Communication permeates every facet of our lives. It plays an essential role in our professional careers as well as in our private affairs. As such, improving it should be important to everyone, especially managers.
Every employer can gain substantial benefits by improving communication in their company. For example, good communication in the workplace can help your business achieve better productivity and maintain a smooth workflow. Dissatisfied employees lead to some pretty dire situations. If you think that a storm is brewing inside your company, make sure you improve your communication before calling in a strike security company.
Creating clear lines of communication might be a challenging task. This article is here to help you with that. If you think people in your organization should start communicating more effectively, follow our simple instructions.
Clarify Your Team's Communication Process
According to a study conducted by the Corporate Executive Board Company, communication difficulties are responsible for nearly 80% of the interpersonal conflicts that take place in American businesses.
When people fail to communicate properly, they tend to blame each other for misunderstandings. And this is one of the main reasons why teams fail to work together.
Rather than letting communication issues spoil your team's productivity, it's better to take charge and set up a clear process for communication.
Here are the steps you need to take to clarify your team's communication process:
Step 1: Start Small
Consider a small project that your team is currently working on and break it down into several smaller tasks. After you have done that, list down all the steps that are involved in completing this project.
Then, identify which of these steps are related to communication. This will help you understand which tasks need to be improved.
Step 2: Create a Communication Checklist
Ask your team members to provide you with a list of all the steps associated with improving their communication. This should give you a clear picture of what needs to be done to improve communication in your organization.
Step 3: Make Time for Communication
After you have identified the direct communicative steps, schedule time for each one of them in your team's workflow.
If necessary, adjust the workflow to accommodate time for structured communication or work extra hours until you have established a more efficient workflow.
Create a Clear Communication Structure
You can make your team's communication process more efficient if you create a clear structure for it. Here are the steps you need to take to achieve that:
Step 1: Create a Hierarchical Chart
It should cover all the communication-related tasks undertaken by your team members and establish their reporting relationships. This will help you get an overview of how different employees interact with each other and how their tasks are interrelated.
Step 2: Use Communication Tools to Improve Efficiency
Create a list of all the communication tools that your team uses. Look for any redundant tools and find a better alternative for those tasks. For example, if everyone uses text messages to communicate, look for an alternative tool such as Skype that allows more efficient communication.
Step 3: Remind Employees About the Communication Structure
Every member of your team should be familiar with the structure you have created for communication in your company. Once they understand how this structure works, remind them about it every few weeks to ensure that they continue using it consistently.
Communicate Clearly and Effectively
After you have created a clear communication structure for your team, it's time to start communicating more effectively. Here are some suggestions that will help you reach that goal:
Step 1: Avoid Jargon
Avoid using complex terms when discussing business-related topics with your team members. Jargon can make people feel alienated, and this can hinder effective communication between them. Use simple language instead and explain terms that your team members might not understand in a simpler manner. There's no need to talk down to anyone, but make sure you avoid using complicated acronyms and technical terms when possible.
Step 2: Stay Focused on Your Message
If you find yourself rambling while talking to someone, it's a sure sign that you are not focused on your message. To ensure that you communicate effectively, make sure that you keep your message short and direct. Avoid rambling and keep each sentence short and simple. If you find yourself going off-topic, bring yourself back to the main topic immediately.
Step 3: Avoid Interrupting People When They are Speaking
Interrupting people can make them feel disrespected and hurt their feelings. If there are times when you need to interrupt someone, don't do it without at least pausing for a few seconds before speaking again. This will let everyone know that you want to contribute something important and give them time to direct their attention towards your message.
Step 4: Use Active Listening Skills When Communicating With People in Your Organization
Active listening skills involve listening and reacting to the words at the same time as opposed to only hearing someone out and then responding with a vague response straight away. This will make the person feel that you are interested in what they have to say and that you are really trying to understand them instead of just waiting for an opportunity to offer your own opinion.
The Bottom Line: Ask Questions and Be Curious in Your Communications with Others
When communicating with your team members, try asking them questions instead of making your point directly every time you speak with them. This will help you follow "active listening skills" and also demonstrate that you genuinely care about what they have to say rather than just making your own point of view known at all times. If you ask questions right at the start of a sentence, it will be even more effective because it will encourage people to talk more about themselves and share their ideas more freely than they usually would if they were just sitting quietly listening to someone else speaking all of the time. This will help them feel engaged and heard instead of just being spoken at, which can make them feel distant from the conversation and not want to participate in it as much as they would if they were feeling respected and heard instead of patronized throughout the whole process.
