The above title can be a common expression when dealing with our fellow team members. Our ability to communicate and to be communicated to is a major determining factor in our leadership skills. The complete slowdown and or failure in the business process are usually attributed to a complete breakdown of communication between various departments. Then the frustration, anxiety, uncertainty and many other negative emotions are the soup du jour. How would you feel if these emotions are what described your communication business process? Maybe it’s time for a second look at your communication policies.
Here is an example of a typical corporate situation. Your superior assigns you a project wanting to see a specific outcome in order to enhance a particular business process. You research, brainstorm, rough draft and then bring the project to a final proposal. You present the information to your superior but that is the last you ever hear of it. No next steps, no implementation date---nothing! What happened? You may never know. Reason why this took place—no communication.
This is one little teeny tiny example that barely scratches the surface of where breakdowns in communication can hurt the daily process. So what can practically be done? Maybe the title of this blog should be the theme of your next communication training meeting.
Some other symptoms of bad communication would be finger pointing, lack of follow through, no clear direction for next project and the list goes on. Those are the symptoms, how about attacking the disease. Lack of policy is the disease. The communication policy needs to include everyone. It does little good for a policy to affect only certain departments but never applied by the leaders of the company. One word for that—FAILURE.
You want to start saving money and make your company a happy and productive place to work—this is my tip of the day: Open your two ears and do a lot more listening and do half the talking. That's what my Mom would always say to me. What does your communication policy sound like? I hope it's not like the one demonstrated in our video below. Enjoy the laugh.
Listening is all of it! Once of the main factors that drove me away from the corporate world was the obscene lack of communication. Companies ask for employee feedback and never follow up on that. Managers make requests from the staff... and never follow up. The problem ultimately comes down to lack of listening. Great post!
ReplyDeleteChris. Thanks so much for your comment. I share your sentiments. The policy of culture needs to start at the top. I believe a new evolution in communication is coming, especially with all the transparency with social media which is being passed on to corporate.
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