More "Don't Say It Unless You Mean It"

Aug 6

Our post yesterday called Don’t Say It Unless You Mean It got some really great comments that I wanted to move to the front page. Here they are.

Ron Ulrici of R&S Associates Blog (a great read…add them to your RSS feed) wrote a set with the comment that “We in HR should set the standard for doing, not just saying.” Great advice, Ron. He writes:

Don’t say “empower” when you really mean delegate with strings attached.

Don’t say we have an “open door policy” when there are ramifications for the employees who dare enter the big boss’s office.

Don’t say “we have values here” when employees who ignore them are promoted anyway.

And Jenn Barnes, who many of you know as HR Wench (she recently told us that HR Wench isn’t the name on her birth certificate), wrote:

#1 communication SNAFU that drives me up the wall is “we have an open door policy” when they DON’T.

I’ll be there’s even more out there. Don’t say it unless you mean it is good advice always. That goes double in HR.

About the Author

Frank Roche

Frank started IFRACTAL over 7 years ago with Sarah Chambers. Together, they've created HR communications and HR software for some of the world's leading companies. Frank is also studying Flamenco guitar and origami.