I don't attach any emotion the move other than I think it's good for business. Go borrow the book "It Starts with Why" from your local library and see if you agree with corporate communications in the narrative form rather than bullet points.

You can get the gist on Simon Sinek's Ted Talk on the subject.
https://www.ted.com/talks/simon_sine...on?language=en

 

Guess that what happens when you've been sh!t on for the last 28 years of your career but enjoy those "stories".

 

The negative responses seems a little premature.... this sounds to me at this point like a key marketing position, filled by someone who seems to have a track record up until now of being effective at marketing a feel, brand and image at a national level. If she doesn't live up to the task, that's one thing, but man, from my seat in the peanut gallery I'd at least like us to be effective at getting our message out there and am willing to see how this goes for a bit.

 

Nobody can make you let go of the bitterness of the past, so, hang on tight!

 

You're probably right. I think the job title "Chief Storyteller" raised some eyebrows because it's an unusually forthright description of what all P.R. officials do.

 

Hopefully your a new guy who probably sat reserve for 2 1/2 weeks, got based where you live and will never be furloughed. Us old-timers have danced a much different dance and tend to see the world through very jaded, non-millennial frames.

Yes I'm excited to see positive change but I'm also vary wary of announcements like this that only add to our already top heavy management pool.

 

I tell my reps how I feel. So, I disagree with your point number one above.

As an employee of UCH, I don't have a voice as to how my management team manages. But, To the degree they are effective I pay closer attention, and to the degree they are ineffective I tend to lose respect for them. Generally, if managers are in command of the facts and shoot straight that's all I need. I don't really have time for narratives. They had me at hello. They lose me at "trust me."

Most folks don't have time for narratives. I fully believe that in today's world of instant data, people just want the cliff notes version of the story. people don't read any more and their ADD/ADHD fast pace lifestyle doesn't give them an opportunity to even care about a story.



I do feel that ALPA loses lots of opportunities in terms of communications, both internally and externally. But, the news announcement is only announcing the companies new person, and doesn't have anything to do with ALPA.

 

So bitterness is OK as long as it is directed at the one organization fighting for pilots?

By all means share your specific criticisms of ALPA communications so they can be addressed. Better yet tell us what you have done to make them better.

 

I did check that out. I am not a communications major. But, I did sleep at a Holiday Inn Express last night and I do believe that there is a fundamental difference between management and leadership.

Not all managers have the skills needed to communicate, motivate, and inspire. The book is really aimed at internal management techniques to get folks ginned up to just do their jobs. I mean, you've gotta have a reason to come to work and the book seems to make a reasonable case at how to motivate folks.

That really doesn't work on generation XY and Z. If they can't get motivated in a video game while sipping a 6 dollar cup of coffee it ain't gonna happen.

Managers manage.

Leaders manage, plus communicate, plus motivate, plus inspire, plus delegate, plus hold people accountable and juggle the balls and keep most of them in the air.

For me, I have started judging my leadership by the company they keep. If the Chief Pilot has respectable people in the office that are respected on the line, I have a tendancy to do like EF Hutton and shut up and listen. If they surround themselves with "mouth-pieces" and silly people that can't find clues to put in their clue bags I tend to leave the room.

if Greg Hart comes to any more meet and greets with Tom Stivala I think I'll just leave the room in order to be polite. Likely there are still some folks up and down the chain of command who need to read the book "my core competency is....competency." After we get the competency intangibles up by a factor of 10, then I recommend giving them the book "start with why."

Heck, I think all they really need to do is dust off that cocktail napkin with the Go Forward Plan on it and then read Gordon's book, "worst to first."

 

I don't remember exactly what we were ever really 1st in. It certainly wasn't the pilot contract. Travel awards don't count since they are paid for by management. The largest we ever got was 5th largest airline, and that was only because DAL and NWA merged.

The only thing CAL was 1st in was convincing us to work cheap to make the airline great and then having us believe we were the "best".