Is Top-Down Communication a Thing of the Past?

Not too many years ago, daily papers and TV news determined what people talked about. Today, it is entirely natural for most of the population to inform themselves about what interests them online and in social media. This change in media consumption also leaves its mark on companies. Intranets and enterprise social networks make it easier for employees to find information they need for their work on their own and to discuss their interests with others. So is traditional top-down communication from top management to all staff becoming a dinosaur?

In my opinion, this trend is actually making top management communication even more important. Because in times of crises and constant change, only the top management can steer the boat. It has to address key questions: "Where do we want to go?" and "How can we get there?". The top management sets the course and should communicate transparently what it knows and what it doesn't, and provide facts to combat rumors.

And this not only applies to times of crises and change processes; it is important all the time. Staff find vast amounts of information on all conceivable topics in internal company media, so the danger lurks of people neglecting their actual work in the face of so much research, or of them concentrating on things that are not relevant at the time. It is the top management's task to select and drive important topics – for example, is cost reduction or innovation what we are all about this year?

Once the top management has chosen a topic like innovation, all the executives are tasked with explaining it to their staff and working out together with them what it means for the department and every individual in it.

Internal social media platforms are the ideal complement to top-down management communication. In them, information can be provided that is too complex for the management communication, or that only affects certain internal groups. They give the staff space to discuss topics with each other and to network – both on the management's focus issues as well as on other things like leisure activities or car pools. The important thing is that the employees recognize what is official management communication, what are verified facts and which content merely reflects the opinion of colleagues.