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"Rumor travels faster, but it don't stay put as long as truth." 'The Illiterate Digest'
When communicating organizational change the question is not 'if' you want to communicate, but do you want to 'participate' in the communication. As managers we grew up in an era in which the boss was always right, even omnipotent. Now that we are the boss it's difficult to admit that we don't know all the answers. Because of this difficulty we tend to communicate only after gathering all the information. Of course, it is then too late.
As soon as you begin thinking about communicating, it's time to communicate, even if the detailed communication plan is not yet completed. Although difficult, it's O.K. to communicate probabilities. Something like: "Here is the situation. We don't know yet exactly how it will turn out but there appears to be two alternatives right now. With what we know, alternative A has a much better chance of occurring than alternative B. I'd say, 70% vs. 30% right now. We'll continue to update you".
This way, you can participate in the communication, injecting truth in the rumor mill.
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