Workshop: We’ve written a fictitious ‘Letter to the CEO’. This letter is written by an imaginary worker and is applicable for use across industries. We work with your team through discussion to dissect and create coaching opportunities that the fictitious CEO might address.
It is also an effective tool to promote introspection….it’s a bit long, but we believe worth the read. If you believe this has been helpful in your team meetings or leadership practices, please let us know. Leave a comment on the blog or connect with us through our contact page.
Dear CEO,
I am a regular employee, I don’t have a fancy title and I am not seeking to one day have your job. I like what I do, because I went to school for it and selected it to be my career of choice. The role has worked its way into something I never expected, because that’s just how life works out sometimes, but I like it.
I wanted to write you a letter because I never get the chance to see or talk to you and I know you are very busy with the running of the company, travelling, keeping shareholders happy, and I don’t really know what other responsibilities you have but I am guessing they are enormous.
I don’t wish to complain, I like what I do and the company is a good one. Perhaps we are of little significance down here and don’t want to interrupt the important things happening up in your executive offices, but we do see many things you might not see. If you will humour me I have a few questions that need some clarification, then I will feel that I have a voice.
Strategy Sessions – we know your executive goes away once or twice a year on a strategy session and while I’m certain these are important, the folks at our level have never really heard about a new strategy or direction. Everything here seems to tick along quite the same as it has for the 12 years I have been here. Do we have a company strategy? What does it look like? I would like to know if what I do every day is what the company really wants or that my work somehow feeds the ‘strategy’ you all have laid out for us.
Mission/Vision/Goals – The other day I was dealing with a customer service issue and the customer directed me to our public web page. They said I was not following our Mission. I looked kind-of stupid because I asked him what he was talking about. Then I saw we had one! When did we define a mission for our company and when did we add the vision and goals? I have never heard of any of it and so I printed it out and shared it with a few of the people I work with. They had never seen it either. Is there someone I can talk to so I can find out how to make what I do match the things we tell our customers we do, because those two things are not in alignment?
Expectation – I really like what I do! I also don’t want to sound like a complainer, but I worked for about 6 weeks on a project my manager asked me to commit time and energy toward. I worked quite a bit of overtime to meet his deadline and I missed out on some very important family commitments to do it, I was willing to offer the 540 hours rather than the 240 regular hours to meet the deadline. I was happy to do that because it meant I was getting the work done, and on time, it’s good to take pride in your work. It’s not the first project that I’ve committed this much time toward. Unfortunately, he failed to tell me that I was not being paid any overtime for the work I had to do. Do we have a project planning tool to help us understand the number of real hours it takes to complete a project or is it the expectation here that I will be committing 90 hour weeks to every project for the same salary?
Value – I am not quite certain I understand my role here. Don’t get me wrong, I like what I do, the work is something I selected, but I am struggling to see where I add any significant value to the organization. I want to make a difference, want to utilize my strengths and my skills to really add value to the team, within the organization and for the people I work with. There are some skills I have that I believe would truly contribute to helping the customers be happier and stop the project over-runs. I have taken it to my manager, but he says it’s not within my job description and to keep doing what I am doing. Isn’t it the responsibility of every employee to try and improve the company? If my own manager doesn’t believe in me, should I be looking for work somewhere else?
Performance – I have been passed over for a promotion 3 times in the last 3 years. I don’t want to head up the executive or management ladder, I am definitely happy being good at a specific technical role here, but I have 12 years of experience in this company. I work extremely hard and every year I ask my manager what I can do to improve so that next year I have the opportunity to be promoted. He always says, keep doing what you are doing, you are exactly where you should be. For some people that might be nice to hear, but I want to get better, I want to be someone my manager really needs on his team and I want to know I have a future. Life gets more expensive every year for my family and keeping a continual salary for 3 years makes me feel like I have somehow failed. Am I able to become technically good at what I do without moving into management and still receive increases or am I now a liability? You see, people with far less company knowledge have been surpassing me in promotions and yet no one will tell me why.
The Rah, Rah Meeting – Thank you so much for a neat day away from the office 3 weeks ago. It was fun to leave the building and have a day with people from other groups. I liked the hike and the food afterward was really, really good. It must have cost a lot of money, and in these struggling economic times it is highly appreciated. At the end it was nice to see you pop in there for an hour and to hear what you had to say, because it is the only time in a year I get to see you. I want in the worst way to believe I work in the company like the one you described. Unfortunately, it doesn’t feel that way. The other employees I work with are frustrated, angry and disgruntled. No one seems to know what is going on, the layoffs two months ago were devastating and we are all scared. The company you described was more like working for Google, and as much as I want to believe your description, it just isn’t real. How do I remove all the daily negativity of the workplace and bring what you described in that meeting into my every day when management does not lead that way?
CEO, I want to be the best employee you have ever seen. I want success for the company because it is the company I know and the work I understand. I want to see people happy and customers thrilled to come back for more. But I have to admit, I am struggling to understand why our managers are not trained to help us get there. I struggle to know why you see such a different picture of the company than we do. Please help me to find answers to how I can make it different. I am already walking in with a positive attitude, I already look for ways I can contribute more and I keep far away from the gossip chain. I support my co-workers with good feedback. But none of this is enough, there seems to be something missing because things are not going well at my level. Can you suggest what more I can do?
Sincerely,
Your Loyal Worker
No direct relationship to a specific organization or company is being intended. The letter is written in generalized form taking into consideration issues of employees at various organizations.
If you would like a copy of the facilitation guide for this exercise, please contact us on the contact tab and write “A Letter to the CEO, Facilitation Guide” in the comments.
(The first paragraph of this post was updated on Feb. 5, 2017)
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BRAVO!
BRAVO!
And in case I haven’t said it loud enough ….
BRAVO!
This is a great letter that I will share with others.
Take care,
Harry
WOW! I wish more people would take the initiative to write to their CEO’s in such a manner. I truly hope that he/she reads it and gets a clear sense of what you are saying. Thanks to Harry for sharing this with me as this type of misalignment in companies is what I see on a daily basis. The importance of the employee in many cases is not appreciated. I share your pain as at one time I was in your shoes.
And Yes, “Bravo”
Peter
As I mentioned before..kapow!
Well done!!
..and to echo Harry up there : BRAVO!
It is disheartening to work with/for anyone who does not value employee input or recognize where their skills and talents can be broadened to strengthen and enrich the company.
I am grateful for those leaders I have worked WITH in the past who had that ability and openness.. that is where one gets to SHINE!
I am sure you will remind me of this one day .. 🙂 .. but people should listen to you!!!
The larger an organization is the more prevalent this kind of conversation seems to be. I remember working for a very large company (100K people) right out of college. We used to joke that the only place the values existed were on the cups in the cafeteria. I probably could have written parts of your letter back then.
Companies that lack strong and visible leadership and foster this kind of culture won’t survive for long in this economy, at least I don’t believe they will. Yet I have also seen another aspect of this breakdown – people being unwilling to ask the tough questions and risk challenging the status quo. I think it is actually now far riskier NOT to ask or challenging. If you are not getting what you need now ask for it. You may keep your job if you stay quiet,but that doesn’t do you any good if the ship sinks in the meantime.
This was a great way to get this “moose” out on the table Patti!
Kind of comes down to a basic point of business – it’s all about communications.
Whether we are talking about the sales and marketing game, or motivating the staff doing the day to day work. Not only must the message of what the company is about (besides making money) be seen and heard externally, but just as importantly the people who are making that company what it is from within need that same communication and support.
… and communication has to be sincere. Insincerity is transparently obvious to the audience – especially in today’s cynical world.
Whoa!! Now wait just a minute…are you saying that if executive level leadership were to actually get involved with the members of its company at all levels it might be more productive? Wouldn’t that be like General Franks being on the field to meet with troops during the battle? Wouldn’t that be like Joe Torre getting to know his Dodgers on a day to day level with an executable game plan that every player, staff member, and equipment manager would be aware of?
Great letter! Let’s get the team involved, equipped, and prepared from the vision to the mission through the implementation. Hey, it just might work!
Trent Fortner
http://www.abundantlivingtoday.wordpress.com
http://www.myeconomicstimulus.wordpress.com
twitter @trent4tnr
One of the most interesting things about this letter is the degree to which it is couched in the language of disclaimers. I say this not to offer a criticism, but to ask a question: who ARE we that the organizations we create are so full of fear. Even at the end of your letter you must offer a disclaimer that it is all fictional, for illustration purposes, and so forth. All of which I can see you must do (and I would certainly have done the same had I taken such a creative and useful route to writing about leadership and the challenges of the people on the line).
What does it say about us, about our organizations, and about our future that we are clearly so afraid to speak straight to one another? Better still, how do we turn the tide?
Thanks for a great column and an opportunity to comment.
Hi there,
Slightly in line with this (from a disconnected management perspective).
Thanks again for a thought-provoking article.
Harry
The Boat Race
The Americans and the Japanese decided to engage in a competitive boat race. Both teams practiced hard and long to reach their peak performance. On the big day they felt ready.
The Japanese won by a mile.
Afterward, the American team was discouraged by the loss. Morale sagged. Corporate management decided that the reason for the crushing defeat had to be found, so a consulting firm was hired to investigate the problem and recommend corrective action.
The consultant’s finding: The Japanese team had eight people rowing and one person steering; the American team had one person rowing and eight people steering.
After a year of study and millions spent analyzing the problem, the consultants concluded that too many people were steering and not enough were rowing on the American team. So as race day neared again the following year, the American team’s management structure was completely reorganized. The new structure: four steering managers, three area steering managers, and a new performance review system for the person rowing the boat to provide work incentive.
The next year, the Japanese won by two miles. Humiliated, the American corporation laid off the rower for poor performance and gave the managers a bonus for discovering the problem.
Harry,
Thanks so much for the great comment, you certainly made my day!
Please feel free to use the letter, and if you don’t mind, please link back to the post.
I appreciate your great response!
Patti
That’s a beautiful letter. Beautiful in a bitter-sweet way. Bitter that so many people have that experience, so many companies suffer from delivering that experience, so many customers suffer from it, too. Sweet in your compassion and understanding, empathy for them. Sweet in considering…what-if. What-if this same letter was written a year later, after a CEO read it, got it, implemented it, changed it. And what if…another company did, too. Pretty soon we have a movement…But back to the letter. It’s beautiful.