Communication at WCC: Verdict: Very Poor

 A few years ago, teachers at Wessex County College were promised improved communication (among a number of other things) and increased visibility of leadership group members. None of which has been achieved so far.

The above points may seem unrelated but the visibility of the Senior Management team is an effective way of a two-way communication.

 School managers are responsible for staff management relationships, the flow of information on major initiatives and the quality of inter-group/departmental relations than at any time in the past. 

At the same time staff have had to cope with what could be described as an “initiative overload” caused by the task of implementing the changes required by the Senior Management Team. Thus, staff within schools are living in what has been described as an age of organisational anxiety (Barker and Tompkins, 1994), characterised by high and rising levels of uncertainty about what the future will bring. Such levels of uncertainty are a threat to staff motivation, often creating a corrosive preoccupation with organisational politics rather than the achievement of the essential goals of the school. Research suggests that one major source of uncertainty is a poor flow of information from managers to staff and vice versa concerning crucial change issues confronting the organisation.

Hence, it has been found that staff working within an open and communicative management structure were three to four times more likely to express satisfaction with their position and twice as likely to be committed to that organisation.

The current emphasis on top-down communication flow has been detrimental to staff morale and teaching quality at Wessex County College. 

Until recently there has been the tendency for management generally to pay lip service to the view that people are an organisation’s most valuable and important asset, while perhaps, at the same time, doing very little to take account of what staff think and feel about how the school actually works and how things could be improved. 

 To the leadership group members, please take note:

Conduct communication audits

Communication audits represent an approach and set of tools which can fulfil this function and therefore assist schools to improve their communication practices.

Have a focused communication strategy

A focused communication strategy makes a significant contribution to achieving managerial effectiveness and must become an integral part of the strategic planning process for all organisations. As part of this, effective communication systems and practices need to be developed and implemented. This starts with ascertaining the existing level of communication effectiveness (or breakdown) within the school. 

Channels of communication 

Staff express a consistent preference for face-to-face communication, yet in many schools there is an over-reliance on written communication. A blizzard of emails from senior managers is usually a good indicator of a frozen organisation, barren of any warm creative free-flow of ideas. 

Power of the grapevine 

If there is an information shortfall, the bush telegraph works overtime to fill it, and staff will devote more time to the rumour. The grapevine flourishes in organisations where staff are selectively informed on a “need to know” basis. Wessex County College should develop free-flowing communication highways along which messages can be delivered both speedily and accurately, and to which all staff should have ready access. One way of achieving this is to appoint communication “champions” - enthusiastic individuals who will be trusted and respected by their peers - to deliver information within their own location.

Upwards communication 

Audits tend to underline the importance which staff attach to upwards communication. They value a climate in which bottom-up communication is fostered and seen as positive. In the more dysfunctional organisations, there was a fear amongst staff that if they voiced critical views, they might then be “marked” by senior managers. Staff are especially keen to report on initiatives taken in their area and to be able to gain ready access to job-related information. They also want action to be taken on information which they provide, particularly from senior managers.

Visibility of senior managers 

Staff wish to communicate with senior managers. A periodic and rather “stiff” meeting of all staff is not what is required here. The notion of “management by walking about” has been recommended for over a decade. However, caution need to be exercised when so doing. When prior notice is given, the red carpet treatment is given and the exercise become something akin to a royal visit with rooms (and their inhabitants!) being scrubbed and polished before the senior manager “inspects” them. The manager arrives, announces something akin to “Jolly well done. Good show. Keep up the good work” and disappears back to the Bunker.

 There should be a formal informality about these contacts – they should be round table, over coffee, for a set period (no more than one hour), chaired by someone relatively junior, should begin with a brief statement from the senior manager, and open out to allow anyone to raise any topic. This not only allows senior executives to “address the troops”, it fosters a sense of openness and accessibility within the organisation. There is a cathartic effect in meeting and being listened to by those in positions of power and this should be maximised.

 

When staff voice is muted and buried under a ton of meaningless tasks, whispers will grow into a loud protest and I do believe that, especially with Covid around, a mass walk out will happen sooner or later. Sure, the new recruits will still be there as they are unaware of what is coming. However, the people who dedicated themselves to the school and the students will stop making an effort and this 'reputation' of Wessex County College will cease to exist. Parents will know and students will be aware of how unhappy their teachers are. The blame is on the school leaders as they have failed their school again.