Jim Shaffer's Eye On ROI- FedEX teleseminar last week explored how some communicators--Terry Simpson of Fed-Ex in particular -- are moving from focusing on creating more news to creating better business outcomes. Working with FedEx Express leadership she identified and conducted a project in Los Angeles to improve US export volume through better managed communication. The result: 15% increase in volume and 23% increase in revenues with an overall 1,400 ROI.
Obviously this outcome requires at least a 180-degree turn from what takes up most communicators time – namely publishing newsletters, writing speeches, attending to the company intranet, etc. It’s inspiring to see that communicators can roll up their sleeves and make a huge impact in areas where they’ve been largely absent … helping solve business processes in far-flung departments or divisions of an enterprise.
If you’re feeling pressure to move from focusing on output to outcomes instead in your communications program, I highly recommend the Eye On ROI-FedEX CD, now available in the Communitelligence Store.
During the teleseminar someone asked where they could go to learn the skills required to enter this brave new world of Communications ROI. It’s not a subject you can find in any universities yet, but there are lots of good books that will give you the background to start down this journey. Jim Shaffer kindly offered up his suggested reading list here. Enjoy.
Competing for the Future, Hamel and Prahalad; Harvard Business School (HBS) Press
Current thinking around strategy and the new competitive landscape.
Competitive Advantage and Competitive Strategy, Porter, Free Press,
Both represent a solid grounding on business strategy, the first focusing on the difference between low cost strategies and differentiation or value-adding strategies. If you only want to read one, read CA.
Corporate Culture and Performance, Kotter and Heskett; Free Press
Fundamental research on culture alignment—the need to have a balanced focus on customers and employees in order to deliver shareholder returns
The Experience Economy, Pine and Gilmore, HBS Press
Moving from commodity to differentiation to selling an experience. Think Starbucks.
Hard Facts, Dangerous Half-Truths & Total Nonsense, Profiting From Evidence-Based Management, Pfeffer and Sutton, HBS Press
Why you should always question conventional wisdom. A model for thinking about problems and causal relationships.
The Human Side of Enterprise, McGregor; McGraw Hill
The first work about our fundamental beliefs about people—where Theory X and Y started.
The Leadership Challenge, Kouzes and Posner, Jossey-Bass
Along with Warren Bennis’ On Becoming a Leader, the best and most enduring discussion about leadership.
The Leadership Solution, Shaffer, McGraw-Hill
The only serious discussion and step-by-step plan I know of that helps business leaders manage communication to engage people in substantially improving business performance.
Lean Six Sigma, George, McGraw-Hill
Combining Lean and Six Sigma in one book--what they mean and how to apply them.
Open Book Management, Case; Harper and Addison Wesley
An introduction to the concept of creating a business of business people, where everyone works to improve the financial score. Business literacy personified.
Organizational Development—Principles and Practices, Burke; Little Brown
An organization development primer.
Out of the Crisis, Deming; MIT
The guru of quality management and its principles.
The Practice of Management, Drucker; Harper Business
A Drucker foundation book on the basics of business.
Practice What You Preach, Maister, Free Press
Excellent correlation and causation research regarding employee research scores and financial performance.
Stewardship, Block; Barrett-Koehler
One of the best arguments for empowerment over control from the author of The Empowered Manager. This books emphasizes the soft side of the argument. Soft is hard.
The Rise and Fall of Strategic Planning, Mintzberg, Free Press
The history of strategic planning and how it can stifle execution.
Wikinomics: How Mass Collaboration Changes Everything, Tapscott and Williams, Portfolio
A practical discussion of the current and potential benefits of mass collaboration Linux style.
Working Knowledge, Davenport and Prusak, HBS Press
A knowledge management primer.
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