Strategies

STRATEGIES

You need to choose the strategy and the approach you will use when delivering your bad news. You choose your strategy with respect to your receiver, the issue to be addressed, the importance of the issue, and the way you want to deliver it. Two main approaches can be used: the Direct Pattern and the Indirect Pattern.

You might want to use the Direct Pattern:

When the receiver might overlook the bad news
When directness is preferred, from the organization’s or the receiver’s perspective
When firmness is deemed necessary
When bad news is not damaging
When receiver’s goodwill is not important

The Indirect Pattern is most often preferred to the direct one. Delivered slowly and indirectly, your bad news will look sensitive, therefore reducing the negative impact it could have.

The Indirect Pattern consists of four parts: Buffer, Reasons, Bad News, Closing.

Fig 11.1 Four-Part Indirect Pattern for Bad News | GUFFEY, 2007. p.237

3-X-3 WRITING PROCESS.

Most often, either you choose the Indirect or Direct Pattern, you will deliver your bad news in a formal format, such as a letter. Having to write down your negative message to your receiver can be a complicated task. The 3-x-3 process is used as a guide, helping you through the whole process of delivering bad news. The purpose of this writing process is to make you THINK through the entire process of delivering bad news, thus can help you elaborate your strategy and put it on paper adequately.

The 3-x-3 writing process is constituted by:

1. Analysis, anticipation and adaptation (pre-writing)

Anticipate the effect on the receiver

2. Research, organization and composition (writing)

Use the four parts: Buffer, Reasons, Bad News, Closing

3. Revision, proofreading and evaluation (revising)

Look at it from the receiver’s perspective

LEGAL PROBLEMS

No matter how you choose to deliver your bad news, you need to be cautious in writing negative messages. You have to avoid exposing your organization, or yourself, to legal liability when putting your bad news on paper.

Generally speaking, there is three Causes of Legal Problems to be avoided.

1. Abusive language (profanity)

2. Careless language (statements shouldn’t be misinterpreted or damaging)

3. The Good-Guy syndrome (Avoid statements that make you feel good but may be inaccurate)

ADDITIONAL RELEVANT INFORMATION ON “STRATEGIES”

<http://www.cnr.berkeley.edu/ucce50/ag-labor/7article/article19.htm>

<http://emedia.leeward.hawaii.edu/hurley/modules/mod3/3_docs/badnews.pdf>

<https://pantherfile.uwm.edu/alred/www/pdf/negative.pdf>

<http://www.pictureframingmagazine.com/pdfs/guerillaframer/JUN01_GuerrillaOoops.pdf>