• It aligns team focus. Overloading your team with unnecessary information diverts their attention from priorities. Sharing only the essential points keeps them focused and motivated.
• It reduces overwhelm. There is such a thing as “too much information.” Sharing the right information at the right time is much less stressful than heaping on the detail.
• It builds trust. Transparency fosters trust, but trust is eroded when sensitive or inappropriate information is shared irresponsibly.
• It protects privacy and confidentiality. Employees and organizations both rely on managers to handle sensitive matters with care. Breaching confidentiality can lead to legal issues and damaged relationships.

The Principles of Transparent Communication

The key to getting transparency right is applying the three basic principles of transparent communication. These are:

1. Participation. Engage your team in meaningful dialogue by sharing information they need to contribute effectively.
2. Substantial information. Provide details that are accurate, actionable and relevant to your team members’ roles. Avoid withholding critical insights that could hinder their performance.
3. Accountability. Be honest about what you can and can’t share. Acknowledge the limits of transparency when dealing with sensitive or confidential matters.

What Not to Share

While transparency is vital, you need to handle certain types of information with discretion. These fall into three categories: confidential information about individuals, legal and compliance issues, and sensitive organizational changes.

Confidential Employee Information

Details about individual employees – such as performance reviews, disciplinary actions, or personal circumstances – are private and should not be shared without permission.

Why it matters: Sharing this information can violate privacy laws, damage trust within your team, and foster a toxic work environment.

Example: A team member struggles with a health issue affecting their work. While it’s fine to discuss workload adjustments, revealing personal health details to the team is inappropriate.

Legal and Investigative Matters

Information about ongoing legal issues, compliance investigations, or sensitive organizational changes is often confidential for good reason.

Why it matters: Prematurely sharing such details could compromise investigations, jeopardize outcomes, or create unnecessary anxiety.

Example: During a compliance audit, you learn of potential regulatory violations. Sharing incomplete or speculative information could spread panic and encourage misrepresentation.

Sensitive Organizational Changes

While teams need to be prepared for major changes, premature disclosure of sensitive decisions can lead to speculation, disengagement or mistrust.

Why it matters: Sharing too early or without context can spark rumors and erode morale.

Example: You hear discussions about potential layoffs. Sharing this news before plans are finalized might unnecessarily alarm employees, especially if the plans don’t materialize.

How to Decide What to Share

When deciding whether to share information, consider these key questions:

• Is it relevant? Does this information directly impact the team’s work or their ability to meet objectives?
• Is it actionable? Can the team use this information to make informed decisions or improve their work?
• Is it timely? Sharing too early or too late can diminish the value of the information. Ensure the timing aligns with when your team needs to know.
• Is it sensitive? Would sharing this information breach confidentiality, violate trust, or cause undue stress?
• Does it align with company policy? Ensure your disclosure complies with organizational guidelines and legal obligations.

How to Share Information Effectively

Once you've decided what you can share, focus on how to share it.

• Be clear and concise. Avoid jargon and unnecessary complexity.
• Provide context. Explain why the information matters and how it affects the team.
• Use appropriate channels. Deliver sensitive news in person or through one-on-one meetings, and reserve broader updates for team meetings or written communications.
• Invite questions. Create a space for dialogue and ensure your team feels heard.

Exercise: Practice Deciding What to Share

Use this exercise to refine your decision-making process.

1. Scenario: Imagine you’ve attended a management meeting. Here are three pieces of information you’ve discussed:

• The company is considering a merger, but no final decisions have been made.
• Your team’s project budget will increase by 15 percent.
• A colleague in another department has been disciplined for misconduct.

2. Task: Categorize each item using these criteria:

• Share now: Relevant, actionable, and timely.
• Share later: Relevant but incomplete or sensitive.
• Don’t share: Irrelevant or confidential.

3. Reflection: Discuss your reasoning with a peer or mentor to explore alternative perspectives.

Example Answers:

• Share now: Announce the 15 percent budget increase and explain how it will impact the team’s projects.
• Share later: Mention the merger only when there are concrete developments.
• Don’t share: Keep the disciplinary matter confidential to respect privacy.

As a manager, your role as a filter and communicator is critical to your team’s success. By carefully working out what information to share and how to share it, you can foster trust, maintain focus, and protect confidentiality. Practice the principles of transparent communication – participation, substantial information, and accountability – to strike the right balance between openness and discretion.

By applying the guidelines and exercises in this article, you’ll become more adept at navigating the complexities of communication in the workplace. And your team will stay informed, engaged and protected.

What’s Next?

If you want to upgrade your skills in Transparent Communication, check out our Skill Bite on this topic. We can also help with Overcoming Information Overload, and Confidentiality in the Workplace.

Tip of the Week

Let's Talk Presence

By Cat MacLeod, Mindtools Managing Editor

As a manager, how you act around your people really matters. Improving your affective presence—the way your emotions influence and impact those around you—can improve team morale and performance.

Here are three ways to develop positive affective presence:

1. Cultivate Self-Awareness

Pay close attention to how your emotions affect your team. Reflect on how you come across during challenging or stressful situations. And don’t be scared to ask your team for feedback on how you come across.

2. Project Positivity and Empathy

Practice mindfulness and regulate your emotions to stay calm and composed. Show genuine care for team members’ wellbeing, using empathic listening to understand and address any worries or concerns. Offer regular feedback and praise, and celebrate successes – big and small – to instill a sense of pride and positivity in your team.

3. Adapt to Individual Needs

Recognize that team members respond to emotions differently. Adjust your approach to individual preferences and situations, so your presence is supportive and empowering for your team.

By reflecting on your emotional impact, and adjusting your affective presence, you can create a productive and harmonious work environment – and work together to achieve great things.

For more on how to develop your self-awareness and assess and address how your emotions impact your team, check out our guided Skill Bite on Self-Awareness and Self-Regulation.

Pain Points Podcast

Hear stories, insights and tips from people who understand the challenges we all face at work – in “Pain Points,” the podcast exclusive to Mind Tools members.

Highlights of Pain Points 2024 include expert guest interviews with Karthik Ramanna on living in an angry world, Karolina Szweda on being an introvert at work, Stephen Bruyant-Langer on finding meaning, Becky Westwood on fearless feedback, and more!

Subscribe Today

News Roundup

This Week's Global Workplace Insights

As we run down the clock on 2024, let’s look back at some best bits and forward to what’s likely to come.

Sharing Success Stories

The folks at Stanford Business School have pulled together their top 11 career and success stories from the past year. There are some usual suspects on there, from negotiating techniques to developing your network.

But some stories that caught our eye include advice on how to become a “friction fixer” to eliminate those often-pernicious barriers to getting things done.

If you’re searching for the next big idea, they say try looking to the outsiders inside your organization.

And if you’re looking for a new role in 2025, then “humorbragging” could help you to stand out from the crowd.

Top Workplace Predictions for 2025

Forbes have put their pitch in for what working life will be like in the coming year.

Their predictions center around three main areas:

1. AI literacy
2. Mental health
3. Workforce management.

For the first of these, investment will be required to upskill employees about the use of AI tools, to protect organizations from potential risks.

AI is also likely to become more integrated into HR processes, lightening the admin load, while providing more time to focus on employee engagement and growth.

A focus on mental wellbeing will underpin engagement and productivity, Forbes says, with personalized initiatives being the key to this.

Finally, their top 14 predictions include greater investment in teams – with “teaming” becoming part of the lexicon of work. And plenty more back to the office mandates seem likely in 2025.

See you next week for more member-exclusive content and insight from the Mindtools team!