Communicating at work

​Dear friends,

​All of us, at times, are misunderstood by another person or we misunderstand the other person’s message. We use words or phrases that are misinterpreted. Sometimes we create mistrust by what we say, the words we use, or the way we say it.

In our working environment, we need each other in order to achieve our goals and objectives. None of these goals can be achieved without communication. Communication is the basis thread that ties us together. Through communication we make known our needs, our ideas and our feelings. It is arguably one of the most important business skills, no matter what your industry. Yet so many of us haven't been trained in how to communicate with co-workers and clients.

Modern societies and people differ widely in terms of nationality, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, age, education, social class or level of (dis)ability – in other words, in terms of their demographic profile or social background. The countries of world regions (such as Europe) are becoming integrated, their markets and workforces diverse and their organisations international.

At work, therefore, individuals are now likely to interact with a highly diverse range of people as colleagues, subordinates, managers, clients, patients, customers, students, professional advisers and other service providers, sales representatives and other interface workers.

In order to match the dynamic, complex nature of the challenge of communication at work, an equally dynamic and flexible process is needed to address them in the real world of work. The new definition of “successful communication” at work starts with the ability to recognize the patterns of communication and interaction where decisions get made, relationships are built, organizational culture is solidified, and the trajectory for ultimate business outcomes are set into motion.

It is definitely more difficult when we deal with transcultural communication, which typically entails interaction in which one or more of the communicators use a second or third language. Successful transcultural communication requires not only a shared language but also strong intercultural awareness and skills. These include verbal skills such as how and when to use speech and silence as well as non-verbal skills knowing how and when gaze, gesture and body posture may differ across cultures.

​In order to work efficiently, bosses (for example) must be able to communicate to their workers what is needed. If they are not clear about what their employees need to do, there will be mistakes that make the company lose time and money.

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When developing and maintaining a corporate culture, it is vital to keep communication as open and honest as possible. The higher the level of honesty the higher the likelihood to build a strong relationship built on trust. This strongly accounts for the interactions between managers and employees but also prominently between co-workers themselves.

The message to be communicated is usually carried by the three “V elements” – verbal, vocal, and visual. The words we use make up the verbal element. The vocal element includes the tone and intensity of our voice and other vocal qualities. It might surprise you to learn that the most powerful element of communication is the visual. Dynamic visual, nonverbal communication grabs and holds onto the listener’s attention. Effective communication begins with getting the listener’s attention through strong visual, nonverbal elements and then uses powerful vocal and verbal elements to transmit the message. 

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Photo credit: wehavepotential.com

The listener “receives” the message through a series of filters: his past experiences, his perception of the speaker, his emotional involvement with the message, his understanding of the verbal content, his level of attention, etc. In a sense, he translates the message into his own words, creating his own version of what he thinks the speaker was saying.
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Listening is what we do most of when communicating at work, in fact this accounts for 45% of our communication.

Emerging and established leaders must develop a combination of insight, skill, and ability that allows them to examine what they are making, spot the critical moments where something different/better could be made, understand how to create the flexible conditions for change, follow a sequence of steps to re-make unwanted patterns of communication and interaction, and learn to avoid everyday pitfalls that can undermine these patterns and the benefits they bring. 

I hope you will remember the three Vs when communicating. They are important elements especially in transcultural communication. Communication is definitely relevant for any environment and above all for the business world.

Enjoy communicating!

Teacher Barbara

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