I work hard at being clear, understood and a skilled communicator.
This is true of my personal as well as my professional life. I am consistently rated as outstanding at communications during performance reviews and with my consulting clients. Writing clearly is something I work hard at and strive to improve every day. I am a patient listener and have learned the power of keeping my mouth shut until I have something important to say. #HowILead
As a student of communications, I continue to be intrigued by how often I don’t understand emails I receive or how unclear meetings and projects become at work. In an effort to be a helpful marketer, I thought I’d share some tactics that have guided my approach to better communications at the workplace.
[Tweet “The key to great workplace communications is intention. Stop. Think. Act. “]
Eight Steps To Better Communications At The Workplace
- BE THE NOTE TAKER: Whenever I am in a meeting, I always offer to summarize the discussion. I send out meeting notes within hours not days. I provide as balanced an overview of what was discussed and what was decided. I always assume that those who weren’t at the meeting need some context. I work hard at making the note easy to read put in bold or underlining major points. I like to put key issues in bullet points with enough space between the lines so it is easy to read. I also define the next steps so we all have a record of what we will do, and I put my email into the meeting request for follow-up meeting. I always ask if I missed something important so that the note is as accurate a record as possible.
- SHARE DISCUSSIONS: Like you, I am on a lot of conference calls. I know that someone else needs a quick recap of that conversation. So, I immediately summarize and send out notes to the person I just spoke with and to those who need to be informed. I would be better informed if my colleagues did the same thing.
- THINK RACI: I am a big believer in the idea of an RACI chart for projects. R is for responsible, A is for accountable, C is for a consultant and I is for informed. Who is ultimately going to be held accountable for the project? Who will be the responsible person who will manage the activity for that accountable person? Who needs to be a consultant for their viewpoint or perspective? Who needs to be informed about a decision? When I think about RACI, my communications efforts are more precise.
- PROVIDE CONTEXT: Don’t assume that others are familiar with something you are working on and sharing in a discussion. Start an email or meeting by reminding people of the purpose of the email/meeting and how it fits into the bigger picture. For example:
This email provides an update to our conversation held on June 9 about insurance issues regarding our promotion. I followed up with our agent and want to report back to the team.
This helps level the discussion, so everyone is focused on why we are talking/meeting. Context is often missing from conversations when someone just starts providing solutions without “setting the table”.
- BE CLEAR WHO NEEDS TO RESPOND OR ACT: There is nothing worse than receiving an email where it is unclear who needs to do what? If an email isn’t addressed to me, I assume I am just being informed. If an email has me in the to: line, I respond and provide my opinion or comments. Before you send the note, think. Call out what action you need from the note and from whom.
- IF IT’S TIME SENSITIVE, TELL ME: I don’t abuse it but if I need to get someone’s IMMEDIATE attention, I will put TIME SENSITIVE in the subject line. It is a simple trick to standing out in the crowd of emails since most of us glance at emails first on a smartphone. Don’t burrow the key question deep into the email either. Put it first on the top so that someone will read that point first. For example:
Jeff, I need a decision by 4:30 PM EST is we are going to proceed with the new designs?
If that question is buried deep in the crevices of my email canyons, I may not see it in time.
- HERE IS WHAT I HEARD: This is a powerful technique that is often overlooked. At the end of a conversation or meeting, the person responsible for the work being discussed should give a quick, high-level summary.
I heard that we are six-weeks behind on this project but expect to make up the time in the next 10 days. Jeff is going to work with our agency to delete two of the specifications on the new website so that we can concentrate on the more important deliverable. In two weeks, we will meet to review our status, and Jeff will set up that meeting for us.
- SHUT UP AND LISTEN: We know what we think. Often we are so busy getting ready to tell everyone our view that we don’t listen to the conversation. A simple technique for improving communication at work is to be quiet and listen to others. I know. It so ridiculously simple, but it is effective. Try it. Sit through a meeting and only listen to others until toward the end when you can summarize what you learned.
In Conclusion: There are many more techniques to improve communications at work. The eight ideas presented have worked for me over thirty years and I continue to work hard to improve.
Now, I’ll be quiet and listen so I can hear your ideas. What can you add to this list?
Need help learning how to be a more effective communicator? Let’s talk how I can coach you to improve your skills.
