Rajesh Subramanian received the IABC’s the Excel Award for his work as the President of FedEx Canada.
His remarks focused on The value of reputation in strategic leadership: Inspiring trust through communication.
He opened with a video clip from “The Big Switcheroo,” a CBC (Canadian Broadcasting Corporation) program that followed Raj as he switched places with a front line employee and returned to the “shop floor.” In explaining why he did this, Raj pointed to internal FedEx research that showed a disconnect between management and employees. The CBC program was part of a larger communications outreach program that management was using to overcome this disconnect. Trust is essential to both employee and stakeholder relations. It can provide companies with some leeway and latitude so that the corporate positions can be understood and worked with.However, trust in corporations continues to erode. Both among external stakeholders and employees. And this decline in trust can lead to increased scrutiny, oversight, regulatory hurdles and delays that will damage competitiveness.Communication is fundamental to building trust. Communicators have a unique role as the corporate conscience – emphasizing honesty, consideration of stakeholder views and interests, and ensuring that promises made are promises kept.
Communications, as the corporate conscience ensures that what is said is what is done. They bring the community’s concern to the management table. And they ensure that the corporation’s commitment to do the right thing is brought home to the community.
But the communications function cannot do it alone. CEOs must play a role.
Trust must be built over a span of time by listening, talking and walking the talk. CEO’s can ensure this happens.
Employees also embody the values of their employers. And in the era of blogs, they have unprecedented opportunity to speak their mind.
Employees must be inspired and persuaded, not coerced, to embody positive values. This requires sincere, effective commitment to those positive values by senior executives.
“As president, I realize that people will take their cues from me. The values I have. The actions that I take. And that is why I believe strongly in the importance of communication.”
Raj noted that FedEx conducts ongoing annual employee surveys. Executives are held accountable in their performance reviews for the actions they take to address issues that emerge in those surveys.
A few years ago, FedEx revamped their performance review process. At that time, communication was integrated into the criteria on which executive performance is judged. Employees also rate managers annually. Over time, this has provided valuable information on what is important to employees.
Additionally, managers are required to participate in quarterly town hall meetings to provide employees with an opportunity to speak their mind about issues without intermediation.
Through this emphasis on communication and delivering action on commitments, asserted Subramanian, FedEx has created a trustworthy environment.