Executive Communications and The People Who Hold Their Breath

There is an aspect to executive communications which should be remembered: executives do not repeat major policy pronouncements which are untouched by careful internal reviews.

Note the use of the word "repeat." An executive may blurt out a policy position which goes against the carefully vetted stance of the organization. In most cases, the executive is later said to have misspoken and the statement is quickly revised or retracted. [See: Ford, Liberation of Poland.]

If a statement is repeated, however, then it was not a spur of the moment opinion. Teams of people pored over it before and after it was made. Words and descriptions were debated. Nuances were weighed. Often, the lawyers were asked to inflict their opinions and give a blessing. In my career, I've sat in on lengthy "word-smithing" meetings where the subject was whether the executive should use a particular word. This is not Uncle Clyde leaning back, loosening his belt, and belching out an impromptu opinion at Thanksgiving. This is serious business and a whole lot of shaking is going on. The higher up the ladder, the greater the internal scrutiny and the people doing the looking are heavy hitters.

If an inaccurate statement is repeatedly made, you can rest assured that was known before or after the first utterance and, for some reason, the decision was made to keep the inaccuracy. If the unlikely occurred and the inaccuracy was not spotted earlier, then the staff blundered. If the statement was made repeatedly and not spotted, then the staff is incompetent.

If an inaccurate statement is made repeatedly about a major issue and valid warnings were ignored, then we are in the territory of calculated deception. In cases of repeated misstatements, it is highly likely that staff members raised the problem and were over-ruled.

In short, executive communications are carefully evaluated. There are plenty of insiders who know the subject matter far more than the head honcho and who will claw at one another's eyes in order to push their case. 

Those are the people holding their breath when the top exec gets near a microphone.