I have learned some important lessons in transparency over
the last few months. What I have learned is that transparency requires effort.
Simply going about your daily business being open and honest and clear in your
communications is insufficient. Transparency requires proactive and repetitive
communication to ensure that all members of the affected audience hear and
understand your message. If even a small handful of people miss it or don't get
it, then the transparency is lost.
I learned this lesson in the context of a post-Annual
Meeting flurry of calls and emails in which I learned that many people felt
that we had inadequately communicated leadership transition issues to the
membership, and that it was unclear to members that appropriate process was
being followed in the election of the Association's leaders. This came as a
genuine surprise to me, as I believed we'd explained our processes and purposes
along the way. In reflection, however, I realize that we didn't come close to
adequately explaining those processes and purposes, and didn't cover a wide
enough audience when we did communicate.
I understand much more clearly now that it is not safe to
assume anything when it comes to member communication. In the past we've joked
that we spend hundreds of hours every year developing the quarterly Exchange and it seems as if nobody reads
it. As I write this blog / column, I can't help but wonder if anyone will read
this either. But if even a few people do, then I've reached a part of our
audience, and, more importantly, have created a record to which we can refer in
the future.
I imagine that it seems like you get an overwhelming amount
of correspondence from AUPHA on an almost daily basis. Believe it or not, we do
try to limit what we send out, and what we do send is sent strategically timed
to be spaced out from other communications, and hopefully succinct and
to-the-point. And what we send you does have a purpose. It may not be relevant
to you at any given moment, but in the interest of communication and
transparency, it's important that we continue to share information widely to
ensure that those that need to receive the message do receive it.
We know that you rely on AUPHA to provide you with tools and
support that help you do your job better, whether that be as a chair, program
director, or faculty member. An important tool in providing that support is the
AUPHA Network. We will increasingly be using that as a communication format for
the critical information we need to share with you. We do this a) because it
ensures that we are reaching you at the correct contact information in a timely
fashion, and b) because it keeps a record of everything sent that you or we can
go back and reference. Please make sure your subscriptions on the network are
set as you wish them to be. We STRONGLY recommend setting any committee lists
and program director lists as "real time delivery" to ensure that you
have up-to-the-minute information.
So the lesson I've learned has really been that you almost cannot over-communicate an
important issue to your stakeholders. There is, of course, too much of a good
thing, but we plan to err on the side of more than less in order to ensure we
reach you with the information you need to know. We will strive to be judicious
in our use of electronic communication, but we ask in return that you give a
glance at what we send to ensure that you are kept fully informed of the
activities and offerings of YOUR association.
Best wishes on the start of a new academic year. Please let
us know if we can be of any help along the way.
Lydia