Workplace communication needs to be adapted to various office situations, and it occurs on several levels. It goes without saying that communication with your boss, manager or a colleague with whom you spend most of the time at work is going to be different. Adjusting the way you communicate is one of the assertive skills that can help you express your goals better, easily find solutions and potentially reduce anxiety about expressing your own aspirations at the workplace. Effective communication is a way to successfully manage planning, organizing, leading, and coordinating a team.
According to a Harvard Business Review survey, two-thirds of managers feel uncomfortable when they need to talk to employees. In addition to balancing out verbal and nonverbal communication, it is important to find the right words, but at the same time show a firm hand in dealing with employees and their task performance.
People know that the mistakes are their faults and that even if they get negative feedback, they will not feel offended if the feedback is constructive. A survey including 3,875 people published in the Harvard Business Review says that 74% of people who have received negative feedback about their work, expected it and were not surprised at all. If people are aware that the quality of their work is declining at some point, it is only important that you communicate with each other to understand why a situation like this happened and focus on finding the appropriate strategies to avoid it in the future.
Why is it important to have effective communication in the workplace? Above all, to avoid unwanted misunderstandings, give value to every task employees perform, build a more productive corporate culture, and create a sense of self-criticism and autonomy among employees. Workplace communication can obviously be a real change of pace. You can check out the list below to see whether you’ve already come across some of them without even being aware of it.
1. Formal and informal communication
Formal communication is mainly based on discussing business or strategic goals and is closely related to the niche the company is dealing with. With formal communication, there are established formal channels defined by management which are subject to change and can be controlled. Informal communication usually involves discussing topics that have nothing to do with work, such as talking about some life situations during a lunch break.
Informal communication cannot be controlled or established, it comes naturally and the productivity in the organization depends on it. If the formal and informal communication are intertwined, it can jeopardize the quality of the conversation, transform it into a completely new format, and the main goal of the communication can be neglected. This primarily refers to inserting inappropriate jokes into the conversation, spreading gossip, or changing the subject to talk about experiences from one’s own life.
2. Internal and external communication
Internal communication includes any type of communication that takes place at work or within the company. It can be talking to employees, colleagues, co-workers, but internal communication also refers to communication through other media, such as writing an email, talking on the phone, or sending a fax.
External communication involves communication between a company member and an outside associate. You have externally communicated if you called the customer by phone, sent an email to the customer or called the supplier to check the order, This type of communication is usually professional, formal and aims to provide certain information to those who communicate.
Internal communication can be both formal and informal, depending on what its goal is and what results you want to achieve. For example, when talking to a manager about the strategy for the next period, it is clear that you will use corporate vocabulary with concise and clear terminology, while talking with a colleague will include different word choice and the tone of the conversation will be more relaxed.
3. Active and passive communication
Active communication transforms the conversation into a constructive dialogue, or in other words, it involves questions, suggestions, or even objections that employees make. This type of communication is clear, focused on the results that should emerge from the interview, and contributes to freeing employees from the fear of expressing their own desires. Passive communication includes giving orders and additional instructions or explanations assigned to employees. Although a modern workplace requires this type of communication, sometimes it can be too passive, because it does not involve an active opinion exchange, but rather a passive transmission of information.
Effectively implementing both types of communication refers to providing accurate information that will help members perform their tasks more efficiently and with more ease. It is important to communicate comprehensively, because in this way you set clear goals, give valuable feedback and resolve employees’ doubts about their tasks.
4. Horizontal, vertical and diagonal communication
Horizontal communication is the everyday exchange of messages between people who are at the same level in the company, and these are usually employees with one or more superiors. Also, this type of communication can take place between two CEOs or between CEOs and potential associates because they are at the same hierarchical level. Diagonal (cross-sector communication) is a hybrid form of horizontal and vertical communication and includes communication of employees from different sectors where there is no direct formal communication, but the goal is to find effective business solutions that will bring the desired results. A good example is when the vice president communicates with the HR manager about the employees and how well they perform.
Vertical communication takes place between two members of a company who are at different levels, for example between the CEO of a company and the sector director. Such communication usually aims to advance the company’s development goals, to look at the reports or to raise the standard of the corporate environment to a new level. All three types of communication can be both formal and informal depending on inputs and outputs from the external and internal environment.
5. Direct and group communication
The number of members is the biggest difference between these two groups. Direct communication is based on reporting to a superior, which aims to improve team communication or gain new insights into the project’s progress. Group communication mostly includes group meetings within the company, where a large number of employees gather. These can be team meetings, staff meetings, sector director meetings or a CEO meeting.
In most cases, in group meetings, 2 people talk and present new projects, tasks or innovations that will be introduced in the future, and the main goal is to give additional information. It is not usually a priority here for employees to talk about their point of view or initiate a constructive discussion about the project. However, there are also brainstorming meetings where everyone needs to express their opinion, participate in the conversation and think about the topic to add value to the meeting.
6. Verbal and nonverbal communication
Verbal communication is everything you say by using words, while non-verbal communication includes eye contact, facial expressions or gestures, which are good indicators of how much the interlocutor participates in the communication. Some gestures have a positive connotation, such as a smile after a presentation, while rolling your eyes could be classified as a negative form of non-verbal communication, and thus would have a negative effect on the interlocutor.
Verbal communication is important because it is the best way to make it clear which factors are crucial for each person, while nonverbal communication is a way to see what people unconsciously think and feel. Both types of communication provide information about the emotional state and thoughts of the employee. In addition, non-verbal communication creates an additional perspective about the employees that they may unconsciously try to camouflage.
According to research published in Telegraph, a famous British magazine, the human brain has even begun to react to emoticons in messages and perceive them as real human reactions, so the question is how important nonverbal communication can be nowadays if emotions can be transmitted even through emoticons.
How to improve communication in the workplace?
- Depending on which type of communication is required by formal channels (in agreement with the management), respect the formally defined channel
- Appreciate all team members equally, treat them like professionals and give everyone time to express their opinion on a particular topic
- Get to know your team – each member will have different reactions, values and beliefs to so adjust the way of communication to their personalities. This primarily refers to direct communication, while in group communication it is more important to present the strategic goals on which the project depends
- Do not ask why something happened, but ask the team to explain their thinking process and defend their own views, as well as to suggest a solution or the next step, which is important for proactive thinking.
- Understand different points of view – innovative and creative solutions stem from diversity
All of the above can serve to additionally improve all the mentioned types of communication. It is possible to better communicate at the workplace if you learn to be flexible and work on your communication skills. Improve these skills in a fast and efficient way and thus contribute to a better atmosphere in the company, faster completion of tasks and prevent potential conflicts due to misunderstandings.
