Surface Ripples

Think of the Future

Communication is key in any business.  Instructions, reports, press interviews, training all involve passing information to others.  

One key part of communication I stress continually with clients is ‘communication with the future’.  The key is passing information on in a way that it’s clear to them. 

Much has been written about clear spoken and written communication and checking that people have understood.  The situation I’m thinking about relates more to someone reading a document 1-2 years after it was written and still being able to understand it, despite not having been present at the time the events took place.  This typically happens when auditors check over a business’ accounts before ‘signing off’ on them.  Another example would be from my experience as a lending banker when I had to read credit proposals written in past years to get a full understanding of risk, exposure and the evolution of the business. 

My focus tends to be on supposing that the person reading something 1 – 2 years down the line who doesn’t have the knowledge of current events doesn’t understand it and needs a clear explanation.  Hence the key to preparing any document that may be used in the future is that the person reading it a year or so later has no clue of what happened and needs to work things out from the start.  

We need to think of the future.  We need to make sure that what we leave, others will understand.  Notes on accounting documents, Client Relationship Management systems, etc, help auditors and future colleagues know what’s going on.  

We need above to avoid situations where a ‘key person’ with the ‘critical knowledge’ is no longer with our business (for whatever reason) and we find ourselves unable to explain ‘What happened’ to the authorities, auditors or our customers.  This reflects badly on our businesses and processes and could result in regulatory penalties, legal action or loss of reputation.

Some of the best advice I ever received was from one of my university tutors: ‘Imagine the person reading your assignment is an idiot’.  He then went on to add, somewhat self-deprecatingly, ‘Especially if it’s me.’

I’ve spent more than half my life delivering change in different world markets from the most developed to “emerging” economies. With a wealth of international experience in international financial services around the world running different operations and lending businesses, I started my own Consultancy to provide solutions for improving performance, productivity and risk management.  I work with individuals, small businesses, charities, quoted companies and academic institutions across the world. An international speaker, trainer, author and fund-raiser, I can be contacted by email. My website  provides a full picture of my portfolio of services.  For strategic questions that you should be asking yourself, follow me at @wkm610.

Labels: Customer Care, Leadership, Productivity, Teamwork

posted by William Martin @ 09:06