The effort is beginning with “a massive campaign,” according to the article, that began yesterday. “Many of the company’s 300,000 employees in 100 countries gathered to watch a movie that traced the company’s history and called on employees to make Citigroup ‘the most respected global financial-services company.’” Announced changes include annual ethics training for all employees (with special emphasis on top managers), increased emphasis on compliance and audit, and changes in the way management compensation is calculated. Mr. Prince will tour the world this year, spreading the word to employees.

There’s nothing wrong with any of this, I suppose—unless you consider that Citigroup has long had a reputation for having a ruthless culture where the ability to set and meet ambitious financial goals is the definition of success. Has performance become less important than ethics? If a manager doesn’t meet his or her targets, but behaves ethically, will he or she still be rewarded (given a bonus, promoted, etc.)? In a company where money is literally what is produced, how much value does an intangible principle possess?

I have often counseled clients to wait before communicating an effort like this one—wait until they have the operational framework in place, until they understand all the implications, until they’re really sure they will commit, for the long haul, what it takes to build and sustain such radical change.

But senior leaders are men (and women) of action, and they’re chomping at the bit to move forward, and they want to communicate now.
Again, nothing inherently wrong with that (after all, it’s how I make my living), as long as senior leaders understand that the initial communication is not even the first step in the long road ahead.

Communication is easy. Action, which is what really matters, is the hard part.