Guest Post by David Grossman
I am delighted to share this guest blog post from my friend David Grossman. I’ve been a fan of David’s work for years. I had high expectations for his latest book, Heart First: Lasting Leader Lessons from a Year that Changed Everything; and I wasn’t disappointed. This book is visually stunning and filled with rich lessons and guidance for leaders at any level. In this post, David delves into one of the critical requirements for leading with Heart First: communication.
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Eric Jacobson On Management and Leadership
August 27, 2021How an Audience-Focused Approach to Communications Helps You Lead with Heart
Leave it to leadership and communications expert, David Grossman, to decide to write a book called, Heart First, Lasting Leadership Lessons From A Year That Changed Everything. David is so in tune with providing timely, critical, actionable advice, how-to’s and tips for leaders.
Heart First is engaging, inspirational and packed with powerful stories of lessons learned by a wealth of leaders with diverse backgrounds. It’s a book you’ll want to read and then refer to time after time. And, if you read only one leadership book this year, make it this one.
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Poppulo
August 18, 2021How an Audience-Focused Approach to Communications Helps You Lead with Heart
I started out in 2020 wanting to explore the concept of leading through change with a new book.
In more than three decades working with leaders across industries, I’ve seen a lot of what works, and what doesn’t, and I wanted to share those findings to help others.
And then the global pandemic happened, followed by social unrest that forced a reckoning for business leaders and employees across this country. This was the biggest level of change any of us had experienced in decades. The layers of change felt endless.
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Culpwrit
August 3, 2021Heart First: How Self-Care Enables Effective Leadership
At the start of 2020, my “to do” list included further exploration of the concept of leading through change with a goal of creating a new book. I wanted to share what I’ve learned in more than three decades working with leaders across industries. I thought my experiences would provide good examples of what works, and what doesn’t, and wanted to share those findings to help others.
And then the global pandemic happened, followed by social unrest that forced a reckoning for business leaders, employees and all of us across the country. This was the biggest level of change any of us had experienced in decades. The layers of change felt endless.
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PRSA
May 1, 20206 Leadership Tips for the COVID-19 Crisis
My husband Steve has often said to me, “As long as we have our health, we’re OK. As long as we have each other and our girls, we’re OK. And as long as we have jobs we’re passionate about, we’re OK.”
Now, enter COVID-19. Amid the uncertainty the pandemic has caused in recent months, much of what used to give us comfort and help us operate on solid ground has gone up for grabs.
As leaders during this crisis, how can we rise to the occasion and lift our people up, instead of sinking them further into uncertainty and despair? Here are some strategies to consider:
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SnapComms
January 29, 2019Top 3 Approaches to Make Your Communication Even More Strategic
Tactics. We love ‘em. Many of us can’t get enough of them.
It’s often what we gravitate to because it’s what we know how to do really well. We can execute like nobody’s business!
Sometimes, too much of a focus on tactics is a trap I see clients fall into, and they’re not alone. Our business partners too often embrace tactics, and even when there’s a need for the strategy to change, stay focused on their execution plan (versus adapting it as you go).
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Poppulo
August 2018Guide: Financial Services Leaders Can Accomplish A Lot More Through Enhanced Communication
The list of issues to impact the financial services sector in the past decade is long – mortgage fraud, insider trading, money laundering, hackers and identity theft, to name a few. It’s issues like these that have companies in a number of industries understandably concerned about how to communicate with employees and consumers, to protect and grow their brand.
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The Public Relations Strategist
Winter 2017How to Think Like a CEO
Ever wanted to peer inside someone else’s brain? To see what’s in there? Or to understand what makes another person tick?
How about looking inside the brain of your CEO? You don’t want to?
Think again. How might understanding the mind of a CEO help you take stock of your professional strengths and weaknesses?
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Switched On Leadership
Issue #44 - July 7, 20175 Easy Strategies to Manage the Company Rumor Mill
Some call it the grapevine; others call it hearsay.
No matter what you call it, it can be problematic and distracting yet often a source of valuable information. If you aren’t talking proactively about issues that are important to your employees, chances are that someone else is.
Access in the app and get a FREE 3 month subscription
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Cropley Communication
July 5, 2017How to Create a Line of Sight So Employees Get Your Strategy
Recent research from many sources paints a dismal picture of how leaders are doing at helping their employees understand company strategy and how they fit in. Learn how to create the connection for your employees.
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Switched On Leadership
Issue #42 - May 12, 20173 Techniques to Help You Master Even the Toughest Q&A
We all get 'em. Difficult questions.
Being prepared, and practicing three tried-and-true techniques can help you field with ease that challenging employee question (or reporter who's looking for a compelling angle).
Access in the app and get a FREE 3 month subscription
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Thin Difference
April 8, 2017The 7 Skills of Highly Effective Millennial Leaders
Guest Post by David Grossman
The American workforce today is increasingly dominated by the millennial generation. According to a recent Pew Research Center analysis, more than one in three American workers are millennials. In 2015, the group became the largest share of the American workforce.
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Switched On Leadership
Issue #40 - March 12, 2017Your Employees Don’t Get Your Strategy
Recent research from a myriad of sources paints a dismal picture of how leaders are doing at helping their employees understand company strategy and how they fit in.
You’ve probably heard the story about two bricklayers. You ask one bricklayer what he’s doing and he says, “I’m building a wall.” You ask another and he says, “I’m building a castle.”
Access in the app and get a FREE 3 month subscription
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The Public Relations Strategist
December 17, 2015Super Powers: Smart and Fast Steps for Improving Your Executive Communication in 2016
As a kid, I loved superheroes. Being the good guy and making a difference were always important to me. And I desperately wanted to have my own superpower. As I grew up, the realization settled in — painful as it was — that a superhero’s life was not in the cards.
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Communication World Article
September 1, 2015To Lead Authentically, Leaders Must First Know Themselves
Gaining the trust of your audience requires helping leaders find their authentic voice. Communication professionals can help leaders by identifying ways to meet audience expectations for openness and transparency.
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The Public Relations Strategist
January 4, 201313 Ways to Become a Better Leader
I buried my mother at the end of 2012. I knew that the day would come, yet it was way too soon. At 82, she was battling leukemia — and the worst kind.
GG, as we called her, had two goals, and was uncharacteristically direct with her doctor the day she was diagnosed: “I have a grandchild coming [my second daughter] and a wedding to attend [her grandson’s], and you’re going to help me get there,” she said, leaning her head close to the doctor’s and pointing at him. My mom abhorred pointing.
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Leadership Now
October 30, 2012In This World, You Can’t NOT Communicate!
This is a guest post by David Grossman, author of You Can’t NOT Communicate. Grossman says that there are very few things in this world that are neutral. Everything you do, and everything you say, communicates something. And, importantly, everything you don’t do, and everything you don’t say, communicates, too.
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Training Magazine
October 15, 2012Going on the Email Offensive
Help bad e-mail communicators see the errors of their ways. Use humor to drive self-reflection and improved behaviors.
E-mail is one of the most pervasive forms of communications in the workplace today. Pingdom.com estimates 107 trillion e-mails were sent in 2010, with an average of 294 billion sent a day. From our work with Fortune 100 companies and employees, we’re hearing more and more that employees are overloaded by e-mail, and it’s causing them stress.
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Employer’s Web
May 23, 2012Employee Education & Communication
If you Can’t not Communicate, you Might as Well get Good at it.
As a leader, the reality is that everything you do or say communicates something. Or I could say what you don’t do or don’t say communicates something. Here’s why...
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Great Leadership
May 11, 2012Avoiding the Mistakes All Leaders Make
In my experience, every large organization has at least one thing in common...
There isn’t a single senior management team that doesn’t spend days, weeks working tirelessly on their organization’s strategic plan. At the end of the process, everyone leaves excited about the plan and the path forward.
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The Grossman Group
March 22, 2012Case Study: Using Internal Communication to Move the Needle
The power of employee communication is especially evident during strategic planning “season” inside organizations. It’s a time when communication goes far beyond “feel good” and gets to the core: driving performance.
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The Public Relations Strategist
Fall 2011The 5 Mistakes That CEOs Make, and How You Can Help
Most senior management teams spend weeks working tirelessly on their organization’s strategic plan. They review the data, envision the future, and shape goals into a cohesive identity. Once that challenging task is complete, key leaders review the strategic framework. Then they share the information with employees.
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Inside Business
October 7, 201110 must-dos to communicate effectively
Savvy business leaders have seen firsthand the power of good communication with employees, and how it can drive business success from the inside out.
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Comprehension
December 03, 2010“Strategic Messaging: Clues You Need a Common Approach”
Want to elevate communications at your organization? Think about how implementing standard operating procedures can benefit your organization. That’s one of the commonalities we see with our clients who are taking a lead globally in the communications arena....
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echelon
November 17, 2010The Top Three Communication Myths That Impede Leader Effectiveness
We all fall into traps of perception. We often don't know we hold certain assumptions or believe certain assumptions are true because we've never had a chance to disprove them. Sometimes as leaders, we also seek out the answers we want to find and we feel confirmed in our beliefs when we find them. All traps. Knowing about possible traps we might face is the first step to addressing them, working through them, and subsequently avoiding them in the future.
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iMedia Connection
September 23, 2010Is social media making you anti-social?
Social media is turning me into a curmudgeon. Don't get me wrong: I love blogging and I love Twitter, but the bad behavior and all around lack of sociability that abound in social media are starting to turn me into the anti-social media guy. Truthfully, the real issue here isn't the medium; it's the people using the medium. For all the emphasis people are putting on their social interactions, they're too often losing sight of the core values of true relationships.
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HR Executive
September 02, 2010Communicating Effectively
Getting the best from your staff starts with making the right connections with employees. Here are 10 tips for effective leadership communication.
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Comprehension
April 5th, 2010“A Leap We All Can Make, But Not in a Single Bound”
I grew up watching my share of “Sigmund and the Sea Monsters,” “H.R. Pufnstuf,” and “Super Friends” with its famous Justice League of America comprised of all my favorite superheroes. I remember being mesmerized by their super powers, hoping some day that I, too, would discover mine. Little did I know that I would later find super powers we all can develop — courage and compassion — as a communications leader...
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The Strategist
Winter 2010“Leading in Tough Time: Three Ways Executives Can Survive and Thrive” (The Public Relations Strategist) Winter 2010
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O’Dwyer PR
January 2010“Good Leadership: Engaging with “Wounded” Employees”
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ExecuNet’s CareerSmart Advisor
April 6, 2009“Peanut Butter's Business Lesson:
Managing Sticky Situations”
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Melcrum
2007“Connecting the Dots from Global to Local”
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PR Chicago
June, 2006“The Dawn of the Leader Communicator”
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BIZ | NGLCC
June, 2006“A BIZ Q & A with Author/Leadership Expert David Grossman”
Interview with David Grossman
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Internal Comms Hub
“Ask the Expert”