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Effective leadership communication as a key role in the achievement of strategic alignment
Author(s)
Bartis, Heidi Vöhn
Date Issued
2014
Type
Thesis
Publisher
Cape Peninsula University of Technology
Abstract
Communicating for strategic alignment requires senior executives to be
communicating leaders. This statement is evident when one reads of senior
executives admitting that it is not the lack of strategy that occupies their minds, but
rather their organisation’s ability to execute a strategy. The pertinent issue is
therefore the ability of leaders to communicate in such a way that followers can
answer the following questions:
Do we know where our organisation is now in relation to its strategic direction and
where is it heading? Do we understand how the roles we play contribute to the bigger
picture? Do we know what the challenges and opportunities are on the way ahead
and how we plan to deal with them? Do we understand how our actions contribute to
achieving the organisation’s goals and in turn impact on the success of the
organisation?
These are some of the questions that are asked when leaders and followers seek
strategic business alignment in their organisations. This debate is supported by
authors who state that strategic communication can help to overcome the barrier of
poor alignment and poor performance. The literature review revealed strong evidence
that organisations require leadership commitment to create the ‘line of sight’ through
effective leadership communication, exemplary leadership behaviour, and having the
right people in the right place for strategy development, execution and measurement
to ensure that organisations are successful in an ever-changing business
environment.
The study therefore focused on what the role of leadership communication is to
ensure that employees understand the ‘bigger picture’ for the organisation and what
they and leadership need to do to execute the strategy successfully and achieve the
goals of the organisation. It aimed to understand the perceptions and expectations of
employees in terms of the role of leadership communication as an enabler of
strategic alignment.
The study investigated, through a case study involving senior, middle and junior
managers within a Johannesburg Stock Exchange (JSE)-listed company in the fastmoving
consumer goods (FMCG) industry, the respondents’ perceptions of the
current effectiveness of leadership communication behaviour and patterns and their
perceptions of the importance of elements of leadership communication behaviour for
the success of strategic alignment in the organisation. The gaps between
respondents’ perceptions of the effectiveness of leadership communication behaviour
and their perceptions of the relative importance of such leadership communication
behaviour for the success of strategic alignment in the organisation were also
measured and analysed.
The measurement was conducted through two five-point Likert scales applied to the
same set of Likert items where the highest and lowest scores were assigned to the
variables by the respondents in terms of the importance and effectiveness of the role
of leadership communication and strategic alignment.
The results revealed that employees rated commitment to the organisation and its
values, strategic alignment in terms of employees knowing how their division fits into
the bigger picture of the organisation, what their role is in the success of the
organisation, knowledge of the future plans of the organisation and that their work
goals are clearly defined as important for the organisation to achieve its objectives.
Pride in the organisation, and positive personal association with the organisation,
were truly great characteristics of this organisation and these can be built on to
enhance the strategic alignment of employees to the benefit of both the employee
and the organisation.
The findings also revealed gaps such as a lack of shared strategic direction, a need
for open and honest communication through employee engagement, role clarification,
and cultivating an environment for team solutions and collaboration, as well as a
stronger alignment between rewards and performance.
The study served as a base-line study and is valuable to the organisation as it
provides a good foundation for the development of a strategic leadership
communication plan and employee engagement strategy aimed at strengthening
strategic alignment, and which can impact positively on the performance of the
organisation.
communicating leaders. This statement is evident when one reads of senior
executives admitting that it is not the lack of strategy that occupies their minds, but
rather their organisation’s ability to execute a strategy. The pertinent issue is
therefore the ability of leaders to communicate in such a way that followers can
answer the following questions:
Do we know where our organisation is now in relation to its strategic direction and
where is it heading? Do we understand how the roles we play contribute to the bigger
picture? Do we know what the challenges and opportunities are on the way ahead
and how we plan to deal with them? Do we understand how our actions contribute to
achieving the organisation’s goals and in turn impact on the success of the
organisation?
These are some of the questions that are asked when leaders and followers seek
strategic business alignment in their organisations. This debate is supported by
authors who state that strategic communication can help to overcome the barrier of
poor alignment and poor performance. The literature review revealed strong evidence
that organisations require leadership commitment to create the ‘line of sight’ through
effective leadership communication, exemplary leadership behaviour, and having the
right people in the right place for strategy development, execution and measurement
to ensure that organisations are successful in an ever-changing business
environment.
The study therefore focused on what the role of leadership communication is to
ensure that employees understand the ‘bigger picture’ for the organisation and what
they and leadership need to do to execute the strategy successfully and achieve the
goals of the organisation. It aimed to understand the perceptions and expectations of
employees in terms of the role of leadership communication as an enabler of
strategic alignment.
The study investigated, through a case study involving senior, middle and junior
managers within a Johannesburg Stock Exchange (JSE)-listed company in the fastmoving
consumer goods (FMCG) industry, the respondents’ perceptions of the
current effectiveness of leadership communication behaviour and patterns and their
perceptions of the importance of elements of leadership communication behaviour for
the success of strategic alignment in the organisation. The gaps between
respondents’ perceptions of the effectiveness of leadership communication behaviour
and their perceptions of the relative importance of such leadership communication
behaviour for the success of strategic alignment in the organisation were also
measured and analysed.
The measurement was conducted through two five-point Likert scales applied to the
same set of Likert items where the highest and lowest scores were assigned to the
variables by the respondents in terms of the importance and effectiveness of the role
of leadership communication and strategic alignment.
The results revealed that employees rated commitment to the organisation and its
values, strategic alignment in terms of employees knowing how their division fits into
the bigger picture of the organisation, what their role is in the success of the
organisation, knowledge of the future plans of the organisation and that their work
goals are clearly defined as important for the organisation to achieve its objectives.
Pride in the organisation, and positive personal association with the organisation,
were truly great characteristics of this organisation and these can be built on to
enhance the strategic alignment of employees to the benefit of both the employee
and the organisation.
The findings also revealed gaps such as a lack of shared strategic direction, a need
for open and honest communication through employee engagement, role clarification,
and cultivating an environment for team solutions and collaboration, as well as a
stronger alignment between rewards and performance.
The study served as a base-line study and is valuable to the organisation as it
provides a good foundation for the development of a strategic leadership
communication plan and employee engagement strategy aimed at strengthening
strategic alignment, and which can impact positively on the performance of the
organisation.
Additional information
Thesis (MTech (Public Relations Management))--Cape Peninsula University of Technology, 2014
Subjects
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