DOUBLE A: How to Explain Big Ideas

"If you could get all the people in an organization rowing in the same direction, you could dominate any industry, in any market, against any competition, at any time." 

At least that’s what Patrick Lencioni, author and team management expert, believes. Businesses across the globe spend a lot of time and energy explaining their strategy to employees in an effort to get everyone “rowing in the same direction”. The singers and musicians among the Dramatic Resources trainer team might rephrase that concept as “singing from the same music sheet” while our actors and directors might talk about “a great ensemble spirit” ... but the idea stays the same: informed teams working towards the same goals are sure to succeed. 

But despite leaders' best efforts to keep employees informed on strategy and business changes, only a small minority of employees actually retain this information. Researchers at the University of Technology in Sydney made a shocking discovery which reveals this disconnect; when faced with a list of six options, just 29% of employees were able to correctly identify their employer’s strategy. The employers were stunned: these strategies were publicly available and, to their eyes, crystal-clear. What went wrong? 

Harvard Business Review shared their thoughts in a recent article called Is your strategy explainable? This article discusses the challenge leaders face in explaining big decisions in a way that makes sense to employees. The conclusions? It seems that context is the missing piece of the puzzle. Simply put, why would an employee with limited knowledge of an “integrated business model” understand a strategy which revolves around such a model? It’s like trying to read a book with half the words missing! 

Luckily, Dramatic Resources is made up of a team of communications experts from the world of theatre. Finding ways to connect with an audience and ensure that a message is understood – that's our bread and butter! Take Shakespeare: few members of an audience will be experts in Shakespearean language or Elizabethan drama... the exciting challenge is to communicate the content in such a way that this contextual information is not a barrier to understanding. Thoughtful choices around communication mean that anyone can connect with your message – whether they are an expert in your subject matter or not. 

USA based actor and DR trainer Melle Powers has a fantastic exercise for simplifying jargon, called "16th Century." First, find a partner to practise with. Imagine that one person is from modern times whilst the other person has been magically transported here from the year 1500. The modern-day person is tasked with explaining an everyday item (such as an airplane or a microwave oven) to the time traveller. They are, of course, limited to using concepts that the time-traveller would understand – and the time-traveller is encouraged to push back when given information beyond their understanding! This exercise is a fantastic method for getting to the essence of what an object is really for, instead of explaining the mechanics. A successful conversation would involve looking for shared understanding and meeting your audience there. For example: “an airplane is like a giant bird" is easier for a new audience to understand, rather than an airplane’s technical operation. Try it! It’s an opportunity to use imagery, metaphor, body language, facial expression, vocal quality... and is really good fun. 

Need more tools for when communication breaks down? Think DOUBLE A. This is our framework for explaining big ideas, simply and powerfully. Here’s how it works: 

A is for ANECDOTES. Try using a comparative, everyday situation to clarify your message. Imagine that a tech company's market share is shrinking. The leadership team has decided to adopt a growth strategy focused on increasing market share through product innovation - now, they must convince the team. It’s difficult to get every department on side without a technical understanding of the data and projections that have led to this decision. But here’s something everyone understands – anecdotes. So, the leader starts to speak: 

“Like a lot of kids, I used to run a lemonade stand with my brother on our street. We did well, and soon enough, a lot of kids on the block started their own stands. One day, we realised that we weren’t making the same money that we did before. When everyone’s making lemonade, you’re not so special. So, my brother had a great idea. He started running after the grown-ups and asking them: Hey, what’s your favourite fruit? Soon enough, we had a good idea of what everyone liked, and we decided to innovate. The next day, we launched two new flavours. Our stand now sold apple-lemonade, strawberry-lemonade, and of course, regular lemonade. We sold out! Sometimes, you look around and realise you’re not that special anymore. And that’s when you innovate.” 

Alternatively, you can try an ANALOGY. Let’s take that same tech company as an example. Another leader steps up to speak to their department. 

“Thanks for gathering, everyone. I’ve got a strategic decision to share with you all about product innovation. First – I want you to imagine something. Don’t think of us as a tech start-up. Think of us as a coffee shop. We’ve been offering our customers the same things: lattes, black coffee, espresso... but the world is changing. Have you been to a coffee shop recently? They offer alternative milks, different blends, decaf, even brews made of mushrooms! If you had the choice, wouldn’t you go to a coffee shop where you can get exactly what you want? That’s where we're at: if we don’t innovate with our products, we are going to lose our customers to competitors with wider product ranges.” 

Super effective! Everyone, regardless of department or level within the company, can get on board with this message quickly. What’s more, research shows that people are much more likely to remember pictures than complex data sets. By conjuring a clear, simple image (such as a coffee shop) in the mind of your audience, it will be easier for them to recall your message than with a slideshow or unfamiliar concept. It’s true – images are easier for the brain to process and encode, and humans are natural storytellers! 

Remember: to get a team rowing in the same direction, they first need to understand where they’re headed. Are you a leader who needs to explain big ideas to your team, or a subject expert who needs to present to a wider audience? The DR team is here to help you with crystal-clear communication. Why not get in touch?