For years, JJ&W has counseled its clients, often anxious to rush out the door of external communication with whatever news they have, that their first stop needs to be communication to any internal audiences affected by that news.\u00a0 It\u2019s the priority.\u00a0 And it\u2019s common courtesy.\u00a0 Period.<\/p>\n
And we don\u2019t stop with asking them to communicate with their employees \u2013 all<\/u> of their employees, including the part-time flight attendants in the airlines, the cafeteria workers in the schools and the receptionists (especially the receptionists) at the desks of the Fortune 50 companies, who are likely going to be fielding the calls about the news when it gets out.\u00a0 Go deeper than that.\u00a0 In the case of the schools, think of your Board members, your parents, your alumni, your volunteers, your coaches of sports teams\u2026even the vendors who are considered your business partners.\u00a0 There is an easy way to determine who should be told before the rest of the world hears the news.\u00a0 Think to yourself, if you were that employee, that volunteer, or that coach, wouldn\u2019t you want to hear this from the organization you\u2019re connected to before everyone else does?<\/p>\n
Given that as criteria, it\u2019s truly bizarre why Disney and ABC executives did not figure out that Kelly Ripa \u2013 the co-host<\/u> of \u201cLive\u201d \u2013 would not deserve the courtesy of finding out that her co-host<\/u> Michael Strahan was going to be leaving the show to go full-time at Good Morning America, where he is currently working part-time, in advance of everyone else.\u00a0 Their rationale?\u00a0 \u201cShe\u2019s going to be upset no matter when she finds out.\u201d\u00a0 Perhaps, but what they forgot to think about was how they would feel if they were in her shoes and how much more upset she would be about the lack of communication and common courtesy extended to her in a place she has worked for over 2 decades.\u00a0 So she gave them some time to think about what they had done while she took a few unplanned days off, as they scrambled for substitute co-hosts and flew their highest-level executives in to deliver a personal apology.<\/p>\n
Kelly\u2019s re-entry to the show today (on April 26th) was beautifully executed and appeared very genuine, and she delivered it to an audience that showed her the love and support she deserved with a standing ovation that went on until she finally shut it down to make her statement.<\/p>\n
After acknowledging in a very honest way that she had taken some time off to process the news and really think about what she wanted to say in response (with some humorous comments about ABC likely having snipers with tranquilizer darts if she went \u201coff message\u201d), she talked about the fact that this situation had started \u201ca much greater conversation about communication and consideration and most importantly, respect in the workplace.\u201d<\/strong>\u00a0 Amen to that!\u00a0 She went on to talk about her longevity with the show and that it was a place that felt like family to her.\u00a0 And all of us could imagine what it would feel like if family kept such an important piece of information from us.\u00a0 It wouldn\u2019t feel good.<\/p>\n She ended by acknowledging the personal apology by the parent company and the happiness she felt about the new opportunity for Michael \u2013 and he reciprocated with a heartfelt response.\u00a0 If there was tension there, it didn\u2019t show, and they went diving into the entertainment portion of the show with their usual carefree back-and-forth banter.\u00a0 So it ended happily, at least for now. \u00a0 The proof will be in the pudding when her contract comes up for renewal.<\/p>\n The lesson for the leaders of any organization \u2013 be it of a national television show, a corporation or a school \u2013 is really as simple as the Golden Rule.\u00a0 Treat others the way you would like to be treated.\u00a0 Period.\u00a0 Internal communication will always be, and should be, your priority for news that impacts members of your internal family.<\/p>\n Robin Schell\/rschell@jjwpr.com<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" For years, JJ&W has counseled its clients, often anxious to rush out the door of external communication with whatever news they have, that their first stop needs to be communication to any internal audiences affected by that news.\u00a0 It\u2019s the priority.\u00a0 And it\u2019s common courtesy.\u00a0 Period. And we don\u2019t stop with asking them to communicate … <\/p>\n