Page 93 - Communication in Organizations Basic Skills and Conversation Models

Communication in organizations 82

Phase 1: Delivering bad news immediately

It is best to deliver bad news quickly. However, a short announcement may help to
prepare the receiver of the bad news: for example, ‘I am afraid that I have an unpleasant
message for you.’ Without such an announcement the bad news would really take the
recipient by surprise. After that, you need to deliver the bad news immediately. Here it is
important that you express the bad news calmly and clearly and show understanding for
the difficult situation in which the other finds himself. It is advisable to restrict yourself
to a short explanation at this phase: for example, ‘I have to tell you that the temporary
engagement will not be rearranged into a permanent one, because we are of the opinion
that you do not satisfy in all regards the criteria for the position.’ Afterwards the deliverer
of the bad news should best remain quiet in order to give the other a chance to have an
initial reaction.

Mistakes in phase 1
When the deliverer of bad news does not really know what to do with the situation,
perhaps because he or she has not prepared for it properly, has not been granted the
opportunity to do so, or has never been confronted with it before, then all kinds of
‘mistakes’ can be made. The background to these ‘mistakes’ is that the deliverer is not
actually prepared to take responsibility for the delivery of bad news.

Putting it off

Sometimes people have a tendency to put off giving bad news. Then they talk about
generalities, like the weather, or about the progress of a number of projects. You could
say that this is a case of avoidance reaction, which is based on the fear of the other
person’s emotional reactions. The reality is that it becomes more and more difficult to
come out with the bad news. It is highly probable that having finally heard the bad news
the other party will react aggressively: ‘First everything’s sunny, and now you tell me
this?’

The hang yourself method
With this method the deliverer tries to let the other discover the bad news himself. He can
do this by asking suggestive questions: ‘I suggest you must have seen for yourself that
your department’s figures for this last year are not what we expected.’ When using this
‘tactic’, two reactions are conceivable. The first is that the other party does indeed ‘tie the
rope around his own neck’. In this case it seems that the tactic worked. Yet often after
such a conversation the other is left with a sour taste in his mouth. The second possibility
is that the other party will feel forced to draw negative conclusions and will often, if not
openly, react with aggression: ‘Aha, now I get it, you want to make cutbacks in our
department. Now you tell me!’

Telling the news unclearly