Stripped bare in 2009, can live communications ever look back?

Nick Terry, managing director of Top Banana, asks if 2009 was the year that changed how business leaders communicate with employees forever. And what of the relationships between live communication agencies and their clients?

Many in the live communications industry will remember 2009 as the year clients reacted to the recession by pulling in their belts tighter than Kate Moss does.

Budgets for big spend communications such as events were slashed, in favour of lower-cost channels. Annual conferences either disappeared off the calendar or were allocated just 25% of the previous year’s budget.

Clients rightly challenged where they spend their money and asked our industry to prove its value.

For me though, 2009 was the year that marked a return to simple, good honest communication.

With reduced budgets and increased emphasis on return on investment, companies could not hide behind gloss and glamour productions.

Events and messages had to be stripped back to what was important. No frills or elaboration, just clarity and truth.

And it wasn’t just because of budgets. Employees wanted – demanded – more of their leaders.

Because people in crisis, employees worried about their jobs, look for clear and strong leadership. They want certainty and decisive action. They want strong leaders whom they believe can lead them through the bad times and out the other side.

CEOs, MDs and senior managers were therefore exposed as never before. In a world tired of political spin, where there was a loss of faith in leaders generally and where the gap between fat cats and those facing redundancy got ever wider, they had to earn trust and credibility.

Other industry commentators have written about how to help leaders be credible. I don’t believe it’s our job to make them credible. But we do need to create opportunities that amplify their most credible and truthful messages. To help them focus on what employees want to hear.

In 2009, Top Banana challenged leaders to lead. We created events that made them visible, where they could show their understanding of employees’ concerns, and focus on just one or two messages that would drive the business forward.

We found that clients listened to us in a way they never have before. Our relationships got stronger as we dared clients to really focus on what their business needed.

For one client that meant switching from a traditional ‘stand and tell’ to a question and answer session. Just the interviewer and CEO on stage. An online questionnaire completed by employees prior to the event allowed us to prioritise their concerns.

The CEO later told us he’d felt the communication working in a way he’d never felt before. He saw the value of what had been achieved.

For another client, value and return on investment has been seen to the tune of £2million cost savings to their business. Savings are projected to hit £5million by year-end.

This is the result of a single-issue event where the truth about the company’s financial situation was laid bare and a rallying call made to employees for their help.

Cash savings began to reported almost immediately and the event paid for itself in just a few days.

So where are we now, and what will 2010 bring the live communications industry?

I believe clients will continue to want more for less from their live communications suppliers. There will be more challenging and candid conversations to be had. But we will be closer to our clients as a result.

There are opportunities to be seen not just as suppliers but valued partners, providing intellectual and creative input.

Events themselves will continue to be less ambitious and more pragmatic. Leaders will have to work harder to know their audience and to get employees positively engaged.

Therefore events will continue the move away from ‘stand and tell’ to interactive sessions where employees’ opinions are heard and where employees provide input into solutions.

Employees will expect more of a say, because over the past year they have been asked to give so much more by the business. They’ve worked harder for less and they want good reasons to stay.

They expect the truth and unambiguous leadership. That process has started and I believe communications can’t ever go back.

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Nick Terry is managing director of Top Banana – one of the UK’s leading live communication agencies, creating award-winning live events, video and interactive experiences. www.top-b.com

IVCA LiveCom award winner 2007, 2008 and 2009