It might surprise you to learn that many business owners do not know how to properly communicate as a business. Not only internally, but externally. Communication is not a strong suit for many, but getting better at it is the responsibility of every business owner out there.
If you want to keep staff turnover figures low and customer retention high, then improving your communication as a business will be one of the most powerful things you do.
Make Your Mission and Vision Abundantly Clear
Your mission and vision as a business should be a part of your corporate training and a regular reminder to employees. You all need to be on the exact same page about why you’re doing what you do. When employees understand the company goals and there are no mixed messages, they will be able to communicate with one another more effectively in order to reach them.
Strengthen Connections
Communication needs to be improved between team members who are expected to work together, as well as employees and the people who manage them. This should be brought up during management training – managers who take the time to actually listen to their employees and get to know them should find it so much easier to delegate tasks and stay in the loop with what’s going on.
Collaborate
Making long speeches and lectures can be a surefire way to put people off listening to you at all. If you are speaking too much when giving a presentation, try to simplify what you’re saying and allow others to offer their input. Communication should be about give and take.
Have an Open Dialogue in the Workplace
Make sure there’s an ongoing open dialogue in the office where things like changes, plans, and progress can be discussed freely. Make sure employees are involved in the discussion and give them some say in where the company is headed. You should also make it the norm for your team to talk to one another. A workplace where nobody feels able to speak is a workplace where people can’t wait to get home and where ideas are stunted. Relationships will suffer, too.
Keep Your Clients in the Loop
Keeping clients in the loop is just as important as having strong internal communication. Just one way to do this is to create a digital annual report so that they know where they are at with you.
Address Issues as Soon as They Crop Up
An issue can cause a breakdown in communications if you let it linger for too long. Addressing any issue while it is still in its infancy will make a big difference to how quickly and effectively this gets resolved.
Using Project Management Tools
Many tools can be used to help communication, and just one of those is project management tools. Keeping an eye on a project’s progress has never been easier, and everybody will know what else needs to be done. Face-to-face communication is always important, but online tools can aid in this process. You’ll be able to document the work and save time.
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