Effective communication helps cos. meet goals

Gordon Lenz loves to communicate. As president of Patchogue-based Conference Associates, an insurance brokerage, Lenz draws on his experience as a former schoolteacher to share his vision with his 100 employees. In his presentations, he uses a philosophy he learned in a series of management training meetings he attended 30 years ago. The philosophy is based on the image of a northbound train.

"People can't arrive at a destination until they know where they are truly going and how they are going to get there," Lenz says.

That destination is keeping the company in business the best way possible, namely, by increasing sales and retaining the client base. Lenz says he accomplishes this with help from the company's training program and by constantly reinforcing how important his staffers' jobs are as a matter of social policy.

To reinforce that message, Lenz meets with staffers monthly.

"I make my presentations as clear as I possibly can and follow with a question and answer session," he says.

To reiterate his goals, Lenz meets weekly with supervisors and managers, who in turn supply additional reinforcement by working with smaller groups of employees.

The strategy is working. The company has gross sales of between $150 million and $175 million a year and has retained 90 percent of its client base for the past 30 years.

"If you can achieve 90 percent, it's considered outstanding," Lenz says.

Lenz's method of broadcasting his vision is one the most effective ways of communication, according to Dianne DiResta, president of Staten Island-based DiResta Communications, which focuses on coaching leaders to communicate with confidence and credibility and develop a high-trust connection. A frequent speaker on Long Island, DiResta is also the facilitator of the local chapter of the Women Presidents Organization, an advisory group for women entrepreneurs.

Other effective means for communicating can include holding town hall-style meetings, visiting sites, hosting annual meetings, inviting employees to management luncheons and videoconferencing.

Leaders like Lenz who enjoy making presentations are better able to build trust and encourage employee buy-in - in short, achieve the company mission.

But not everybody is comfortable addressing large groups. DiResta offers a suggestion: "Hold a town hall meeting and bring your team - let the human resources director be the facilitator."

She adds this suggestion: "Invite 10 to 20 employees to a management lunch and discussion so that every single person meets with a senior manager. If no one has questions, tell your story, how you got where you are and share information about where you see the company headed."

Corporate leaders need to connect with the audience and build a culture of productivity, trust and excellence, DiResta said. "You don't want to be a talking head or sound scripted. It destroys trust."

A key ingredient to communicating a vision is to switch from lecturing to dialog.

In Lake Success, CHIPS Computer Consulting, which provides networking infrastructure and network security, uses dialoging in its weekly meetings. The company's president, Evan Leonard, has this vision: To bridge the gap between business and technology and remain considerate of clients' needs. He says staffers should avoid the use of buzzwords that might confuse the end user or interfere with learning the clients' needs.

To reiterate the message, the company holds sales team meetings, technology team meetings and executive team meetings.

"With these meetings we make sure that everyone moves toward that mission statement," says Brian Okun, director of sales and marketing. "As an executive you want to know what's going on with your clients. You can get a feel in those meetings. If salespeople report that four or five clients are interested in a new technology, it gives the president the touch and feel of what the clients want."

Their efforts have paid off. Over a five-year period, CHIPS has grown its revenues from $200,000 to $10 million. The company combines face-to-face meetings and the latest technology, enabling employees to communicate with CHIPS' executives and clients in real time.

But with technology comes a caveat. It is no substitute for people, DiResta said.

"E-mails are great for confirming times and dates but they are not a way to communicate and establish high-trust connections," she says.

Still, technology can provide the needed connection for employees who cannot meet face-to-face, DiResta said.

Another effective means to reinforce the corporate mission is through visuals. That's a tactic Albert Brayson, CEO of Medford- based Oikonomos, takes to heart. Oikonomos oversees the Lake Grove Schools and Treatment Centers, a network of schools and rehabilitative facilities, with locations in New England and Lake Placid as well as Lake Grove.

"Our motto is, 'Whatever it takes,'" Brayson says, about providing services for its population. "We print that motto everywhere - business cards, shirts, flags, letterheads.