Things Leaders Do

How to Communicate a Decision So It Actually Gets Implemented

• Colby Morris

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Use a five-part framework to communicate decisions effectively: Start with why (explain the problem you're solving), explain what's changing and what's not, address obvious concerns upfront, tell people what happens next, and invite questions then actually answer them. Most decision communication fails because leaders announce decisions without providing context or addressing concerns.

70% of organizational change initiatives fail. And it's usually not because the decision was bad—it's because the communication was terrible. Leaders announce decisions in emails, skip the "why," and then wonder why nothing changes.

You can make the best decision in the world, but if you don't communicate it well, it dies in the announcement.

You'll learn:

  • The five-part framework for communicating decisions that stick
  • Why starting with "why" creates buy-in (Simon Sinek's principle)
  • What to say (and what NOT to say) when announcing a decision
  • How to handle pushback without getting defensive
  • How to communicate unpopular decisions without losing credibility

Questions this episode answers:

  • How do I communicate a decision so people actually implement it?
  • What's the difference between announcing a decision and communicating one?
  • Why do most decision communications fail?
  • How do I handle pushback when I've already made the decision?
  • Should I announce decisions in email?
  • How do I communicate an unpopular decision?
  • What is Simon Sinek's "Start with Why" principle?

Key takeaway: Making good decisions is hard. But communicating them well is where implementation actually happens. Use the framework, give people context, and own your decisions.

Connect with Colby Morris:

Colby works with organizations through keynote speaking, executive coaching, and leadership training to build people-first cultures that get results.


The 70% Change Failure Problem

SPEAKER_00

People first leadership. Actionable strategies real results. This is Things Leaders Do with Colby Morris.

Announcing Vs Real Communication

The Five-Part Decision Framework

Lead With The Why

What Changes And What Stays

Address Obvious Concerns Early

Clarify Next Steps And Timeline

Invite Questions And Answer Them

Common Decision Communication Mistakes

Handling Pushback Without Getting Defensive

How To Deliver Unpopular Decisions

Coaching Offer And Final Takeaways

SPEAKER_01

Here's a number that should make you a little uncomfortable. 70%. That's the percentage of organizational change initiatives that fail. 70%. According to research from McKenzie, seven out of ten times when organizations try to implement a major change or decision, it it just doesn't work. That's that's not a margin of error. That's a systematic problem. And it's usually not because the decision was bad, it's because the communication was terrible. See, leaders make a decision and they announce it. And then they're shocked, genuinely shocked, when nothing happens. When people don't change their behavior, when you know the team keeps doing things the old way, when that brilliant strategy just stays stuck in a PowerPoint slide and never makes it into reality. So they blame the team. You know, people are resistant to change. Nobody wants to adapt. This team just doesn't get it. But most of the time, the team isn't resistant. They're confused. Because the leader announced the decision, but they didn't actually communicate it. They told people what change, but not why it matters. They shared the conclusion, but not the context. They sent an email at 2 47 p.m. on a Friday and called it leadership. And then they wonder why nothing's different. Look, making the decision is hard, but communicating it, that's where most leaders completely fall apart. They think announcing a decision and creating a decision are the same thing. Yeah, they're not. They're not even close. Announcing is we're switching to quarterly reviews next month. Communicating is here's why we're making this change, what it means for you, what's staying the same, what's different, and how we're going to make this transition work. One gets ignored, the other gets implemented. Today I'm walking you through how to communicate a decision so people actually do something with it. The framework for delivering decisions at stake. What to say, what not to say, and how to handle the inevitable pushback, and why most decision communication fails before you even start talking. Let me tell you something important. A well-communicated, mediocre decision beats a poorly communicated, brilliant decision every single time. So let's talk about it. Hey leaders, this is Colby Morris, and you're listening to the Things Leaders Do podcasts. I've got twenty to twenty to thirty minutes of real practical tools for you today. Not three you'll never use, just guidance you can implement right away. Let me paint you a picture. A leader makes a decision. Let's say they're changing the team's work schedule. They've thought it through, they've weighed the options, they've made the call, they they feel good about it. And then they announce it in an email or in a team meeting, or worse, in a Slack message at 4 47 p.m. on a Friday because that's when they finally got around to it. And it says something like, Hey team, starting next month, we're moving to a four-day work week. More details coming soon. And they hit send. Decision communicated, job done. Time for lunch. Maybe they treat themselves to the the good sandwich place because they just crushed it as a leader. Except nothing happens, or worse, chaos happens. People start speculating. Does this mean we're working 10 hour days? Are we taking a pay cut? Which which day are we off? Did anyone actually think this through or did someone just read an article about it? The rumors start flying. Someone heard from someone who heard from someone that this is actually a you know a cost cutting measure disguised as a benefit. Someone else is convinced it means layoffs are coming. And Karen from accounting has a whole conspiracy theory about it that she's sharing in the break room. The leader's confused. Why is everyone freaking out? Why is Karen running a shuttle organization dedicated to uncovering the truth? Because they didn't actually communicate it. They announced it. They delivered a headline with no story. They gave people just enough information to panic and not nearly enough information to understand. It's like texting someone, hey, we need to talk, and then not responding for three hours. Technically, you communicated something. Practically, you just ruined their entire afternoon. Here's what most leaders get wrong about communicating decisions. They focus on what they decided, but they skip why they decided it. They tell people the conclusion, but they don't share the context. They expect people to just accept it and move on because I'm the leader and I've said so. But people don't work that way. Okay? Humans need context. We we need to understand the why before we can get on board with the what. If you just tell me we're changing the process, my brain immediately goes to why would they do that? And if you don't answer that question, I'm going to make up my own answer. And my made up answer is probably way worse than reality. They may not, you know, they must not trust us. They're they're trying to cut costs and they think we're too dumb to notice. Someone complained, and now we all have to suffer. You know what? Leadership has no idea what they're doing, and they're just trying stuff to look busy. That's what happens when you announce without communicating. People fill in the blanks themselves, and the story they create is always worse than the truth. Always. Without exception. So how do you actually communicate a decision so it sticks? Here's the framework. Five parts hit all five, and your decisions actually get implemented instead of dying a slow death in the we'll see what happens graveyard. So five parts. Part one. Start with the why. Before you tell people what you decided, tell them why you decided it. Simon Sinek talks about this and start with why. He says most leaders communicate from the outside in. They start with what they're doing, maybe touch on how they're doing it, and rarely get to the why they're doing it. But great leaders do the opposite. They start with the why. And there's a reason for that. People don't care about what you're doing until they understand why you're doing it. If I tell you we're switching to quarterly reviews, your brain immediately goes to, that sounds like more work. But if I tell you why we're switching, what problem we're solving, what's broken right now, what this will fix, well, now you've got context. Now you can actually evaluate whether this makes sense to you or not. Here's what I want you to know. When people understand the why, they can own the decision. Even if they wouldn't have made the same call, they can commit to it because they understand the logic behind it. That's buy-in. That's that's what we talked about in the last episode. Disagree and commit. But you can't commit to something that you don't understand. But when you skip the why, people have nothing to grab onto except their own assumptions. And those assumptions are never good. What what problem are you solving? Okay. What's not working right now? What will this decision fix and why does it matter? You have to give them the context. You have to paint the picture of the current state and why it's not sustainable. So for example, don't say we're switching to quarterly reviews. Say something like, hey, right now we're doing annual reviews. Here's what I'm seeing. By the time we sit down for that review, it's too late to course correct on literally anything. If someone's struggling, we don't catch it until month 11 when we're basically just documenting failure. If someone's crushing it, they don't even get recognized until the end of the year when the accomplishment feels ancient. That delay is hurting both performance and morale. So we're going to switch to quarterly reviews to fix that. Now do you see the difference? Now people understand why. They get the logic. They might still not love it. Okay, maybe they hate meetings, and this sounds like more meetings, but at least they understand it. And when they understand it, they can commit to it. When you skip the why, people assume the worst. When you lead with the why, you give them a reason to care and something to buy into. All right, part two. Explain what's changing and what's not. This is where most leaders stop. They explain what's changing. Here's the new process, here's the new schedule, here's the new, you know, whatever. But they forget to explain what's not changing. And that's just as important. Maybe more important. Because when you announce a change, people immediately assume everything is changing. Their brain goes into that, you know, full panic mode. If if this is changing, what else is changing? Is my job changing? Am I my role changing? Am I about to get fired? Should I start packing my desk in a box? So tell them what's staying the same. Okay, clearly, explicitly. Like you're talking to someone who's two seconds away from a full meltdown. So, for example, removing the quarterly reviews. Here's what will change. You know, we'll we'll meet four times a year instead of once. The format will be shorter and more focused on recent work. Here's what's not changing. Your role isn't changing, your goals aren't changing, your compensation isn't affected, your job security isn't in question. This is about feedback frequency, not restructuring your entire life. That last part, that's what keeps people from spiraling. That's what keeps Karen from starting her conspiracy theory newsletter. All right, part three. Address the obvious concerns. You know what your team is going to worry about. Or you should. You should know your team. You know the questions they're going to ask. You, you know the objections they're going to raise. You can see them coming from a mile away. So why not just address them up front? Don't wait for people to ask. Okay, don't make them come to you with concerns. Bring it up first and diffuse it. So, for example, I know some of you are thinking, this sounds like more meetings. I'm already drowning in meetings. Please don't add more meetings to my life. Fair concern. Completely valid. Here's why how we're handling that. Each quarterly review will be 30 minutes instead of 90. So, yes, more frequent, but way shorter. The net result? You're actually spending less time in review meetings per year, not more. The math works out in your favor. When you address concerns before people raise them, two things happen. One, you show you've actually thought this through instead of just winging it. And two, you you take the power out of the objection. Okay, if I was going to complain about more meetings and you already addressed it, I don't really have anywhere else to go with that complaint. You stole my thunder, and now I have to find something else to be annoyed about. All right, part four. Tell them what happens next. Okay, people need to know what to expect. When does this start? What do they need to do? What's the timeline? Who's responsible for what? So don't leave them guessing. Okay, don't make them figure it out. Spell it out. So, for example, here's the timeline. We're starting in two weeks on the first Monday of next month. Between now and then, I'll be scheduling your first quarterly review. You'll get a calendar invite this week. You don't need to prepare anything yet. I'll send you a prep guide a few days before we meet so you know what to expect. First round of reviews will happen, you know, over the course of that week. After that, you know, we'll we'll settle into a quarterly rhythm and it'll just be part of how we work. See? It's clear, specific, no ambiguity. People know exactly what to expect and when to expect it. They can plan, they can prepare. They don't have to sit there wondering, when is this happening? Until someone finally tells them. And then part five, invite questions and actually answer them. Don't just say any questions with the energy of someone who really, really hopes there are no questions because they want this meeting to end. Okay, don't do the thing where you ask any questions and immediately say, Great, thanks to everyone, before they can even process what you just said. People need time, they need permission to actually ask. They need to know you're not going to judge them for not understanding everything immediately. So say something like, I know this is new, and you probably have questions. I'm not going to put you on the spot right now because I just threw a lot at you. But I want to be clear. I'm available. Slack me, email me, grab me in the hallway, send a career pigeon if that's your thing. I'd rather answer your questions than you have you sitting, you know, sitting here confused or making up your own answers that are probably worse than reality. And then actually answer the questions when they come. Okay, don't brush them off. Don't don't get defensive. Don't say, I literally just explained that, even if you literally just explained that. Just answer them again if necessary. Remember from the other episode, if people keep bringing you questions, that's not a problem with them. Okay? That's information about whether you were clear enough. Questions aren't resistance, questions are engagement. People who don't care don't ask questions. All right, let's talk about what not to do when communicating a decision, because this is where a lot of leaders sabotage themselves spectacularly. And honestly, it can be painful to watch. Let me walk you through the greatest hits of terrible decision communication. Don't announce it in an email and call it done. Look, email is great for a lot of things. Confirming meeting times, sharing links, sending cat videos to your coworkers at 3 p.m. when everyone needs a morale boost. Communicating important decisions, yeah, that's that's not one of them. Because email is one way. It doesn't let you read the room. It doesn't let you answer questions in real time. It doesn't let you see people's faces go from confused to concerned to I need to update my resume. If it's a big decision, communicate it in person, or at least over video where you can see actual human faces and adjust based on their reactions. Save email for the summary afterward. Okay. The here's what we discuss, here's what happens next recap. But don't lead with email and hope for the best. That's that's really not communication. That's avoiding communication and calling it efficiency. Two, don't apologize for the decision. If you've decided something, you better own it. Okay, don't start with, I know this isn't ideal, or you know, I wish we didn't have to do this, or, you know, I'm really sorry about this. That immediately undermines the decision. It tells people you don't actually believe in it. And if you don't believe in it, why should they? Okay, you can acknowledge that it's a change and that change is hard. You can recognize that it creates short-term discomfort, but don't apologize for making a call that you think is right. Because if you're apologizing, one of two things is happening. Either you don't actually think it's the right call and you shouldn't be making it, or you do think it's the right call and you're undermining yourself for no reason. Okay, neither one is good leadership. And then don't ask for feedback after you've already decided. This one, oh, this one drives me absolutely crazy. Leaders make a decision and then they ask the team for input after the decision is made. Like they just remembered that collaboration exists. We're switching to quarterly reviews. What do you all think? Yeah, too late. You've already decided that ship has sailed, my friend. The train has left the station. Pick your transportation metaphor here. Asking for feedback now just makes people feel like their opinion doesn't matter. Because it doesn't. The decision's already made and you're just pretending to care what they think. If you want input, get it before you decide. Okay? Remember in the previous episode, that's when you gather the right information and involve the right people. If you've already decided, don't pretend you're so gathering feedback. Just communicate the decision, explain your reasoning, and then move forward. Okay, fake consultation is worse than no consultation. At least with no consultation, people know where they stand. But with fake consultation, you're just insulting their intelligence. And then don't over-explain. You want to give context. Okay, you don't want to write a doctoral dissertation on your decision-making process. You don't want to take them through your entire mental journey from the first time you thought about this issue to the moment you finally made the call. If your decision communication takes 45 minutes, three PowerPoint slides, and a flowchart, you've lost them. Okay, their eyes have glazed over. They're thinking about lunch. Someone's mentally writing their grocery list. They stopped listening somewhere around minute 12. So keep it tight. Hit the five parts of the framework, answer questions, and move on. Okay, the goal is clarity, not exhaustiveness. Nobody needs to know every single factor you considered, every conversation you had, every article you read, every pro con list you made at 2 a.m. when you couldn't sleep. They just need to understand why you landed where you landed. Give them enough to get it. Then stop talking. All right. Real talk. Sometimes you communicate a decision perfectly. You hit all five parts of the framework, you're clear, you're confident, you answer questions like a champ, and people still push back. Someone's still not happy, someone still thinks you're wrong, someone still wants to argue about it until you change your mind, or at least, you know, can at least say, I told you so, and then it inevitably fails. So what do you do when someone challenges your well-communicated decision? First, don't get defensive. Okay, that's hard. I get it. I get it. When someone challenges your decision, your first instinct is to defend it, to explain why they're wrong, to re explain your reasoning like they didn't just understand you the first time. And then if you didn't say it again, but louder and slower, they'll finally get it. Resist that urge. Just don't do it. Instead, get curious. Tell me more about that concern. Help me understand what you're worried about. What specifically bothers you about this? Sometimes the pushback reveals a real issue you didn't think about. Sometimes it's just someone processing out loud. Sometimes it's someone who genuinely is struggling with the change and just needs space to voice that. And you won't know which, you know, until you listen. And honestly, sometimes people just need to be heard. They need to say their peace. They they need to know their concern landed somewhere other than the void. And then second, acknowledge without capitulating. You can acknowledge someone's concern without changing the decision. You can validate their feelings without reversing course. Okay, these are not the same thing. I hear you. That's a valid concern. Here's how I'm thinking about that. Not you're wrong and your con concern is stupid. Not, you know, that doesn't matter in your being dramatic. Just I hear you, and here's my perspective. Most of the time, people don't need you to change the decision. They just need to know you actually listened. They need to know their concern didn't just disappear into the organizational black hole where feedback goes to die. And then third, know when to end the conversation. Sometimes people keep pushing because they think if they just argue long enough, present enough objections, bring up enough hypothetical scenarios where your decision could theoretically go wrong, you'll eventually cave and give them what they want. And at some point, you've got to say, I've heard your concerns, I've explained my reasoning, I've considered your perspective, the decision is made. I need your commitment to move forward. That's not being a jerk. That's actually being a leader. You listened, you considered, you decided. Now it's time to stop debating and start implementing. You don't owe people endless debate. You owe them clarity in a path forward. And sometimes that means ending the conversation, even if they'd prefer to keep arguing. All right, let's talk about the hardest scenario. Communicating a decision you know people are going to hate. Yeah. Maybe you're cutting a program people love. Maybe you're changing something that's worked for years. Maybe you're making a call that benefits the organization but makes life harder for your team in the short term. How do you communicate that without everyone immediately hating you and possibly forming a petition? Same framework. All five parts. They all still apply, but with two critical additions. Addition one, be honest about the downside. Don't try to spin a bad decision as a good one. Don't try to put lipstick on a pig and pretend it's somehow, you know, a benefit they just don't see yet. Don't do the thing where you try to convince them that what feels like a downside is actually an opportunity for growth. People aren't stupid. If there are downsides, acknowledge them. Say it out loud and own it. I know this creates more work for you in the short term. I'm not going to pretend it doesn't because that would be insulting to your intelligence. It's a real cost, and I don't take that lightly. Here's why I think it's still the right call despite that cost. When you're honest about the downside, people will trust you more. When you try to pretend there are no downsides or that the downsides are actually secret upsides if they just think about it differently, well, they think you're either clueless or lying. But neither one builds trust. So be honest. Acknowledge the cost and explain why you're willing to pay it. And then in addition to take responsibility. If this is an unpopular decision, you have to own it. Okay, don't behind corporate said so or my hands were tied or I didn't want to do this, but they made me. Even if that's true. Even if your boss literally mandated this and you had zero say, your team needs to see you take ownership of communicating it and implementing it. This was my call. If you're frustrated, I get it. I'm not thrilled about every aspect of this either, but this is the decision I made and I'm owning it. That doesn't mean you're volunteering to be the punching bag, but it does mean you're not deflecting. You made the call or you're implementing the call from above. Either way, you own it in front of your team. Because leaders who deflect lose credibility. And once you've lost credibility, good luck getting anyone to follow you anywhere. You can't lead people who don't trust you. Before we wrap up, I want to remind you that I'm working on trying to set up another round of podcasts where I interview other leaders. That may not happen in April like I had planned because some technical issues that we've been working through, but I am still working on it. And hey, if your organization is struggling with change management, getting teams aligned around decisions, or just communicating more effectively, I'd love to help. I work with organizations through keynote speaking, executive coaching, and leadership training to build people first cultures that actually get results. I'd love for you to connect with me on LinkedIn or even visit my website, and both those links are in the show notes. And hey, if this episode was helpful, would you do me a huge favor? And I mean huge favor. Would you subscribe to the show wherever you listen to podcasts? And please, this is a big one, leave a review. This is how the show catches on to more and more leaders. And there are more and more leaders that are listening every day. And that is because of the work you all have done. Sharing with other leaders, you know, rating and reviewing the show. Thank you all so much for everything you've been doing. It honestly means the world to me. And remember, keep communicating the why, keep being clear about what's next, and keep owning your decisions. And you know why? Because those are the things that leaders do.

SPEAKER_00

Thank you for listening to Things Leaders Do. If you're looking for more tips on how to be a better leader, be sure to subscribe to the podcast and listen to next week's episode. Until next time, keep working on being a better leader by doing the things that leaders do.