The Delivery of Bad News in Organizations: A Framework for Analysis

The delivery of bad news is at the center of many organizational processes. Despite the variety of organizational processes involving the delivery of bad news, there is no integrative framework that guides its study. Based on a literature review of professionals who deliver bad news as part of their occupations, this article presents a framework that conceptualizes the delivery of bad news as a process involving a variety of activities in three different, but interrelated, phases-preparation, delivery, and transition. This three-phase model is the guiding framework for the literature review. The article identifies the strategic functions served by different bad news management activities and highlights many dilemmas facing managers in the delivery of bad news. The article concludes with identifying new directions for research on the delivery of bad news in organizations.