You can't simply be "transparent"

💌 202 words ⌛ 1 minute

Make sure the recipients have the right context, skills, and mindset to make use of the information you share. Otherwise, your transparency may hurt your team in ways you couldn't even think of.

Why it matters: People who don't understand information will fill in the blanks with assumptions. Those assumptions can turn well-intended information into small or big disasters. And those keep your organization busy for a while.

Dig deeper:

• Before you share information, think about if it is useful for your team to know.

  • Does it make their job easier?

  • Do they need additional information?

  • Do they have the skills and context to handle it?

  • Do you make any promises or create expectations?

• Think about the intended audience for information:

  • Just because you can share information, doesn't mean you always have to.

  • If a message was intended for you, e.g. by your manager, it was given in a context between the both of you. That may be not intended for your team.

  • We are all human, we do and say things we don't mean literally.

• Keep a balance.

  • While you shouldn't share everything, you can’t keep your team in the dark.

How do you approach transparency in your organization?

— Daniel

P.S.: If you want to talk about how transparency can work for your team, sign up for a free consulting call.