When it comes to maintaining a productive workplace, communication is key. Employees want their managers to provide information more effectively and even with a higher frequency. Improving communication in your light industrial workplace doesn’t have to be difficult. To help you get started, here are five tips you can begin using today.
1. Be Clear and Concise
When it comes time to deliver important information, make sure to focus on being clear and concise. This means you need to plan what you are going to say and work to be direct. Make an effort to avoid ambiguous language by keeping the information specific and on point. Additionally, don’t use any acronyms that aren’t commonly understood by all of the light industrial employees to whom you are speaking.
2. Actively Listen
Many people spend the time when another person is talking to plan what they will say next, but that often means you will miss out on potentially critical parts of the conversation. Being an active listener requires you to focus on what the other person is saying, taking in not only the words they are using but their body language as well. And, you need to wait until they have finished covering what they want to say before considering how to respond. This ensures you get the full value of what is being said and that you can contribute in a more meaningful way than if you let your thoughts overshadow the other person’s contributions.
3. Meet Face-to-Face
Whenever the information being presented is difficult, negative, or could bring about a lot of questions, it is always better to say it in person. Not only will you get the benefits of non-verbal communication during the conversation, but you also have the ability to solicit immediate feedback, ensuring everyone understands things as they are and that there isn’t any confusion.
4. Follow-Up in Writing
Ideally, any information provided verbally should be followed up with a recap in writing. Everyone has different preferences when it comes to communication and covering important materials in written and spoken forms gives employees a chance to review the information in a manner that suits them best. Additionally, it will serve as a reference point for future conversations while ensuring everyone has access to the facts, even if they miss the initial meeting.
5. Stay Professional
Regardless of whether the information being covered is positive or negative, it is critical to remain professional at all times. Often, this requires managers to take care when it comes to word choice and to avoid reacting to conversations in an overly emotional way. Now, this doesn’t mean you need to be an automaton when delivering news, just that you can’t let your personal feelings on a matter affect your delivery.
By using the tips above, you can work to improve communication in your light industrial workplace, benefitting both you and your employees. If you are interested in more tips about workplace communication or are looking for a top candidate to join your team, The Advance Group has the expertise to help you move forward. Contact us today and see what our service have to offer your business.