In Q4 2021, Facebook's total user base declined for the first time in the company's 17 year history and as a result their stock price dropped by over 20% in a day wiping out $251 Billion in value for the company and $32 Billion in net worth for Mark Zuckerberg.
During an analyst call, Mark did four things that every leader should do when they are off track.
1. He said he was proud of the work the team did in Q4
2. He talked about what Facebook believes impacted the business
3. He shared a plan to get back on track
4. He communicated confidence about that plan and why he was optimistic
When things go wrong, many leaders are tempted to blame the team and citing their shortcomings. At least on this public analyst call, he didn't do that. While he didn't take outright responsibility for the loss, his message implied that the failure and accountability lie on the shoulders of the leaders of Facebook and ultimately him. I'm sure inside Facebook he is emphasizing the urgency and priorities needed from the team to get back on track, but as a leader, never abdicate your responsibility. Instead, be clear in your priorities and expectations of the team and then be ready to help them to successfully execute on those priorities.
At first blush, it may seem like Mark Zuckerberg was blaming "the competition", specifically naming the unprecedented (and it appears unanticipated) growth of TikTok, as well as transitions toward short-form video causing impression growth in the near-term. One could argue why this was not anticipated. The fact is, it wasn't. And I am sure in your world there are things that arise that you won't anticipate either. But Zuckerberg is communicating an important element here which sets him up for his next message, that being his plan to recover. But before coming out and just saying what he will do about the user growth decline, he has to name the root cause. He has to share what the company believes is the problem to solve. So sure, the problem was unanticipated, but showing that you understand the root cause lends credibility to your plan. By the way, One of the biggest mistakes people make when talking about what went wrong is that they spend too much time talking about what went wrong and not talking about what they are going to do about it. Most of the presentations I see go into excruciating detail where teams share their baselines, they share the trends, then they quantify the problems in detail and ultimately spend 80% of their time on the past. The only thing about the past that matters is that you understand the root cause. What is more important is talking about the future. What you plan to do to recover.
Now that he briefly laid out what caused the growth decline at Facebook, Zuckerberg spent most of his time talking about what he plans to do about it to get back on track. I won't go into details, but he talked about the company's investment and priority on Reels, Community Messaging, Business Messaging, Ads, Privacy, AI, and bringing it all together, the Metaverse. What's noteworthy about the plan is that it addresses both the short term growth decline as well as how it all ties into the broader strategy which had previously been laid out on the Metaverse. Showing stakeholders how you address the problem as well as how your actions are tied into your overall strategy goes a long way to instilling confidence in your plan.
Finally, throughout his speech, Zuckerberg mentions his optimism about certain investments such as Reels, and confidence in the short-term trade offs they are making and he closed with saying he was confident these are the right investments to focus on in 2022. These are two very powerful words when communicating to stakeholders. When things go wrong, your stakeholders are looking at you to see how you respond. You can choose to respond to disruption with panic and anxiety, which others will sense, or you can press forward with optimism and confidence in your plan. Optimism and confidence allows you to look for a way out of a bad situation without being consumed by it. Communicating optimism conveys that there is something better in the future, and it motivates you and others around you to pursue it.
So when things don't go according to plan,
1. Don't blame your team, but rather show appreciation for their hard work and efforts, then ensure they understand your priorities clearly with the appropriate sense of urgency.
2. Ensure you understand the root cause of what caused you to get off-track.
3. Create a plan that addresses the root cause of what caused you to get off track and ensure that the plan continues to be aligned with your long term strategy. If you are continuing to change your long-term strategy when things go off-track, you should take a hard look at your long-term strategy.
4. Communicate your plans with confidence and optimism. One of the most effective ways to lead a team through challenging circumstances is to give them a sense of hope that things will get better. Often, that possibility alone is the thing that helps keep everyone focused on the mission, one step at a time. And that, as it turns out, is how you get through a crisis.
