Don't Underestimate the Power of Frequent and Effective Communications

I can't think of a consulting or interim assignment in which a lack of purposeful and effective communications wasn't a problem. Over the years, I have learned that communicating frequently and in various ways can be powerful. Yet this is frequently overlooked, seemingly because of its stark simplicity or monotony. In most IT organizations with silos, misunderstandings, lack of cooperation, distrust, and the like, the underlying problem is usually a lack of communication. It is critical for interim CIOs to regularize communications among IT staff and between the IT organization and the campus community. For the IT organization, this means weekly IT leadership meetings, weekly meetings with the CIO and individual IT leaders, monthly IT all-staff meetings, frequent email communications with and among IT staff, and use of IT messaging systems such as Slack or Microsoft Teams. My mantra is that there is never too much communication. For communication between the IT organization and the campus community, you many want to consider a central point of communication, with a frequency of at least weekly (more often as needed). Make sure the communications are branded in some way to ensure that they are easily recognized for authenticity. This kind of communications strategy takes some time and planning, but it is well worth it.