It's Not Sucking Up: Your Boss Needs Positive reinforcement, too

​My CFO, the No. 2 executive in a multi-billion-dollar public company, called me into a meeting with almost no notice. I grabbed my notebook and headed to his conference room. This could be anything from No Big Deal to a Really Big Deal.

Turns out it was a Really Big Deal. The company was in discussions to make its largest acquisition in history. He spent 30 minutes giving me the background of the proposed acquisition, the reason the company was doing it and the implications for both companies.

The CFO knew this would be a Really Big Deal for employees on both sides. He wanted me to start early on a communications plan to promote buy-in. I gave him some initial thoughts, told him I’d get back to him, and then got up to leave.
Then I stopped.

I turned back to the CFO and said, “By the way, this meeting…this was good. It’s very helpful to get up to speed early on. We’ll be able to do more thoughtful, strategic communication than if we were brought in later. So, thanks, and if you don’t mind, let’s do this again for other big things in the future.”

The CFO seemed simultaneously surprised and pleased with himself. He didn’t necessarily think it was noteworthy or important to have this kind of meeting, but he was happy that I pointed out to him that indeed it was.

We internal communicators often lament that even our own bosses or executives don’t understand the value of what we do. That is why it is so important to provide them with positive reinforcement when they do something conducive to good communication practices, from bringing you in early like my CFO did, to a particularly strong performance at a Town Hall, to communicating effectively in a crisis and more.

Here’s the thing: often, as in the case of my CFO, they don’t even know they are doing it. But when we point it out to them, they can internalize it on their own terms: “Oh, that’s what they mean. I get it,” they’ll say to themselves. And then they know how to do it again.

This is a form of “managing up,” so it needs to be done with some care. Here are some ways to go about it:

• If you have a rapport and relationship with the executive, do what I did: speak to them about what they did well, and suggest they do more of it.
• Pick a previous action or behavior by an executive that you want to positively reinforce. Cite it as an example of success as you pitch a plan for a new project. They’ll know you want them to do that behavior again.  
• Speak to an executive’s direct manager or a direct report about something that exec did that you liked. Your kudos will probably make its way back to that executive.

​During the COVID-19 crisis, we have enthusiastically demonstrated the value of internal communication. Executives have rightly turned to us in a time of need. We can use positive reinforcement for that behavior as we embark on post-COVID work. Tell your execs: if you like how we helped you during COVID, reach out again and bring us in on your next project/strategy/event. We’ll help you succeed there, too.
 
Positive reinforcement works. How do I know? A year or two after that meeting with my CFO, the CEO called me in to a meeting and told me about another pending M&A transaction that would be even bigger than the last one, and we needed a good communication plan to ensure it was successful. I was one of only five people that the CEO told about this in a company of thousands. Months later, the CEO said the communication plan was a driving force behind the ultimate success of the transaction.
 
I don’t think it was a coincidence that they brought me in early for another big project. They saw it work before, and they remembered I pointed it out to them.
 
Positive reinforcement directed upward can seem awkward at first. Some may mistake it for sucking up. It’s not. It’s a legitimate tool to help you do your best strategic internal communications work.
 
Do you have an example of providing effective positive reinforcement to an executive?