2. Gary D. Greer City Manager, Farmers Branch, Texas September 24 th, 2009

3.  Delivering Bad News Poorly  Police Chief and Finance Director  Public Works Director  Cemetery plot  Studied other disciplines to improve skills:  Communications  Medical Doctors Curriculum  Military Polices  School Administration guidelines  Clergy  Mentor Ray Lundy

4.  Bad news is a fact of life as is good news  Not communicating bad news is not an option  The grapevine thrives when there is bad news  Open and honest communication is essential  Deliver the news in a conducive place  You can’t plan too much for the delivery of bad news  Be sensitive but straight forward

6.  Study the facts  Consider your audience  Plan the process  Prepare yourself for the event  Prepare others involved in the dissemination  Rehearse the delivery  Carry out the delivery of the news  Respond to things that develop  Settle down

8.  Few people are good at delivering Bad News  The people who are good at display the following:  Sincerity  Humbleness  Honesty  Straight forwardness  Compassion  Understanding  Competence  Adult to Adult communication

10.  Don’t put the bad news between good news  Don’t draw it out, just get it over with  Don’t be tactless, trivial, or tart  Don’t rush and leave no time for questions afterwards  Don’t over defend the news (be quiet)  Don’t shirk the responsibility on someone else for the news  Don’t preach or condemn  Don’t forget to understand the audience  Don’t be an “avoider”  Don’t be overly emotional

12. The Presentation is over.. Thank You