Fight Fire with Fire

2Communicating with the Board

MARIANNE BAILEY

 

Achieving effective communication can be one of the most difficult tasks. People face this challenge as they talk past each other often in everyday lives because one party assumes the other has the same background, biases, and interests. This problem is no different when communicating with boards of directors.

In order to overcome this communication gap, it is critical to understand the mission of the board, to speak in their language, and to clearly articulate why they should care about whatever it is you are telling them. The communication gap is significant because leaders and employees operate in a more tactical and— in the case of cybersecurity—a more technical environment all day, every day.

Board members operate in a more strategic and a much broader environment. I can't even count the times I've heard technical people venting their frustration after a board briefing. “They don't understand our business,” they say. “We need more technical board members. They need to spend more time understanding what we do.”

All the blame is put on the board. Meanwhile the board members see the employee as unprepared, unable to communicate the issues in a strategic manner, and unable to help the board members see the impact. At the end of the day, the company is less effective because the employees cannot relay the concerns to the board and the board members do not understand the issues and thus cannot advise or take action.

The Board ...