Effective Communication

Recently the Thought Leadership League conducted a survey regarding culture in the workplace. Executives where asked what factors lead to a good culture. When asked to pick the most important factors that contribute to a great culture, 86% of all participants selected:

• Clear and Effective Communication

• Executive Team Commitment

• Humility, Empathy, and Integrity of Leaders

Let’s examine the first factor, clear and effective communication.

Communication in the workplace involves many different players. With so many people involved, all with different personalities and varying levels of understanding, communication can be difficult and misunderstandings can arise.

Workplaces can be hectic places where messages are delivered to many people using different tools, all of which have some weakness. This is prime territory for miscommunication.

In addition to the differing tools of communication there is also a difference in the style of communication that is effective for different levels of job descriptions. Language and vocabulary that is used and recognized on the more senior level of a firm may not be effective and understood by entry level employees.

Different age groups within a company can also present a challenge. Baby boomers tend to like to read long detailed explanations while a millennial or Gen X may be content with bullet points and power point presentations.

• Clear and effective communication can be achieved by paying careful attention to :

• Tone

• Body language

• Vocabulary

• Emotional intelligence

• Listening skills

• Empathy

All American Leaders recognizes that these are just a few of the things that if done appropriately can lead to clear effective communication. We understand that we are most likely missing a few more important ones that apply to every culture. We recognize that every organization has a unique culture that may require targeting another communication factor not on this list.

In order to practice what we preach, we are making an effort to conduct regional Forums that gather together executives and leaders to further examine clear and effective communication as well as other factors that lead to Elite Culture.