“No one can whistle a symphony. It takes a whole orchestra to play it.”H.E. Luccock
It is a simple fact that a key ingredient of any successful organization is its ability to communicate effectively both internally and externally. In any high-functioning team, there will be effective communication between employees that serves to foster strong working relationships and allow understanding of the progress on tasks. In a world where the covid-19 pandemic changed working practices, good quality communication is more important than ever. If employees are not all on-site, the risk of silo working and poor-quality communication becomes a risk and can result in a lack of understanding and decreased teamworking. Here are some examples of how effective communication can be cultivated within teams and the organization to ensure that corporate goals are achieved, and employees stay motivated and engaged.
Team Meetings Encourage Cohesion
Regular team meetings are a vital tool to encourage effective communication. They are an ideal platform to keep employees up to date with corporate objectives and the progress on tasks and projects within a team. In an age where hybrid and remote working models are adopted across the whole working spectrum, video conference software provides the ideal solution to bring together workers who may not all be on-site. Effective team meetings are those that promote discussion with all team members and are a platform where issues can be raised as well as being an ideal venue to feed back on projects completed. All employees need to feel connected with their co-workers, and a lack of communication can lead to feelings of isolation and lower morale. Ensure that your team holds regular meetings that encourage communication between all members and are a “safe space” to raise concerns and talk openly.
Listening To Employees
An enormous part of having high-quality channels of communication is the ability to listen and act on the ideas and issues raised by a team, department, or the organization as a whole. Communication should never be a one-way street, and effective listening can give insights into staff morale and opportunities for improved working practices. To promote effective listening, many organizations use employee survey software. This allows managers and leaders to gain deeper insights into the views and opinions of employees and determine what is working and what is not. By having high-quality feedback and insights from employees, the organization has the tools to improve working practices and demonstrates that they are listening to their staff. This, in turn, can improve employee motivation and may lead to improved productivity and closer alignment with corporate goals.
Communication Breeds Dedication
Regular and effective communication within a team builds trust, understanding, and cohesion. A high-performing team will be able to lend support to each other in times of increased workload, and employees will feel that they are supported by each other. Reducing feelings of isolation between team members via effective communication also means that employees are less likely to become disillusioned in times of stress.This may help to retain employees,which in turn reduces the costs involved with additional recruitment processes.