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July 3, 2006
Reducing the "Ivory Tower" syndrome in today's companies
One of our biggest challenges as employee communicators has been to keep senior management in touch with the front line and vice versa. For those of you blessed with an articulate and charismatic CEO who "gets it," you may have few worries. For the rest of you, you know how challenging this can be. Now a new trend threatens to make our jobs in this area more difficult -- yet more important than ever -- that's the trend of companies locating a small headquarters office in New York City, far away from the majority of other headquarters function employees.
Companies such as Alcoa, Federated Department Stores and CIT Group have all set up "satellite" headquarters facilities, usually with the CEO and a small staff of 50-75 senior executives. These CEOs say they need to be in New York to be close to deal makers and other activity, which may be true, although other surveys have ranked CEOs' personal preference for being in New York among the top reasons for such moves.
Regardless of motive, these and other companies need to double their efforts to ensure their senior executives don't become so isolated that they lose touch with the business and the true concerns of the front-line workers whose engagement is critical to the enterprise. More frequent and informal town hall meetings at plants and with employees of headquarter functions not in the New York headquarters are essential for starters. Employees are always suspicious of what goes on in the "Ivory Tower" and this kind of physical separation only tends to heighten it.
Posted by Christopher at July 3, 2006 9:49 AM
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