Organizational Distress, Leadership and Communications

H Pomerance International Journal of Coaching in Organizations 2009

This article focuses on organizations in distress and the various approaches to leadership and communication that are commonly deployed. Topics such as the impacts of distress on productivity, employee engagement, organization effectiveness and overall performance are covered. The author explores key concepts such as the normative emotional cycle that can be expected during times of distress and how leaders are challenged in the area of communication. He discusses three man categories of activity during times of organization distress: transforming mind-sets, building skill sets and aligning tool sets. While not linear, these three can form the foundation of a cyclical plan that coaches can use to organize and reinforce adaptive leadership techniques.