What do you do to encourage collaboration? Emotional intelligence self-assessment: Ways to communicate with your team Communication At its best Potential downsides Consider Open conversation Key to team engagement Personal and relevant Helps build relationships Takes time and commitment Success depends on genuine buy-in from manger / leader All that’s needed might be a cheery ‘hello, how are you?’ It doesn’t need to be in-depth every time. Team meeting Personal and relevant. Opportunity for discussion and ideas. Can be lively and interactive. Help build understanding. Success depends on manager/leader skills. Time commitment for all. Beware of content overload. Use a text message to alert remote workers to the voicemail. Training. Agenda and structure. Keep them regular. Email Can reach mass audience fast. Cheap and simple. Consistent and controlled. Reaches people directly. Good for information, awareness and instruction. Not everyone may have access. Impersonal. Open to interpretation. Can lead to information overload. Can’t tell if message has been read. Doesn’t prioritise. No discussion. Controlling access to mass distribution lists. Use the subject box – make it clear if urgent, for action, etc. Keep it short and simple. Assume people will only read the first paragraph. Use bullets and headings. Intranet Immediate and consistent. Visually engaging. Good information store. Can be good for online discussion. Web stats can show page views and other things. Not everyone may have access, especially away from the office. Relies on people seeking out info and using it. People may not have time to read it. Include hooks to draw people in – use images and interesting stories. Focus on people rather than systems.
Do Don’t Stand or sit up straight. Maximizing the physical space makes a difference in how your audience reacts to you. Pay attention to the room you’re holding the briefing in Smile—and mean it. When we smile sincerely, the warmth becomes self-reinforcing Keep it ‘conversational’ Make sure everyone can hear you Vary your pitch and speed Be positive and enthusiastic, without over-doing it Keep an eye on your audience to check they're still with you Make it relevant to people's experience and situation Explain new or unfamiliar terms when you first use them Check they understand what you're saying: pause for questions regularly – don’t wait till the end Use 'active listening' skills to make sure people's views and concerns are not missed Be yourself Talk over team members Arrive at solutions without consultation Voice disappointment if team members don’t contribute more ‘Park’ contributions and not come back to them Allocate actions to individuals without their consent Be too formal or too informal Use jargon/buzzwords that people might not understand Distract attention from your talk by e.g. jingling coins/keys in your pocket, fiddling with a pen or jewellery Download a cascade without interpreting, extracting or ‘translating’ for the team Ignore people's feelings or issues Let yourself get side-tracked or bogged down in unnecessary arguments Let one person dominate the proceedings Conclude the meeting too soon without notes or action points Blame others (especially seniors and ‘the Department’) Fail to read the mood in the room