Communicating Technical Information to Executives

Technical leaders bring deep expertise to complex business challenges. But when communicating with executives, expertise alone does not always create understanding or support. Senior leaders need to see how technical insights connect to business priorities, decisions, and outcomes. In this episode of What’s Your Story, Sally Williamson and Mac Smith explore how technology professionals can communicate at the right altitude, lead with their main point, and translate complex information into ideas executives can act on.

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From a distance, you could assume that product creation and innovation is easy because it seems to happen quickly. But you’d be wrong. It actually requires an army of technologists and engineers to keep innovation moving and to deliver products in a speedy fashion. And they aren’t alone. Long before a product reaches a build phase, there are multiple steps to analyze a market, identify a need and propose a product against a market opportunity.

Communicating Technical Information to Executives: Why Technical Teams and Executives Approach Information Differently

Sometimes there can be a communication conflict between senior leaders and technical teams, and often, the outcome is a lack of understanding and buy-in. It’s why one of the key development needs amongst technology teams is learning to communicate with an executive audience.

On this episode of What’s Your Story, Sally is joined by Mac Smith, who leads Cross Portfolio Research for Search & Assistant, at Google. And he’s going to share his experience with why communication conflicts happen, and how they can be improved.

More about Mac Smith

Mac is the Head of Cross Portfolio Research for Search & Assistant at Google. He leads a 25 researcher organization on research programs that bridge Google Search & Assistant product lines. The team combines product support with cross portfolio programs and processes that increase the overall speed and quality of a 100 person research organization. Before this role, he was the Head of User Research for the Core Search Product, and has also previously led four other research teams for companies such as Microsoft.

Show Notes

Is there a struggle between executive teams and tech teams?
- Much of the content struggles to connect at the right altitude to connect with the executive teams.
- For tech teams who are thinking about how a particular product would work, much of the content in the area of comfort lies around their expertise:
  - The how
  - Data
  - Risks
  - Blockers – etc
Try starting with the main point instead of throwing details.
- The experts struggle envisioning not having all the details to make a decision.
The challenge has always been there are repeats on different scales. What has changed as they increase scale is the amount of time the execs have, as well as the complexity they are dealing with has grown exponentially.
- Perspective difference hasn’t changed – as the organizations have grown, the amount of time you have to make that decision has changed.
- In smaller scale companies, you have more of an opportunity to work with those decision makers. As the company grows, it becomes more structured and you have fewer opportunities to make those connections.
- Most of the leadership has spent a considerable amount of time as product engineers prior to becoming executives in tech.
- It’s important to understand the complexity of systems that run your business so you can make decisions that bridge business, experience and technology.
The challenge is many of the engineers have never been in the executive position.
- From the executive perspective: the aperture of their view, the connection, and the time have all changed – that is the biggest perspective.
- Executive teams need to come in the door and think about what decision they will make that day.
- Leaders connect dots. Looking at something a moment in time vs something over time.
For researchers there are two parts to the job:
- 1. The craft of collecting information.
- 2. The role of being an advisor and a steward of that information.
- If you are advising or influencing a leader your job does not stop upon delivery of the information, you also need to help/guide that person (the executive) to make a decision.

The need for people to have effective communication in their roles has gotten greater.
- Growth makes communication more challenging.
- In the early stages of a company, you see more expert to expert conversation.
- When the audience grows you are no longer having those expert-to-expert conversations. Growth requires you to evaluate how you communicate.
How does your expertise connect to the bigger picture, and can you understand the perspective of that executive to help them make that decision or fill in a gap for them?
- What is the consequence of not being understood?
  - You don’t get what you want. You need to connect it to what the executive wants. If you give me this, you will get this.
What is the biggest consequence for not being an effective communicator?
- Most executives see the company as one large team and they want that team to be successful.
- If they don’t feel the idea is effectively being communicated, they will send people away and tell them to come back with more research.
- The communicator must understand what is needed by the executive.
- Time loss is the biggest challenge.
What are the common mistakes that happen over and over again?
- Presenter starts the conversation from their perspective and misses context completely.
- The takeaway is buried at the end of the conversation.
- Presenter is not prepared for the drill down by the executives. Presenter must realize the executives want them to be successful and ask questions attempting to help. They are essentially asking the presenter to give them a reason to change or do something. In this scenario, tech experts miss an opportunity to connect with exec staff because they feel tested.
Most technologists want to be better communicators and the biggest challenge they face include being anxious or unsure about effective communication.
- Tech groups are phenomenal learners, they work hard to make it fit and make it work.
How to improve skills as an effective communicator:
- Start at the end, not from your perspective. Start with the end goal for the audience.
- Encourage people to prototype their results that they need to get to and show to others. Modify based on their feedback to show the end that you\’re going to hit.
Do stories have a place in technology?
- Facts and data are not memorable – add a layer of storytelling to that data. It helps others to understand what you are trying to accomplish and connect to broader business perspective.
- Set out the board context and framework – here is the what and how of this story, and then illustrate that with concrete stories. When you marry those two together- it takes a complex space with conflicting information and makes it very concrete and relatable.
If you learn to communicate well, the chances of you becoming one of the executives becomes significantly higher in terms of probability and speed at getting there.

Communicating Technical Information to Executives: Why Technical Experts and Executives Communicate Differently

Many technical experts build their thinking from the ground up. They begin with the background, explain the process, introduce the data and work toward a conclusion.

That approach is logical when speaking with other experts. Everyone understands the terminology, values the supporting detail and may want to examine the analysis step by step.

Executive audiences often approach the conversation differently.

Executives are responsible for decisions that cross functions, affect multiple stakeholders and compete for limited time and resources. They need to understand how one technical issue fits into a much larger business picture.

This difference can create frustration on both sides.

The technical leader may believe the executive is overlooking important detail. The executive may believe the technical leader has not reached a clear recommendation. Both may be working toward the same outcome, but they are viewing the issue through different lenses.

Effective executive communication closes that gap.

Executives do not need less rigorous thinking. They need the rigor translated into a decision they can understand and act on.

Communicating Technical Information to Executives: What Does It Mean to Communicate at the Right Altitude?

Communicating at the right altitude means adjusting the level of detail to the audience and the decision.

Technical experts naturally spend time in the “how.” They understand the systems, data, risks, processes and dependencies behind the recommendation. That knowledge is valuable, but it is not always the best place to begin with an executive audience.

Executives are more likely to begin with broader questions:

What decision needs to be made?
Why does it matter now?
What business outcome will this support?
What are the most important risks?
What will happen if we do nothing?
What resources or support are required?
What do you recommend?

The technical detail has not become irrelevant. It has moved into a supporting role.

A useful structure is to begin at the executive level and then move into greater detail as questions arise. This allows the leader to establish the recommendation before explaining the analysis behind it.

Communicating Technical Information to Executives: Five Ways to Communicate Technical Information to Executives

1. Communicating Technical Information to Executives: Begin With the Decision

Before organizing the message, identify the outcome you need from the conversation.

Are you asking the executive team to approve an investment, change a priority, accept a risk or provide additional resources? Are you sharing information, or does the audience need to take action?

If the desired outcome is unclear to the communicator, it will almost certainly be unclear to the audience.

Complete this sentence before the meeting:

At the end of this conversation, I need the audience to understand, decide or do ________.

The answer becomes the foundation of the message.

2. Communicating Technical Information to Executives: Lead With the Main Point

Technical experts often feel responsible for showing their work before stating a conclusion. Executive audiences usually need the opposite order.

Begin with the recommendation, insight or decision. Then provide the most relevant evidence.

For example:

Detail-first approach:
“We reviewed six months of performance data across four systems and found several differences in response times…”

Executive-first approach:
“We recommend consolidating these systems because the change will reduce response times, lower operating costs and remove a growing security risk.”

The second version immediately tells the audience what the speaker wants and why it matters. The analysis can follow.

Leading with the main point does not oversimplify the work. It makes the value of the work easier to recognize.

3. Communicating Technical Information to Executives: Connect Technical Insight to Business Impact

Technical information becomes more useful to executives when it is connected to organizational priorities.

Instead of reporting only a system limitation, explain its effect on customers, revenue, operating efficiency, risk or growth. Instead of requesting more resources without context, show what the investment will make possible.

Useful connections may include:

Customer experience
Revenue or cost
Operational capacity
Security and compliance
Speed to market
Employee productivity
Strategic growth
Organizational risk

Consider the difference between these two messages:

“The current platform cannot support the proposed volume.”

“The current platform will reach capacity before the next product launch. Without an upgrade, we risk delays that could affect customer adoption and projected revenue.”

Both statements may be accurate. The second helps executives understand why the issue belongs on their agenda.

Technical credibility comes from knowing the details. Executive influence comes from connecting those details to the business.

4. Communicating Technical Information to Executives: Prepare for the Drill-Down

Executive questions can feel like a challenge, especially when the communicator has invested significant time in the analysis.

But questions often signal interest rather than resistance. Executives may be testing assumptions, exploring risk or looking for the confidence they need to support the recommendation.

Prepare for the conversation at two levels:

The executive message:
The concise recommendation, business rationale and requested decision.

The supporting detail:
The data, assumptions, risks, alternatives and implementation considerations that may come up during discussion.

This preparation allows technical leaders to begin concisely without being caught off guard when an executive wants to go deeper.

Anticipate questions such as:

What assumptions support this recommendation?
What alternatives did you consider?
What is the risk of waiting?
How confident are you in the data?
What could cause the plan to fail?
What will success look like?
Who else needs to be involved?

The goal is not to include every answer in the opening message. It is to have the answers ready when they are needed.

5. Communicating Technical Information to Executives: Use Stories to Make Complexity Concrete

Facts and data establish credibility, but they are not always memorable on their own.

A concise story can help executives understand how a technical issue affects a real customer, employee or business process. It can turn an abstract risk into a recognizable consequence.

For example, a cybersecurity leader could describe how one access-control weakness might affect a customer transaction. A data leader might explain how inconsistent definitions caused two teams to make conflicting decisions. A product leader could show how a technical constraint delayed a customer’s ability to adopt a new feature.

The story should support the recommendation rather than become a lengthy detour.

A strong technical story answers three questions:

What happened?
Why did it matter?
What should we learn or do differently?

Communicating Technical Information to Executives: Common Technical Communication Mistakes

Communicating Technical Information to Executives: Starting From the Expert’s Perspective

Technical leaders often begin with the part of the topic that interests them most. The executive audience may need a different entry point.

Start with the business issue and the audience’s priorities before moving into technical detail.

Communicating Technical Information to Executives: Burying the Recommendation

If the main point appears at the end, the audience may spend most of the conversation trying to determine where the message is going.

State the recommendation early and reinforce it at the close.

Communicating Technical Information to Executives: Providing Detail Without Context

More information does not automatically create more confidence. Detail becomes valuable when the audience understands what it supports.

Explain the significance of a number, risk or technical finding instead of assuming its importance is obvious.

Communicating Technical Information to Executives: Treating Questions as Opposition

Questions are part of executive decision-making. Respond directly and avoid becoming defensive or adding unnecessary explanation.

If the answer requires more analysis, say what you know, what still needs to be confirmed and when you can provide it.

Communicating Technical Information to Executives: Translating Every Technical Term

Executive communication does not require eliminating all technical language. It requires using terminology deliberately.

Keep the terms the audience needs to understand, define unfamiliar language and remove jargon that adds complexity without adding meaning.

Communicating Technical Information to Executives: From Technical Expert to Trusted Executive Advisor

The role of a technical leader does not end when the information has been delivered.

Executives look to technical experts to interpret complexity, identify implications and recommend a path forward. That requires the communicator to move beyond reporting findings and into advising.

A trusted advisor can:

Separate the critical information from the interesting detail
Explain the business implications of technical choices
Compare available options
Identify meaningful risks and tradeoffs
Make a clear recommendation
Respond confidently when executives ask questions
Help the organization move toward a decision

This shift also becomes increasingly important as a technical leader’s career progresses. Broader roles require the ability to influence people who do not share the same expertise.

The leader’s technical knowledge remains the foundation. Communication is what allows that expertise to create value across the organization.

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