Why Employers Should Insist that Managers Continuously Upgrade their Communication Skills
By Priscilla Kohl | HRTools.com Business Writer
In the movie, The Horse Whisperer, Robert Redford played the title role of a Montana cowboy by the name of Tom Booker. He was known for his special ability to understand and communicate with traumatized horses. In one scene, Booker described his vocational calling during dialogue with Annie MacLean, the mother seeking help for Pilgrim, her daughter’s horse—after both had suffered severe trauma resulting from a tragic riding accident:
Annie: “I’ve heard that you help people with horse problems.”
Tom: “Truth is, I help horses with people problems.”
By the end of the film, Booker had rehabilitated Pilgrim and helped heal the emotionally distraught daughter. Ah, if all employer “people problems” could end so well—with some gentle understanding and soft whispers.
Managers get their jobs done with other people, according to a Performance Specialist.
Meanwhile, employers should recognize that managers should continuously be upgrading their skills through various training programs; most importantly communication and interpersonal skills training. This is true especially today, as managers are expected to expertly influence and lead a rapidly growing, diverse workforce.
“Untrained managers often forget that getting the job done involves not just attending to the task (work) but also to the people (relationships),” says David Grossman, a performance specialist employed by a large Houston-based corporation, who lives in Minneapolis.
“Training can enhance knowledge and introduce new or enhanced skills, assuming there is conscious habit change by the manager after the training. Conversations should occur before the training to ensure that the participant and his/her manager are in agreement about outcomes they’re looking for by participating,” continued Grossman.
There is no such thing as a one-size-fits-all communications model, especially when applied to the manager-employee relationship. Today’s business managers can ill afford to play ‘business solitaire’ or think that they can communicate effectively in a never-changing vacuum.
Regardless of one’s intelligence or business acumen, no one is born knowing the countless ways that a diverse group of employees take in and process information—i.e., filtering through past experiences, various backgrounds, personal beliefs, etc. Sensory factors also come into play, such as touch, sight, hearing, smell, and taste, which can impact our interpersonal communications.
Here is an example of how individual differences can unintentionally trip up people in the workplace and how training can help remedy the situation:
Communication experts tell us that some individuals are turned off, or even offended, by someone who touches them while talking. Not everyone realizes this, and it often comes as a surprise. When managers participate in communication skills training, there are opportunities for learning about those individual differences that, in turn, affect how people relate to one another. So communication training sheds light on individual characteristics that can trip up even the most natural-born leader.
Why a contact center director believes that communications training is essential.
Linda Jones, a contact center director in Houston with over 15 years’ experience and responsibilities that include communicating with over 50 employees, explains, “I don’t subscribe to the concept of ‘managing people’, as I feel people should not/cannot be managed; they can be led. In considering the word ‘leader,’ instead of ‘manager,’ [communications] training is important. I feel that most leaders have innate leadership abilities as a basis, but training is critical to their success.”
Jones further explained that when managers upgrade their communication skills, they can more effectively:
- understand what motivates team members;
- set performance expectations; and
- provide feedback to employees about what they’re doing well and what they need to do in order to improve.
No time? It is critically important that managers make time to upgrade their communication skills in order to successfully lead a team. It’s in everyone’s best interests.
Here are a few good reasons. Well-trained managers know better how to influence, inspire, guide and serve their employees. And better-served employees are much more apt to be engaged and productive. Managers will also grown in confidence and leadership abilities as they upgrade their communication skills, which coincidentally ends up saving valuable time.
As Jones said, “My personal experience in helping to develop new leaders is being available for them to ‘bounce thoughts and ideas’ off me before taking action. Over time this consideration, although always available, is not utilized as frequently, because they build up confidence in their decision-making and approaches to working with their respective team members. Since communication is a two-way street of listening and responding/sharing, good leaders should have this skill well-honed.”
What about you? Do you, or your managers, need to upgrade communication skills? Here is a checklist that may help managers assess where they are versus where they might want to be:
- Are you more task-oriented than people oriented? It’s a balancing act. Management is concerned with getting the job done, but it is also accomplished by getting it done with and through others. While productivity is important, most people tend to resent someone who manages using extreme power/control methods or an autocratic style. These type managers can often end up experiencing high absenteeism and turnover rates: not good for productivity. A well-trained manager, on the other hand, learns how to become more flexible and adept at increasing engagement among employees.
- How are your listening skills? In other words, can you ask a question and wait for the answer? Or can you ask a question and listen to the answer without immediately jumping to your next response? Can you ask open-ended and direct questions, such as “Explain to me what ideas you have for improving that process.” Do you encourage your employees to engage in spirited debates or brainstorming sessions without interrupting or responding in intolerant ways? Does your team show signs that they can trust you with their thoughts and feedback? Effective managers are trusted to use discretion, when necessary, and they are adept at leading conversations in order to reach certain goals.
- Are you a perfectionist? This characteristic can be a double-edged sword. While holding to high standards of quality is a desirable trait and can lead to exceptional performance, overly perfectionist behavior has its down side. Achieving perfection at the expense of others, especially by a manager, can result in major stresses that can undo major strides, such as those caused by misunderstandings and unreasonable expectations. A manager should keep their eyes on the bigger picture (see number one above).
- Do you hoard or fail to share information? This trait is poor form even when subject matter experts engage in this type of behavior. A manager who wants to develop successful and healthy relationship and lead successful teams cannot keep everything close to the vest and still be held up as an effective communicator or leader. Today’s workplace calls for cooperation and collaboration.
- Are you negative, self absorbed, arrogant and full of gloom and doom? Certainly no manager will answer “yes” to this question; however if direct reports are avoiding a manager, or otherwise exhibiting signs of stress and disengagement, it may be time to intervene. Managers behaving this way, especially if it’s out of character, may need either encouragement or a warning, possibly both if it’s extreme. Sometimes if managers are made aware of how their negativity or suppression is affecting morale and productivity, while they may not appreciate the reflection, it may be enough to rattle them back to making some positive changes.
Most organizational development professionals agree that effective communication skills are a strong factor in achieving leadership success. Some people call these good interpersonal skills and most people see them as desirable attributes, but again, not everyone is born knowing these things.
As final notes: Effective communication is not the sole responsibility of the manager. As with any healthy relationship, the manager-employee relationship is a reciprocal one. Employees too should be expected to improve their communication skills through training. However, managers should be expected to hold themselves to a higher standard and to set the example.
If all else fails, as Grossman cautions, “Not everyone should be managing people. They know it, their employees know it…yet it takes a brave manager to step forward and acknowledge it.”
<p>Most organizational development professionals agree that effective communication skills are a strong factor in achieving leadership success.</p>
Why Employers Should Insist that Managers Continuously Upgrade their Communication Skills
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