The business leader was certain the problem was poor employees who didn’t want to adhere to company procedures. After spending weeks observing how communication worked in the company, the actual issue was clear.
Communications flowed through the business like broken telephone. Orders from management would be misunderstood by team leaders, who would then pass on incorrect details to front-line staff.
No one was purposely causing trouble. The whole team was trying, but the messaging processes were completely broken.
The breakthrough came when we completely changed the complete system. Instead of talking at people, we started doing proper discussions. Team members told us about scary incidents they’d been through. Managers really heard and posed additional queries.
The change was instant. Workplace accidents dropped by a massive amount within a quarter.
I learned a vital lesson – proper education isn’t about polished delivery. It’s about authentic dialogue.
Proper listening is likely the crucial thing you can teach in staff development. But most people think hearing means nodding and providing supportive sounds.
That’s complete rubbish. Real listening means not talking and genuinely grasping what they are telling you. It means making enquiries that prove you’ve understood.
What I’ve found – nearly all supervisors are awful at hearing. They’re busy preparing their response before the other person finishes talking.
I demonstrated this with a mobile service in Melbourne. In their staff sessions, I monitored how many instances team leaders interrupted their employees. The typical was every 45 seconds.
It’s not surprising their employee satisfaction scores were terrible. Staff felt unheard and undervalued. Dialogue had turned into a lecture series where management spoke and workers seemed to listen.
Digital messaging is an additional problem area in most workplaces. People fire off digital notes like they’re messaging friends to their colleagues, then are surprised when problems occur.
Message tone is especially difficult because you miss voice inflection. What looks direct to you might come across as aggressive to another person.
I’ve seen numerous office disputes escalate over badly worded emails that could have been sorted out with a quick conversation.
The most extreme example I encountered was at a government department in the ACT. An email about financial reductions was written so poorly that 50% of employees thought they were losing their jobs.
Mayhem erupted through the building. People started polishing their resumes and reaching out to job agencies. It took 72 hours and several explanation sessions to resolve the confusion.
All because an individual failed to write a simple communication. The joke? This was in the communications department.
Meeting communication is where countless organisations lose huge quantities of resources and energy. Poor sessions are the norm, and most are awful because no one understands how to handle them well.
Good meetings need clear purposes, structured plans, and someone who can keep discussions on track.
Multicultural challenges play a huge role in office interaction. Australia’s multicultural staff means you’re dealing with people from dozens of diverse communities.
What’s considered straightforward communication in local community might be perceived as aggressive in other communities. I’ve seen countless conflicts arise from these multicultural variations.
Education needs to cover these issues openly and realistically. Employees must have useful techniques to manage diverse interaction well.
Good development programs acknowledges that communication is a capability that develops with use. You can’t learn it from a book. It needs constant use and guidance.
Organisations that commit resources in proper communication training see real improvements in performance, worker engagement, and client relations.
The bottom line is this: interaction isn’t brain surgery, but it certainly needs real commitment and good education to work well.
Commitment to progressive staff education constitutes an important benefit that permits businesses to succeed in continuously transforming business environments.
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