How to Train on Responsible Business Communications

A good training session should be informative as well as entertaining.

One of the easiest ways to create difficulty in the workplace is to engage in poor business communication. While communication is a task that all employees participate in daily, it often is the root cause of workplace frustrations, mistakes and discontent. The remedy is effective training on good communication techniques, taught in a way that not only stresses the importance of solid communication, but that allows the learner to retain critical information while enjoying the training itself.

Things You'll Need

• 5-10 index cards
• Flipchart
• Marker
• Handouts (optional)
• Participation prizes (optional)

Instructions

1. Play a game to start off the training session, to get the participants involved and interested in what you'll be discussing. A communication game, such as Telephone, works well. Divide the group into smaller groups of 10 to 15 people and have them stand in a circle. Give the first person an index card with the following sentence written on it: "The tiny mouse didn't have many muscles, so the breadcrumbs were hard to steal." The first person whispers the sentence to the second person in the circle, and the second person whispers it to the third. Have them go all the way around the circle, only saying it once to each person, whether or not the person heard it clearly or not. The last person in the circle has to say the sentence out loud, and the group gets to laugh at how different the resulting sentence becomes after being passed around the group. Explain how communication often works this way--information gets passed from person to person, whether it's correct or not, and the end result can be significantly different from what was intended.

2. Explain why good communication is so important--it saves time and energy, and prevents confusion and frustration. It helps everyone work effectively for the same goals. In some instances, such as the medical and industrial fields, good communication can be a matter of life and death. Medical records written incorrectly, or medication orders given verbally but not properly understood, can result in disaster.

3. Focus on the definition of good communication. The critical aspect is not simply to give information to another, but to make sure the information was received correctly by the other party. Demonstrate this with an example such as, "If Bob tells John how to do something, but John doesn't understand and ends up making a mistake, has good communication actually occurred? No. Bob may have told John how to do it (Step 1 of communication), but John did not receive the correct information (Step 2 of communication). Without both steps, communication is not complete." Ask your audience for other examples of this from their own lives.

4. Discuss oral communication (telephone, face-to-face). Important topics to cover for oral communication include speaking slowly and clearly (particularly over the phone), speaking loudly enough to be heard, and not using abbreviations or terminology that others may not know. Every business has specific terminology used every day to make communication easier. However, those outside of the business may not understand. Examples of this could include medical terms such as MRSA, PCT, ACLS; business terminology such as Six Sigma, ROI; or legal phrases such as POA, Cx, Am. Jur. People outside of those fields, even customers of those businesses, may not understand those terms. They may also be embarrassed to ask for clarification, and thus proceed without knowing what you're discussing.

5. Discuss written communication (letters, email, handwritten notes). Topics to cover for the written portion include correct spelling and grammar and the powers and limitations of spell check; the importance of legible handwriting; how to write professional emails and memos; and avoiding email no-nos like abbreviations and writing in all caps. Demonstrate clear handwriting and proper business writing etiquette on the flipchart. You may also consider a handout with good and bad examples of these types of communication. For example, you could have a well-written business letter compared to one with misspellings, incorrect formatting and bad grammar. Have the audience attempt to read a poorly handwritten note, and give a prize to the person who gets closest to the correct answer. If the note had contained critical work information, how successful could they have been as a result? Again, have the group discuss their experiences with this type of communication issue and how it has impacted their work.

6. Teach repeat-backs or read-backs. These techniques ensure that information is received by the other party correctly. The first person tells the second person the information. The second person either repeats the information back to the first person (repeat-back), or writes the information down and reads it back to the first person (read-back). The first person then either corrects any false information or confirms that the second person has the information correct.

7. Ask for any examples from your audience of times when communication broke down or they had a major misunderstanding. This type of audience participation allows them to not only remain active in the training session, but gives them an opportunity to communicate themselves.

Tips & Warnings

• Remember to keep the training session at a good pace, with a variety of activities interspersed between lecture. This will keep the audience interested in what you have to say.

References

• Sharon Bowman: Teach It Quick And Make It Stick!