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Communication and the workplace team |
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Occupational Health Consultant Bev Cornish provides advice for improving communication skills within the workplace
NO MATTER WHAT THE PROFESSION – including the Fire and Rescue Service – all workers need to be able to communicate effectively in the workplace. Many professionals communicate in a way that they feel is efficient and effective. In reality, however, most do not communicate well. A misunderstood instruction, or misunderstood information, confirms the communication between both parties was not effective. In these cases, the communication was not what the author of Teams and Team Working Phil Baguley calls ‘full’ communication – that is to say the communication was not ‘complete’ between the individuals involved. It is so easy to assume we know what communication is. As professionals that have been in careers for years, we have developed our own style of communicating. Some of us will have attended promotion education that has covered communication, so we know most of what there is to know. It is worth reflecting here on how much of what was taught on the course we attended do we put into practice.
The Health and Safety Executive Stress Management Standards 2004 demonstrate that in fact, there is a strong business case for regularly reviewing communication techniques within workplace teams. Regularly reviewing components of workplace team communication could contribute to improved performance, motivation and trust within the workplace teams. Safety critical professions rely on the ability to communicate rapidly and effectively, across multi disciplinary teams, in precarious and dangerous rescue situations. Incident exercises and practices enable these professionals to train and enhance their skills in the relatively protected ‘controlled’ scenarios. Debriefs from these training exercises always bring up team communication issues. Adjustments are made to communications to ensure when the situation occurs ‘for real’ the team communication is effective. Assisting all employees to master full communication techniques and regularly reviewing communication can contribute to increased productivity. In addition, this type of training can reduce absenteeism for stress related issues. Increased retention of suitable employees can occur when good systems of communication are in place. Equally, an organisation that communicates well can attract appropriate candidates for recruitment because the workplace reputation is enhanced. The purpose of this article is to provide a thumbnail sketch of some of the current thinking on how to work towards effective communication within a workplace team. To achieve this, it reviews the anatomy and complexities of communication; components and adjustments cited from recent literature that can contribute to effective team communication.
The Anatomy of Communication
Communication is a complicated and complex process. Outcomes are directly linked to human thoughts, perceptions and assumptions that are played out during the communication exchange. Communication consists of three main components: Sensory information; thoughts; feelings.
Sensory information. This is information obtained through senses; information that is:
Seen – non verbal ( body language); heard – verbal and actions, tone of voice. Information obtained in this way should be passed on, making sure that information is factual data in a ‘who, what, where, when, and how’ format.
Thoughts:
Beliefs and thoughts that an individual develops when they have processed the sensory details; information that results would be passed on once the individual has had a chance to think logically, analytically and rationally to arrive at a conclusion.
Feelings:
Feelings are the emotional response to the sensory details obtained, and the individual’s reaction to them. These feelings may be rational or irrational based on the original sensory data. Individuals should try to disclose emotions directly with out using the word ‘feel’. Instead be direct – ‘I am frustrated’, ‘I am anxious’, ‘I am confident’. Recognising our feelings and emotions is a major part of communication. Managing these feelings and emotions helps us ‘manage’ ourselves, reducing distraction and miscommunication. It is worth considering the next time you begin a communication of any kind to try to remember the process that the brain completes to assist us to communicate (listed above). Use this knowledge and awareness to enhance the quality of your communication.
The Importance and Necessity of Communication
Communication is vital in workplace teams. It could be argued that without communication there is no team. Communication is essential to the success of an organisation. Communication can motivate, influence, persuade and encourage the team to achieve the team goals. A team working towards the same goal can be more efficient and effective in that: all team members have knowledge; information is shared within the team; sense of belonging, trust, collaboration, and dedication is generated; dedicated members of a team will contribute more and feel valued within the team.
Listening
Team communication is affected when members of the team are unable to distinguish the difference between various communication channels we use to speak such as: facts – something that has actually happened (without any emotional overlay); opinions – beliefs based on what seems true to the individual in their own mind. (Dislikes, biases, prejudices etc); an individual’s feelings – subjective reaction, sometimes in the absence of rational belief; personal values – personal ideals that influence our personal behaviour. As our brains are able to process information with capacity to spare, when we listen to someone, not only do we listen, we begin to prepare for a reply and begin to think about the topic in detail. All this activity can reduce our ability to listen effectively. Active listening is a skill that requires practice. Phil Baguley in his publication Teams and Team Working cites listening as a ’core competence’ in the process of communication’ observing that without communication it would be difficult to have any sort of relationship with those around us. Training in human communication methods is as essential to business as information technology training. Communication skills, active listening skills should be practised and perfected to avoid miscommunication. Active listening involves listening carefully while maintaining eye contact; acknowledging the speaker and repeating key points within that communication.
The listener acknowledges the emotional and psychological impact of the communication, without interruption or comment on what he is hearing until the speaker has completed his point. Finally the speaker allows the listener to confirm the communication, recounting the communicated information back to the speaker. Feedback is then delivered and discussed.
Good listening techniques: Focus on the person you are listening to and stop everything else you are doing; turn off your mobile telephone; try to face the person you are speaking to; listen carefully to the person and the words they are saying and apprehend the emotion attached to the words; be aware of your own prejudices and preconceptions; confirm the messages, paraphrase key points; if it is appropriate, state your own views. Do not interrupt. Repeat the ‘reflect and check’ process again to ensure that you have listened and understood a point. Reflect the point back verbally to the person you are listening to. This process gives both parties the opportunity to revisit and confirm the salient points of the communication.
To promote the use of open communication, each workplace team member needs to: Understand and reflect on all angles and points of view on any given topic or issue; ensure that their own points are heard and comprehended; avoid, where possible, misunderstanding; use terminology and examples that your target audience understands; proactively seek communication with other team members. Work to maintain trust and confidence; be aware of body language; use open feedback methods. In any attempt at communication, effective feedback is essential. As you communicate there will usually be some feedback from the individual, in that they can hear you, whether they have understood the communication and how they feel about the message. This only amounts to partial feedback, though. Partial communication is notable for the potential for misunderstandings and errors. Partial feedback – a smile or another small acknowledgment – can also occur during communication and it too results in misunderstandings and errors. Partial feedback can be misinterpreted; assumptions can skew the intended outcome of the communication. Surprisingly we often revert to this partial communication method in the workplace. ‘Full’ communication is a more effective method of communication. Full communication is usually used as a communication method with people that trust and respect each other. This type of communication is open, focused and effective. Feelings, beliefs, opinions are fully shared. In addition, ‘full’ feedback converts communication into a ‘living process’ rather than a lifeless activity. Feedback can vary in quality and depth. It can be negative and positive. Negative feedback can be delivered far more effectively in a structured full communication/full feedback style. Full communication will instigate the most effective and fullest feedback of all. It occurs when both the sender and receiver interact to a point where the roles overlap and alternate as the project proceeds. Each party is able to contribute ideas and feelings. Full communication (Words, gestures, body posture, facial expression) = Two way process (both parties interacting) Full communication can not only enhance team communication; team interaction can also improve producing impressive results.
Communication and the Workplace Team
The following section summarizes the components and adjustments that assist in the process of promoting effective communication in workplace teams. A good workplace team never stops communicating. The quality of that communication can be enhanced if: full communication is the favoured method of team communication; goals are logical, concise, relevant, and clearly defined; trust is promoted using open communication and feedback; discussion and debate between all team members is encouraged as an integral part of the decisionmaking process; team share responsibility for instigating communication within and outside the team; when delivering details to the team it is ensured that all information is verified and reliable.
Equally there are individual team member responsibilities for promoting effective workplace team communication. Team members’ communication responsibilities include: Being open minded, taking responsibility for what is said. Using terminology that is understood by the team. Being aware of body language; using active listening in all communication. Taking responsibility for comprehension of what was heard; giving constructive, genuine, supportive feedback. Team members should be able to challenge and discuss feedback in a supported team environment; ensuring all team members are able to give their own ideas; ensure trust, support and collaboration encouraged in the team. The list above is not exhaustive. However it includes the main components required to develop cohesive effective workplace team communication.
Key Points Summary
• Communication is a complicated and complex process. Outcomes are directly linked to human thoughts, perceptions and assumptions that are played out during the communication exchange.
• Next time you begin a communication of any kind remember the process the brain completes to assist us to communicate. (Listed above). Use this knowledge to enhance the quality of your communication
• Communication is vital in workplace teams. It can be argued that without communication there is no team.
• Training in human communication methods is as essential to the business as information technology training. Communication skills, active listening skills should be practised and perfected to avoid miscommunication.
• Repeat the ‘reflect and check’ process to ensure that you have listened and understood a point. Reflect the point back verbally to the person you are listening to.
This process gives both parties the opportunity to revisit and confirm the salient points of the communication.
• Feedback converts your communication into a living process rather than a lifeless activity. Feedback can vary in quality and depth, negative or positive. Feedback is easier to deliver if it is in the structure of the ‘full’ communication method.
• Full communication occurs when both the sender and receiver interact to a point where the roles overlap and alternate as the project proceeds. Each party is able to contribute ideas and feelings.
• Effective workplace team communication is not just important, it is imperative.
References:
• Baguley Phil - Teams and Team Working - Teach Yourself series • Dr Rob Yeung - Coaching People – Develop and Motivate Your Team to Achieve Results
About the Author
Bev Cornish RGNOHNC has worked in nursing for 30 years with 20 of those in occupational health. In 2002 she commenced private OH consultancy specialising in complex case management. Throughout her career she has had a keen interest in organisational psychology and psychiatry as it relates to occupational health practice. She has a particular interest in performance coaching; cognitive behavioural therapy and personal development techniques as an adjunct to medical models of managing long term disability cases.
She has become interested in the occupational issues related to fire and rescue services since volunteering as an extrication challenge medical assessor .She is especially interested in the team communication dynamic related to extrication training. |
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