96 THE BIBLE ON LEADERSHIP
ployees the truth,’’ observes Stack. At workstations throughout the
plant, grease boards showed the numerical goals and a running record
of actual performance. It was a communication strategy of total trust,
which easily could have backfired due to lack of commitment from a
workforce that had every reason to be discouraged.
The result? Springfield Re not only met and exceeded most of its
production goals, it also became a model for other companies on how
to communicate openly and enlist employees in production goals.
Springfield Re even developed an additional source of revenue: They
charge a fee to visitors from other companies who want to ‘‘borrow’’
and learn from their communication and production methods!^10
Another company that values the free and frequent flow of informa-
tion is AES. Says its top executive, Dennis Bakke: ‘‘We have very few
secrets here at AES.... Besides compensation levels, all financial and
market information is widely circulated... Some people are worried
about how public we are with our information; they’re concerned it’s
going to get leaked to competitors. But we think it’s a risk worth taking
because otherwise, how would our people become business people?’’^11
TARGETING THEMESSAGE
Another key to effective communication is aiming the communication
directly at the needs and wants of the audience, speaking a language
that they understand and with which they ‘‘resonate’’ on an emotional
as well as cognitive level.
Often, targeting involves use of metaphors, analogy, myths, and sto-
ries, because direct communication (facts, figures) is not always the most
inspiring way to get people to see the urgency or applicability of a
message or course of action.
Jesus, for example, knew that his target audience was extremely fa-
miliar with the analogy of a shepherd and sheep to symbolize a leader
and the led. In John 10, he puts his efforts to proselytize into this frame-