Faculty & Research
Closing the GAPPP: Increasing Your Internal Influence with Confident Communication
By: Judi Brownell Ph.D. and Daphne Jameson Ph.D.
Executive Summary: Managers face both good and bad news when they attempt to communicate their vision and standards for their business. The bad news is that managers often cannot tell when, how, and from what sources employees receive their information about a business's practices and procedures. The good news is that managers can use the tool presented in this report to analyze the ways and means through which employees receive their messages and thus ensure that important communications are received. The tool, Guide to Aligning Present Practices with Possibilities, or GAPPP, helps managers create a specific communication plan. GAPPP analysis has two steps. The first step is to survey employees to develop an accurate profile of information patterns. Step two involves analyzing the survey results against a series of questions that form a guide for designing an action plan that addresses employees' communication habits and preferences.
In the case of service quality, for instance, a study of a hotel in the northeastern United States found differences in how managers communicated compared to the ways in which employees typically received information. For instance, the study found that women were more likely to gain information from written materials than were men. Moreover, different ethnic groups received information in different ways. While native English speakers benefited from oral explanations of service quality issues, spoken instruction did not work so well for non-native speakers. As one result, the hotel created visual templates for housekeepers to show them where amenities should be placed. Non-native speakers were also helped by written materials. Interestingly, one other finding was that the hotel's general manager was a closely watched and influential source of information about the meaning of quality service. Having inventoried employees' preferred communication sources and channels, a manager can adjust current communication practices to align with the way employees receive information-keeping in mind that clarity may require several channels.
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- Closing the GAPPP: Increasing Your Internal Influence with Confident Communication By: Judi Brownell Ph.D. and Daphne Jameson Ph.D.
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