Wednesday, August 28, 2013
What
You Say May Not Be What's Heard
As a business owner, do you know how to effectively
communicate with your employee population? Since no two employees are exactly
alike, "cookie cutter" communication skills will not always get the
job done. Now, more than any other time in our economic landscape, the
workplace operates within a multi-generational employee environment.
Communication takes place constantly, whether it's effective or not. It is estimated that we spend 80% of
each day communicating in some way. The division of that time breaks down like
this:
Listening - 45%
Speaking - 30%
Reading - 16%
Writing - 9%
We are communicating every
time we interact with each other, and it's not always a verbal exchange. In
organizations, the importance of communication is often acknowledged through
statements, such as, "Our basic problem is communication" or, "I
just can't seem to communicate with him.”
It goes without saying (no pun intended!) that communication
with and among employees is the glue that keeps everyone working together, and
working together well. The difference
now is that a generational employee population demands that the way company
management once communicated must be changed to fit the current category of
employees. Not only does it balance the needs of the organization and the needs
of the employees, it helps to restore and maintain credibility.
Understanding generational communications is essential to
getting your point across. While a baby boomer, generational X and a millennial
may in fact have the same job title and responsibilities, each will most likely
relate to internal communications from management or fellow co-workers
differently. Baby boomers relate more to stability and prefer meeting settings;
while Generation X-ers are part of the tech advancement and flow better with a
direct approach; and yet, Millennials value individuality and are immersed in a
global environment. Millennials tend to be quite comfortable with the more
immediate form of communications like text, voicemails, and emails.
A
Little History in Getting Your Point Across
From the industrial revolution to the technological evolution
era, communicating has always come in different forms depending on the group
you’re talking to.
For a bit of historical perspective, let’s first define
“generational”. A generation is a subdivision of population grouped in time
intervals of approximately 18 - 20 years (Wikipedia). Each generation's culture
is shaped by its attitudes and beliefs formed by cultural shifts, influential
public personas, changes in technology and major events that occur during the
formative years of life.
As with parents who typically possess more wisdom than their
children, so does each "generation believe they are more intelligent than
the one that went before it, and wiser than the one that comes after it."
(George Orwell) Why is this important? Do you remember when Kennedy died
or when Neil Armstrong landed on the moon?
"Anything that is invented between the times when you
are 15 to 35 is new, revolutionary and exciting, and you can possibly get a
career in it,” writes late author Douglas Adams in The Hitchhiker’s Guide to
the Galaxy. But, he adds, “Anything invented after you are 35 is against the
natural order of things."
In America today, history is being made. At no other time
have four generations been documented
in the workplace together, at the same time. Instead of looking at that as a
bad thing or potential problem, instead as an employer, look upon it as a
challenging opportunity for growth. Improved and effective internal
communications have the capability of reducing confusion and creating a healthy
dialogue.
The speed of technology and a new world of work have forever
changed how we communicate with each other. These changes have altered how
employers get their mission, their goals and their messages across in a way
that’s clear to all employees, regardless of generation, to promote moving
forward in productivity and growth. Don't get stuck in yesteryear in how you
say what needs to be said.
________________
Delmar
Johnson
Founder &
CEO
Delmar
Johnson Enterprise
