Shel Holtz alerts me to the death of longtime General Motors employee communicator Alvie Smith.
To Shel's nice summary of Smith's career I'd add only an anecdote that I always thought was apocryphal until Smith confirmed it in an interview a few years ago:
Once in the 1970s, Smith wanted to shake up the hundreds—yes, hundreds—of GM publication editors he'd convened for a communication meeting in Detroit. He brought in Larry Ragan to stand before these complacent editors, who Smith knew would expect a flattering appraisal from Larry. Larry began:
"I am here to tell you that General Motors' publications are, across the board, the worst written, worst edited, worst designed and dullest newspapers, magazines and newsletters we see in Ragan offices ...."
He had their attention—for the rest of an intense two-day workshop where they all recreated their publications, under Larry's direction, clearly at Smith's prodding.
"I put Larry up to it!" Smith said in 2004. I can still hear him laughing.
Comments (4)
I think you mean Alvie Smith, not Larry Ragan.
To me this kind of know-it-all, harsh approach would motivate only to take my expertise elsewhere, where it might be appreciated.
Posted by Diane | May 1, 2008 1:04 PM
Posted on May 1, 2008 13:04
Diane, I clearly didn't do a good enough job conveying the communication environment at bloated GM in those days, or the conformity or the self-satisfaction that existed. (Although the marketplace has done a good job of conveying that over the last three decades.)
Believe me: NONE of those editors would have taken their expertise elsewhere.
I'm all for gentleness and civility and respect. But sometimes people do need a little shake.
Posted by David Murray | May 1, 2008 1:12 PM
Posted on May 1, 2008 13:12
(Thanks for the correction, Diane. I made it.)
Posted by David Murray | May 1, 2008 1:15 PM
Posted on May 1, 2008 13:15
Today I was on a call where we were reminded to stick a stake in the ground when it came to communications. Don't ask what to communicate; tell people what to communicate, how, etc. Excellent story; thank you for sharing.
Posted by Susan | May 1, 2008 1:29 PM
Posted on May 1, 2008 13:29