Transparency - Why is it poorly received and poorly practised

Transparency, as used in the humanities, implies openness, communication, and accountability. It is a metaphorical extension of the meaning used in the physical sciences: a "transparent" object is one that can be seen through.

Within the family this attribute is exercised liberally and is a fundamental expectation. Anytime, anyone in the family fail to express or exhibit the same, one can almost always predict problems at bay. I dont think there is anything to explain here any further. But expanding the horizons to beyond family and stepping into the community which is where every individual spends major portion of their time, one can agree that transparency cannot exist as a purely one-way communication though.

If the media and the public knows everything that happens in all authorities and country administrations there will be a lot of questions, protests and suggestions coming from media and the public. People who are interested in a certain issue will try to influence the decisions. Transparency creates an everyday participation in the political processes by media and the public. But you and I know that transparency in this context has to be taken with a pinch of salt, or should I say a container of salt !!! :))

Anyways  lets leave political arena and matters of country and step into our regular work environment, which is a smaller representation of a certain segment of people. Even here, the observation is that "Transparency is poorly received and poorly practised by almost all individuals".

Superiors fail to communicate to the sub-ordinates public matters that would influence or involve an individual. Sub-ordinates fail to communicate to the superiors matters that affect them and try and work out solutions. What is wrong? Lack of trust, lack of faith in each others common growth objective !!!

There are many instances where the subordinates have no idea about what happens in the big picture of the company plans and goals and what role they play in those changed plans. So one fine day, when there is a major announcement made, it shakes the fundamental comfort zone of the employee as they have no idea that the short term plan they have made goes out of context. There are many instances where I have seen employees having no choice but to move across divisions and departments. Sometimes it is favourable and sometimes not. Wouldnt it be good if the big time goals of the company would traverse through the organization chain and reach everyone ears in the context of the well being. Everyone would be in synch with the changes and appreciate and accomodate the same. Well, i know its easier said than done, and for this to be acheived in its full flavour we need everyones co-operation.

Now take the other case, if the superior shares the actions being taken as a result of some changes happening in an subordinates environment or feedback on career growth track, the juniour fails to appreciate the same as a step of faith taken by the superior. The superior has to fill in the gap beacause of the juniours enviorment change keeping in mind a far future and thereby be fair to the organization and as well as be faithful to the juniour and try and make their career growths match with the organization...

Why the gap? Can we brush it aside as immaturity in the receiver -the juniour here or a general accepted norm that one cannot trust any other individual other than very close family and friends in the context of their well being??

No man is an island. And if that is true, its better if we would work towards building a healthy and trust filled environment. Share what concerns are in the mind in the context of your future and short term or long term plans, be ready to receive the actions taken in that context and express concerns if it bothers you, involve those who depend on you in your decisions so they know what their role is.

Like I said earlier, Transparency cannot exist as a purely one-way communication.