Transcript Communication in the Workplace

Communication in the
Workplace
Good communication is a key
part of success in the workplace.
Without communication skills we are
unable to let others know what we
think, feel, or want to accomplish.
We are unable to build partnerships,
motivate others, or resolve conflict.
What is a workplace?
Dictionary definition - A place, such as
an office or factory, where people are
employed.
MLVR-OCTOBER 24, 2008
What is our workplace?
 Administration
office
 Accounting office
 Human Resources
Office
 Bookstore
 Maintenance office
 Engineering office
 General Services
 Clinic
 Registrar
 Security Guard
office
 Student Services
 Discipline office
 Campus Ministry
office
 Others
Communication
 The exchange of thoughts, messages,
or information, as by speech, signals,
writing, or behavior.
 The art and technique of using words
effectively to impart information or
ideas.
 Acceptable communication differs
from company to company, but many
aspects are universal.
Tips to help us communicate effectively in the
workplace
Listen - When you listen to others attentively
it makes them feel good. It also makes for
a deeper and more positive connection with
others.
In turn, you form an understanding and
they will listen to you when it’s your turn to
speak.
Poor listening happens often and results
in misunderstandings and
miscommunications.
ACTIVITY
 HOW GOOD A LISTENER ARE YOU?

A well-liked college teacher had just
completed making up the final
examinations and had turned off the lights
in the office. Just then a tall, dark, broad
figure appeared and demanded the
examination. The professor opened the
drawer.
Everything in the drawer was picked up and
the individual ran down the corridor. The
Dean was notified immediately.
Answer the Questions
 1. The thief was tall, dark, and
broad.
 2. The professor turned off the
lights.
 3. A tall figure demanded the
examination.
 4. The examination was picked up by
someone
 5. The examination was picked up by the
professor.
Answer True or False
 6. A tall, dark figure appeared after the
professor
 turned off the lights in the
office.
 7. The man who opened the drawer was the
professor.
 8. The professor ran down the
corridor.
 9. The drawer was never actually
opened.
 10. In this report three persons are referred
to.
ANSWERS
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
T
T
T
T
F
 6. F
 7. T
 8. F
 9. F
 10. T
INTERPRETATION OF SCORES
 8PTS – 10 PTS - ACTIVE LISTENER
 5 PTS- 7 PTS – AVERAGE
 BELOW 5 PTS – NEEDS TO BE MORE
ATTENTIVE.
 1 POINT PER CORRECT ANSWER
WHAT IS YOUR PURPOSE?
 Have Intention - Ask yourself what your
intention is before starting a project, going
to a meeting, or speaking to someone.
 You can also ask others what their
intentions
are in similar situations. Knowing your
intention will help you be more conscious of
what you’re doing or saying.
 which means you’ll be able to be more
effective and skillful.
SPEAK CLEARLY
 Speak Clearly - Take
a deep
breath and remain
positive when
talking to people.
 Try to cut out
the “ums,” “uh-hmms”
and “ahhs;”
these make it difficult
for people
to understand what
you’re trying
to communicate.
 Try to keep your
voice steady and don’t
talk too
quickly or too quietly.
 Be confident in what
you’re saying
and others will feel
your
confidence too.
BE GENUINE
 Be Genuine - Being genuine can include
speaking honestly, expressing excitement
or sadness when you feel like it, and being
friendly.
 There is nothing wrong with
saying, “no, I don’t really agree with that,”
or “you know, I think you’ve changed my
mind!” However, don’t be rude. “I was
just being honest” is not a good excuse
for being harsh.
 Being genuine builds your
confidence.
Be Receptive
 Be open to what
others are saying or offering.
 Often, people restrict the flow of
ideas or communication because
they’re making too many
assumptions or are being too quick
to judge and criticize.
Communication
Flow
Downward communication,
Upward communication,
Lateral communication, and the
Grapevine.
Downward Workplace
Communication: Enabling
 Let's focus first on downward
communication in the workplace, and a
couple of its important characteristics.
Consider these common, downward forms
of workplace communication:
 A manager explains a task to an employee
 A customer gives an order to a supplier
 Shareholders instruct management.
Enabling
 These forms have more than direction in
common. Each one also provides enabling
information in the workplace. When a
manager instructs an employee, she enables
the employee to do his job, and makes it
possible for him to earn a living by doing
something that has value for the employer.
 Another example: senior management finds
out from shareholders, or the board of
directors, how owners want to apply the
money they've invested.
 And, as information moves downward
in the workplace, it grows
increasingly detailed.
Make a Budget report
Make a Budget report for the month to include the following
Make sure the report includes the exact amount and the qty.
 All organizations of more than one
person must use workplace
communication in one way or
another.
 One person must give another
instructions before any activity can
occur.
 At each stage in the downward flow
of communication, people in the
organization receive information to
help them do their jobs. And, at each
stage the information become less
abstract, more specific, and more
detailed.
Upward Communication:
Compliance
 A second major flow of
communication is upward, from
employee to supervisor, supervisor to
department head, department head
to vice president, and so on.
Less detail
 Now, turning to upward communication, we
know that the staff at the registrar or
accounting department will report back to the
section head on their number of enrolees.
 The college account, in turn, will report, in less
detail, to the VPAA about enrollment figures.
 Finally, VPAA will report to the President on
how well the College is doing for SY 20082009.
Lateral communication:
Coordination
 Now, think of the information that
flows back and forth between you and
your peers, whether you're a frontline worker, a manager, or a member
of the board of directors. This is
lateral communication.
Characteristics
 First, no superior/subordinate relationship
exists here; it's strictly a case of two people
with roughly equal amounts of power and
prestige. That makes this form of
communication voluntary and discretionary.
 Yes, the boss may tell us to communicate
with each other, but unless we both want
to do it, we're not going to exchange much
information of value.
 That takes us to the second aspect, the
idea of reciprocating.
 The quality and quantity of information
we provide to our peers generally
reflects what we get back from them. I
may provide good information to you
when we start working together, but I
won't continue to provide it unless you
reciprocate in kind.
Team Communication

Team communication is a special form of lateral
communication, and an essential one.

For teamwork in the workplace, members must not only
communicate with each other, but will often need to
communicate with peers outside their immediate group.

Leaders will need to keep these communication flows in
mind, as well as the upward and downward flows that
connect them directly to their co-employees.
Communication for team building and just plain teamwork
and is many-faceted and requires consistent attention.

The Grapevine: Filling the Gaps
 It’s Tuesday morning, and John down the hall
just emptied out his desk and left the
building. Apparently for good.
 Everyone wants an answer to the same
question: "Why?" If there's no official
answer, and sometimes even if there is one,
the people around him begin speculating
about possible reasons.
 This is a communication channel that no one
owns and no one controls. And while we
might complain about gossips and
busybodies, we all use it sooner or later.
It has a function
 Despite its many faults, though, the
grapevine does have a place, a function, in
all organizations. It fills in gaps left behind
by conventional and official communication.
 As I've said, downward communication
delivers enabling information from superior
to subordinate, while upward
communication involves compliance
information reported back to the superior
by the subordinate. And, lateral
communication takes place between peers,
helping us coordinate with each other.
New tools
 Traditionally, the grapevine revolved
around mouth-to-mouth communication,
with only occasional bits of information
written down or put on paper.
 But, new technologies mean change. The
Internet opened up all kinds of new
opportunities for unofficial communication.
Email, it's true, may be monitored, but
that's easily circumvented. For example,
free, anonymous email accounts offered all
over the Net.
 Then, there are photocopiers and fax machines, both
of which can be used to surreptitiously maintain the
grapevine. And how about cell phones, which provide
an alternate means of mouth-to-mouth
communication, even when you're at the office.
 While technologies enabling the grapevine may
change, the same human traits continue to fuel this
communication channel. They include our natural
curiosity and our desire to influence the way others
think and behave. Don't forget, either, about the need
to get even or to belittle, which fuel many rumors that
course through grapevines.
Speed
 Where downward, upward, and lateral
communication are structured and flow
formally through specific channels, the
grapevine goes through multiple channels
and even multiple versions.
Communication Flow
 downward, or enabling, communication that moves
instructions and other directive information down or
through a hierarchy
 upward, or compliance, communication that provides
feedback to the people who originate downward
communication
 lateral, or coordinating, communication that moves
between peers to maintain or improve operational
efficiency
 the grapevine, which fills in gaps in official
communication and provides answers to unaddressed
questions.
Why is effective communication
essential in the workplace?
 Communication: we are constantly
bombarded by it. It may be in the form
of spoken or written words, pictures,
gestures, symbols and (for an
interesting few) telepathic messages
from a variety of intriguing sources.
But in the workplace, effective
communication is essential to our
progress and well being.
What is your communicating style?
 Good communication skills require a
high level of self-awareness.
Understanding your personal style of
communicating will go a long way
toward helping you to create good
and lasting impressions on others
 By becoming more aware of how
others perceive you, you can adapt
more readily to their styles of
communicating.
Three basic communication styles:
 Aggressive
 Passive
 Assertive
Elements of the Aggressive
Style
 Beliefs
 "Everyone should
be like me."
 "I am never
wrong."
 "I've got rights, but
you don't."
 Communication
Style
 Close minded
 Poor listener
 Has difficulty seeing
the other person's
point of view
 Interrupts
 Monopolizing

Characteristics
 Achieves goals, often
at others' expense
 Domineering, bullying
 Patronizing
 Condescending,
sarcastic

Behavior
 Puts others down
 Doesn't ever think
they are wrong
 Bossy

Moves into people's
space, overpowers
 Jumps on others,
pushes people around
 Know-it-all attitude
 Doesn't show
appreciation
 Verbal Cues
 Nonverbal Cues
 Points, shakes finger
 Frowns
 Squints eyes
critically
 Glares
 Stares
 Rigid posture
 Critical, loud, yelling
tone of voice
 Fast, clipped
speech
 "You must (should,
ought better)."
 "Don't ask why. Just
do it."
 Verbal abuse
 Confrontation
and Problem
Solving
 Must win
arguments,
threatens, attacks
Operates from
win/lose position


Feelings Felt
 Anger
 Hostility
 Frustration
 Impatience
Effects
 Provokes
counteraggression,
alienation from
others, ill health
 Wastes time and
energy
oversupervising
others
 Pays high price in
human relationships
 Fosters resistance,
defiance,
sabotaging, striking
back, forming
alliances, lying,
covering up
 Forces compliance
with resentment
Elements of the Passive
Style
 Beliefs



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"Don't express your true feelings."
"Don't make waves."
"Don't disagree."
"Others have more rights than I do."
 Communication Style



-
Indirect
Always agrees
Doesn't speak up
Hesitant
Characteristics
 Apologetic, self-conscious
 Trusts others, but not self
 Doesn't express own wants and feelings
 Allows others to make decisions for self
 Doesn't get what he or she wants
 Behaviors

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Sighs a lot
Tries to sit on both sides of the fence to avoid conflict
Clams up when feeling treated unfairly
Asks permission unnecessarily
Complains instead of taking action
Lets others make choices
Has difficulty implementing plans
Self-effacing
 Nonverbal Cues
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Fidgets
Nods head often; comes across as pleading
Lack of facial animation
Smiles and nods in agreement
Downcast eyes
Slumped posture
Low volume, meek
Up talk
Fast, when anxious; slow, hesitant, when
doubtful
 Verbal Cues



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"You should do it."
"You have more experience than I do."
"I can't......"
"This is probably wrong, but..."
"I'll try..."
Monotone, low energy
 Confrontation and Problem Solving
 Avoids, ignores, leaves, postpones
 Withdraws, is sullen and silent
 Agrees externally, while disagreeing
internally
 Expends energy to avoid conflicts that are
anxiety provoking
 Spends too much time asking for advice,
supervision
 Agrees too often
Feelings Felt
 Powerlessness
 Wonders why doesn't receive credit for good work
 Chalks lack of recognition to others' inabilities

Effects
 Gives up being him or herself
 Builds dependency relationships
 Doesn't know where he or she stands
 Slowly loses self esteemPromotes others' causes
 Is not well-liked

Elements of the Assertive Style
Beliefs
 Believes self and others are valuable
 Knowing that assertiveness doesn't mean you always
win, but that you handled the situation as effectively
as possible
 "I have rights and so do others."
 Communication Style
 Effective, active listener
 States limits, expectations
 States observations, no labels or judgments
 Expresses self directly, honestly, and as soon as
possible about feelings and wants
 Checks on others feelings

 Characteristics
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Non-judgmental
Observes behavior rather than labeling it
Trusts self and others
Confident
Self-aware
Open, flexible, versatile
Playful, sense of humor
Decisive
 Proactive, initiating
 Behavior
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Operates from choice
Knows what it is needed and develops a plan to
get it
Action-oriented
Firm
Realistic in her expectations
Fair, just
Consistent
Takes appropriate action toward getting what
she wants without denying rights of others
 Nonverbal Cues

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Open, natural gestures
Attentive, interested facial expression
Direct eye contact
Confident or relaxed posture
Vocal volume appropriate, expressive
Varied rate of speech
 Verbal Cues
 "I choose to..."
 "What are my options?"
 "What alternatives do we have?"
 Confrontation and Problem Solving
 Negotiates, bargains, trades off,
compromises
 Confronts problems at the time they
happen
 Doesn't let negative feelings build up
 Feelings Felt
 Enthusiasm
 Well being
 Even tempered
 Effects
 Increased self-esteem and selfconfidence
 Increased self-esteem of others
 Feels motivated and understood
 Others know where they stand
 Clearly, the assertive style is the one to
strive for. Keep in mind that very few
people are all one or another style. In fact,
the aggressive style is essential at certain
times such as:
 when a decision has to be made quickly;
 during emergencies;
 when you know you're right and that fact is
crucial;
 stimulating creativity by designing
competitions destined for use in training or
to increase productivity
 Passiveness also has its critical applications:
 when an issue is minor;
 when the problems caused by the conflict are greater
than the conflict itself;
 when emotions are running high and it makes sense
to take a break in order to calm down and regain
perspective;
 when your power is much lower than the other
party's;
 when the other's position is impossible to change for
all practical purposes (i.e., government policies, etc.).
Remaining aware of your own
communication style and finetuning it as time goes by gives
you the best chance of success in
business and life.