Stick to Your Knitting

When you ask employees to advocate for something, especially outside the organization, you must do so carefully. Keep in mind the chief function of your organization is to provide a product, a service or combination thereof. That is what you do. If everyone is off advocating, be it a request for tax abatement or a testimony on product quality, a question may arise: Who's minding the store? When advocating, make certain it is focused on business issues and, when not handled by a senior leader or public relations professional, participation should be discreet and minimized. Never pressure an employee to participate. It will backfire. Advocacy must come from the heart; if the person does not feel compelled by the issue, or is reluctant for other reasons, back off. Your case will be better for it.

Caring enough about the issues that face the organization to voice an opinion is a demonstration of a commitment to values. When done in ways that present a point of view that promotes the livelihood of stakeholders as well as commitment to corporate citizenship, it is very much a leadership proposition. At times, the point of view will be unpopular with certain constituents, but making tough choices in tough times is always the challenge of leadership. Leaders need not be too artful when arguing their case. "If you have an important point to make, don't try to be subtle or clever," said Winston Churchill. "Use a pile driver. Hit the point once. Then come back and hit it again. Then a third time - a tremendous whack!"

Advocacy is not for the faint of heart, but it is something that leaders must embrace. John Baldoni is a leadership communications consultant and a frequent keynote and workshop speaker as well as the author of six books on leadership; the latest is How Great Leaders Get Great Results. He invites readers to visit his leadership resource Web site at www.johnbaldoni.com