Ketchum leadership communication monitor global summary deck us_final

Ketchum Leadership Communication MonitorMarch 2012

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The Ketchum Leadership Communication Monitor: Background

At a time of considerable uncertainty, Ketchum’s 2012 Leadership Communication Monitor study is a response to the global hunger for effective leadership – political, corporate, religious or community-based.

The report was informed by the fact that even the best leadership is impotent if poorly communicated, but also flawed unless communication guides its development in the first place. The study found that effective leadership and effective communication are, indeed, inextricably linked.

This study examines attitudes to today’s leadership around the world and explores the fundamental role of communication in informing and delivering that leadership.

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The Ketchum Leadership Communication Monitor: Objectives

To assess how today’s leaders – and their communication – are judged

To rank the most important leadership attributes and communication behaviors of effective leaders

To provide practical counsel on a path to more effective leadership and leadership communication

As such, it will serve as a benchmark to track evolving perceptions of leaders, what is expected of them and the required response.

123

This global study starts from the premise that effective leadership is essential to achieving any of society’s goals – whether in politics, business, spirituality or community-building. Against this background, it sets out:

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Methodology

Markets: N=

US 319

UK 308

France 310

Germany 315

Spain 321

Poland 309

China 327

Singapore 309

India 293

UAE 312

South Africa 320

Brazil 316

Ketchum Global Research & Analytics and IPSOS fielded a 10 minute online survey of a representative general public sample of 3,759 total respondents in 12 markets from December 14 2011 – January 10, 2012. The global margin of error is +/- 1.6%, local margin of error is +/-6%.

Final data for each market were weighted by market specific demographic profiles including gender, age, region, race and income, where applicable.

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EXECUTIVE SUMMARY: GLOBAL PERSPECTIVE

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Global Headline Findings – Leaders Are Falling Short

A crisis in every sense: The global economic crisis is matched by a crisis of confidence in leaders and how they communicate – a vast gap remains between expectation and delivery.An expectation of leadership ... and of disappointment: The world is still looking to leaders in difficult times, but the public expects to be let down more in 2012 than 2011. Talk to me! Leaders across all categories score nearly as badly on communication – yet effective communication is seen as critical to effective leadership and business success. Doing the business: Corporations come out on top as both leaders and as communicators, with bankers making the top-5.

(Still) never trust a politician? Politicians rank among the worst performers on every measure, though expectations of their ability to deliver effective leadership are unmatched. Knowledge is power: Knowledge-led industries, including technology, media and telecommunications, top the leadership table, with consumer goods bringing up the rear.A disillusioned West: Europeans and Americans are more unhappy with their leaders than are respondents from emerging markets.

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Global Headline Findings – A Blueprint for Effective Leadership

Close the say-do gap: The world wants more than just a story. Leading by example, making the tough decisions and showing grace under pressure are all vital attributes for great leaders. Strong, silent types need not apply: Clear, transparent communication - including admitting mistakes - is imperative to effective leadership.

Don't sugar-coat it: People seek leaders who are willing to be honest about the challenges ahead, rather than holding back to avoid sparking fear.

Listen, analyze and adjust: Having adaptable leadership and communication styles are viewed as critical elements for demonstrating true leadership.

The way to be seen as trustworthy is to be trustworthy: For companies, trustworthiness trumps even attributes such as quality of management, financial strength and innovation as representing the mark of true leadership.

Let them look you in the eyes: Personal presence and involvement in communication are key sources of leadership credibility.

Traditional is traditional for a reason: Personal presence through speech-making, broadcast media and print media prove more effective in establishing credible leadership than advertising, social media and digital channels.

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LEADERS ARE FALLING SHORT

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PoorB3B (0-2)

ExcellentT3B (8-10)

Series1

19%

22%

23%

25%

25%

26%

36%

Series122%

12%

16%

18%

21%

10%

9%

Demonstrate Effective Leadership:

Globally, Perceptions of Effective Leadership Lacking• Across the globe and categories of leaders, leadership is lacking.

• With one-third stating they demonstrate effective leadership, business leaders are perceived as the most effective leaders.

Business

Non-profit organizations

Political

Religious

Sports

Local community

Celebrities

Q1. To what extent does each of the following categories of leader demonstrate effective leadership?

Types of Leaders Net

+27%

+16%

+4%

+7%

+7%

+10%

-3%

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Leaders Underperform on Expected Behaviors

Admit mist

akes

Bring o

ut the b

est in

others

Transp

arent c

ommunication

Delega

te res

ponsibly

Show re

sults

Work

w/ perso

nality

styles

Handle

crise

s calm

ly

Lead

by exa

mple

Mak

e tough

decisio

ns

Clear lo

ng-term

visio

n

Compelling s

tory

Inspira

tional rh

etoric

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

80%

Expectation Business Political Religious

Non-profit Local Community Sports Celebrities

Q3/4. Listed below are specific behaviors often seen as being characteristic of effective leaders. When it comes to being an effective leader, how important is it to demonstrate each of the following characteristics or behaviors? Please use a scale where 0 is not at all important and 10 is extremely important. How does each leader type perform on attributes?

Top3Box (8-10 rating)

Expectation of performance

Perceived performance

• A global unifying trend is a large gap between the importance of these behaviors and actual performance by leaders – all are below expectations.

• On average, there is a 28 percentage point gap between the expectation and the ability of leaders to meet that expectation.

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Many Find Leaders Failed in 2011

Business Political Non-profit Sports Local commu-

nity

Religious Celebrities None 0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%44%

32%28%

25%

20% 20% 20%18%

40%

30% 27%25%

22%19% 18% 20%

InternationalDomestic

Type of Leader

In the past year, business figures demonstrated the most effective leadership. • One-fifth of the global population think no leaders demonstrated effective leadership in the past

year.• Insignificant difference between ratings of domestic and international leaders

Mos

t Effe

ctive

Lea

ders

hip

Q13. Looking back at 2011, which three categories of leader best demonstrated effective leadership internationally over the past year? Select up to 3.

Q14. Looking back at 2011, which three categories of leader best demonstrated effective leadership domestically over the past year? Select up to 3.

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Leaders Don’t Consistently Exhibit Leadership Behaviors

Type of Leader

Demonstrates well (8-10) Business Political Religious Non- profit

Local community Celebs Sports

Making tough decisions 49% 34% - - - - - Demonstrating an ability to show results 48% - - - - 28% 42% Providing a clear overall, long-term vision 45% - - - - - -

Handling controversial issues calmly and confidently - 33% - - 33% - -

Using inspirational rhetoric - 33% 40% - - - - Telling a compelling story about organization - - 39% - - 27% - Bringing out the best in others - - 37% 43% - - 34% Leading by example - - - 44% 34% - 38% Communicating in an open and transparent way - - - 43% - - - Ability to work with different personality styles - - - - 33% 32% -Q4. Now, thinking about those same characteristics, please tell us you how well you feel each of the following demonstrates each characteristic or behavior. Please use a scale where 0 is does not demonstrate at all and 10 is demonstrates completely.

Top three leadership behaviors that leader categories exhibit:

• Business leaders are rated highest on leadership performance, especially on behaviors concerning action.

• Religious leaders are considered the best at communicating about their organization.

• Even at their best, celebrities, politicians and community leaders are lagging in their ability to act as effective leaders.

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Increased Confidence in Business Leaders Over Past Year, Drastic Lack of Confidence in Politicos

Series1

22%

23%

24%

24%

29%

32%

35%Business

Non-profit

Local community

Sports

Religious

Political

Celebrity Series133%

47%

33%

29%

28%

20%

25%

Types of International Leaders

More Confidence

Less Confidence

Level of Confidence in Leaders Now Compared to 2011:

Net

+10%

+12%

+1%

-5%

-9%

-24%

-10%

One-third of the globe has more confidence in business leaders now than they did a year ago while almost half have less confidence in political leaders.

Q17. Do you have more, less or the same confidence today as you did a year ago in the ability of the following categories of leader to navigate the world through difficult economic times internationally?

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Still, Political Leaders Expected to Pave Way in 2012

Even though just 25% feel political leaders are effective,

63% say they are the ones whose navigation through difficult

economic times will be very important, while

60% say business leaders, and

36%

say local community leaders.

Q16. How important will effective leadership from each of the following be in terms of navigating through difficult economic times?

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Effective Communications at the Core of a Great Leader

84% of the globe says communication is important to great

leadership

48% give effective

communication a 10-out-of-10, the

highest possible rating of importance

Q8. Generally speaking, how important is effective communication to great leadership?

48% sayCommunication

= 10 / 10 84% sayCommunication

= 8-10 / 10

Unanimously around the globe, people agree:

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• Global citizens judge leadership types as comparatively equally effective communicators – except for business leaders, who lead the pack.

• “Fame and flash” does not equate to effective communication, as celebrities and athletes are seen as least effective communicators.

Business Leaders Most Effective Communicators

Business Political Non-profit Religious Local community Celebrities Sports

48%

39% 39% 38%35%

30% 29%

Q9. Now, thinking about each of the following categories, how effective is each category of leader in communicating?

Type of Leader

Effec

tive

Com

mun

icat

ors

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• There is a distinct relationship between a leader’s ability to communicate and perceptions of that leader’s effectiveness.

• Effective business leader communication has the most impact on intent of investing in the company.

Business Leader Communication Closely Tied to Perceptions of Leadership (Global Data)

Strength of Correlation 0-.20 low.21-.30 med-low.31-.40 medium.41-.50 med-high.51-.60 high

50% of effective leadership is linked to effective communication.


Q5. For business organizations, on a scale of 0 to 10, where 0 is not at all important, and 10 is extremely important, how important is your perception of company’s leader and leadership when it comes to …

Effective Communication

Investing Intent44%

Recommending Working at Company43%

Purchase Intent43%

The Benefit of the Doubt in a Time of Crisis38%

Q8. Generally speaking, how important is effective communication to great leadership?

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Knowledge Industries Demonstrate Greatest Leadership

Trust Summary Distrust Summary

Technology 44%Media 39%

Telecommunications 36%Banks 32%Energy 31%

Financial services 30%Automotive 29%Entertainment 28%

Food & Beverage 28%Pharmaceuticals

28%Biotech 27%

Retail 24%Transportation

24%Insurance 23%

OTC healthcare 22%

Spirits 21%

CPG 20%

Industries demonstrating very effective leadership:

Q2. To what extent does each of the following industries demonstrate effective leadership?

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Europe Unsatisfied with Leaders, US Less So, While China Has Few ComplaintsEastern hemisphere finds 2011 a year of effective global leadership – West disagrees.• Almost a quarter of Europeans and Americans find that no international leaders

demonstrated effective leadership in 2011. The same is true for only 6% of Chinese.

• Europeans and Americans rate political and business leaders especially low on 2011 effectiveness, Chinese rate both much higher (political: 25% Europe; 32% US; 59% China; business: 52% China; 32% US; 35% Europe).

Chinese hold all leaders in high regard – and are much more likely to say business and political leaders are effective than Americans and Europeans.• Compared to the US and Europe, Chinese find business figures very effective

leaders (53%; 28% US; 27% Europe) – the same is true for political leaders (61%; 18% US; 20% Europe).

• Europeans perceive most leaders as lacking effectiveness, especially political (20%; 18% US; 61% China) and religious leaders (16%; 46% China; 27% US).

• Americans have more neutral perceptions of leaders – often finding leadership effectiveness sufficient but not excellent.

• Compared to Europeans, however, Americans rate religious leaders as effective (27% US vs. 16% Europe).

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Americans Expect More from Leaders – But Have Less Confidence in Their Performance Americans have higher expectations of leadership than regional counterparts.• Compared to Europeans , Americans and Chinese heavily favor

action-oriented leadership characteristics. Making tough decisions, leading by example and admitting mistakes are all extremely important to leadership. • Making tough decisions (79% US; 64% China; 66% Europe;)• Leading by example (76% US; 73% China; 63% Europe)• Admitting mistakes (74% US; 70% China; 61% Europe)

Americans and Europeans have less confidence in leaders now than they did a year ago.• While 18% of Europeans and Americans have more confidence in

domestic political leaders now than a year ago, almost triple the amount have less confidence (50% US; 54% Europe). • On the other hand, the majority of Chinese (46%) have more

confidence in their political leaders.• The same is true for business leaders – one-third of Europeans (35%)

and Americans (33%) now have less confidence (vs. 15% China).

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A BLUEPRINT FOR EFFECTIVE LEADERSHIP

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Approach to Identifying Drivers of Leadership

To identify the characteristics and behaviors that matter most to the public’s perception of leaders, we employed a statistical analysis to link overall perceptions of leaders and specific leadership characteristics and behaviors. To determine what matters most, we bucketed results four distinct categories described below.

Hidden DriversThings that people don’t explicitly state as being

important, but are highly correlated to perception that a leader is effective.

Relatively UnimportantBenefits that are not important in shaping

people’s perception of effective leadership.

Key DriversThings people say are important to effective

leadership and are highly correlated to perception that a leader is effective.

Table StakesThings people see as “must haves” for a an

individual to even be considered an effective leader. These items are often considered table stakes, but

do not drive perceptions of effective leadership.

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Leaders Should Focus on Results-Driven Behaviors (Global Data)

Numerous attributes are key drivers of leadership effectiveness. Behaviors considered especially important to leadership effectiveness concern keeping a level head in times of stress, such as making tough decisions and handling crises calmly and confidently.



Hidden Drivers• Provide clear overall, long-term vision• Ability to show results• Ability to delegate responsibility

Relatively Unimportant• Inspirational rhetoric• Telling a compelling story about their

organization

Key Drivers• Making tough decisions• Handling controversial issues or crises calmly

and confidently• Bringing out the best in others• Ability to work with different personality styles

Table Stakes• Leading by example• Admitting mistakes• Communicating in an open and

transparent way

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Leaders Underperform on Expected Behaviors

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

80%

Expectation Business Political Religious

Non-profit Local Community Sports Celebrities


Top3Box (8-10 rating)

Expectation of performance

Perceived performance

• A global unifying trend is a large gap between the importance of these behaviors and actual performance by leaders – all are below expectations.

• On average, there is a 28 percentage point gap between the expectation and the ability of leaders to meet that expectation.

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Important for Business Leaders to Communicate in Times of Crisis and Concerning $$

Crisis response 53%Financial results 48%State of the business 40%

Employee matters 32%Governance policies 28%Company structure 27%

Marketing products/services 24%Environmental matters 22%

Most important areas for business leaders to personally communicate:

BOTTOM LINE

Q12. Which of the following areas of a company are most important for a business leader to be personally involved in communicating?

STRUCTURE

INITIATIVES

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• More than anything, and in line with the top leadership attribute of transparent communication, global citizens want their leaders to be honest about challenges ahead.

• Clear visions for survival are also deemed essential to restoring confidence in 2012.

Honesty Most Important in Restoring Confidence

Series1 17%

41%

43%

44%

48%

56%Be open and honest about the nature and scale of the challenge ahead

Provide a clearer overall vision for how economies, businesses and other organizations can survive

Listen and consult more to help find elusive solutions

Seek collaborative solutions to challenges, rather than going it alone

Focus less on overall vision and rhetoric, and more on clear plans of action

Be cautious about spelling out challenges and worst cases, for fear of damaging already fragile confidence

Q15. What do you believe leaders need to do in 2012 to restore confidence during challenging economic times? Select up to 3.

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Adaptability Is Optimal for Leadership Style

12%

19%

11%

13%

45%The Listener: Leader gets input from

followers, then defines tasks and roles, retaining responsibility for outcomes.

The Delegator: Leader works with followers to define tasks and roles,

then delegates responsibility to followers.

The Director: One-way authority, where leader defines tasks and

roles for others, but retains responsibility for outcomes.

The Situational Leader: Leader uses all of the above, adjusting the behavior to the

best outcome for the situation.

The Partner: Leader and followers work together to define roles and to assign

responsibilities.

Q6. Which option best describes the leadership style of an effective leader?

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Situational Communication Style Optimal for Leaders

Q7. Which option best describes the optimal communications style of an effective leader?

36%

24%

23%

18%

Uses all three communication styles, adapting them to the

particular situational need

Consistent clear message, giving direction from

the center to all audiences

Variety of messages according to each audience's demands, gaining their commitment to the overall intended direction

Central message to different audiences, taking particular needs into account, allowing for alignment of their situation to the central goal

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Trust and Quality in a Company Determines Leadership

Attributes Rated among top five most important

Trustworthy 46%Quality products/services 43%

A good place to work 35%Customer service 35%

Quality of management 34%Financial strength 33%

Ethical business practices 33%Innovative 29%

Respect 28%Corporate social responsibility 28%Environmental responsibility 28%

Customer-focused 27%Commitment to communities 18%

Diversity 15%Philanthropic/Charitable 10%

Most important attributes for a company to be described as a leader:

A19. Listed below are some attributes that might be used to describe a company. For a company to be considered a leader, how important would it be for it to demonstrate the following attributes? Select up to five (5).

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Opinions of Credibility Formed by Hearing and Seeing Leaders Speak

Sources View as credible

In-person contact 50%Televised speech 43%Broadcast media 41%Print media 38%Word-of-mouth 38%Press releases 37%

Financial publications/analysts 34%

Company website 25%Online media/blogs 20%Facebook 16%Advertising/Commercials 13%Other social media platforms 10%Brochures 10%Twitter 8%Web chats 8%

Physical presence is key:Most credible communication sources include physically seeing a leader speak; in-person contact, televised speech and broadcast media.

Traditional communication tactics like press releases and word-of-mouth are also viewed as credible sources, more so than online channels.

Q10. When forming your opinions about leaders and leadership, which of the below sources do you view as credible? Please select up to 5.

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Although Effective Leadership Is Low, Trust in Many Leaders Still High When Quoted in Media

• Political figureheads face a large gap in trust when quoted in the media.• Business leaders are found to be very trustworthy, second only to non-profit leaders.

Series1 31%

44%

54%

60%

63%

64%

73%Non-profit

Business

Sports

Local community

Religious

Celebrity

Political Series169%

56%

46%

40%

37%

36%

27%Types of Leaders Trust SummaryDistrust Summary

Level of trust when quoted in media: Net

+46%

+28%

+26%

+20%

+8%

-12%

-38%

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Moving Forward in 2012 and Beyond: Regionally

While all regions principally demand openness about the nature and scale of the challenge in 2012, other actions differ by region:

China wants a strong direction – leaders to present a clear vision for how economies and business can survive. (54%; 44% US; 41% Europe).

Europe and US want honesty – leaders to be open and honest about the nature and scale of challenges ahead. (52%; 57% US; 43% China).

The US wants action – leaders to focus less on vision and rhetoric and more on clear plans of action. (49%; 39% Europe; 37% China)