Today, organizations must bet on training their personnel, and reinforce some basic competencies that help change the point of view from which employees must conduct themselves within their organization, in order to make it all more effective and provide employees with better well-being.
All employees must be able to see how we communicate, be able to analyze the results obtained and, most importantly, the degree of satisfaction that results from having good communication between us.
By definition, Organizational Communication consists of the emission and reception of messages within a complex organization. This process can be internal, that is, based on relationships within the organization, or external (for example, between organizations).
What condition must be fulfilled so that the importance of communication in the middle management within an organization can be understood? Make them better listeners! That they be different observers, with more tools for managing alternatives to change, that is, with more possibilities for action!
Why should we focus on giving more distinctions to middle managers? Let's think a little that most of the organizations, their destiny, have the Directors or the people who are in the highest part of the organization (the owners and / or the investors), nevertheless, one of The most decisive levels is that of the middle managers, caused by the importance of their roles, since they determine how effective this organization can be. Middle managers are the "link between owners and / or investors and low levels"; the former are the strategists, those who dictate the most important decisions and the latter are those who execute or carry out the operation of those decisions.
By itself, trying to improve communication in the middle management is not an easy task, since we must also consider the alternatives we have in the face of change; One of them is the reactions to change, within which we can cite fear, fear, anger, frustration, indifference, etc. And the alternative we have left is, learn to learn.
What are the enemies of learning? Think superbly, say we know everything, put barriers, immaturity, fear of asking, etc.
Making a stop along the way, the key question that middle managers should ask themselves in order to be able to visualize where we are going in improving communication, is the following: Why do they pay me? The answer is only, to talk.
Conversing effectively ensures the correct downward flow of information, from the high hierarchical levels that allow a correct interpretation, implementation and adaptation of organizational strategies, as well as the way in which the objectives and ideas that are going to be will be transmitted. followed and / or aligned by the operational levels that influence decision-making.
Middle managers are triggers for the way resources move, call them staff, projects, internal staff relationships, supplier relationships, internal and external customers. The middle managers are observers, different observers because of the way they have lived; understanding that each of us have different realities, we are different observers, with their respective private conversations, with stories, experiences, values, formations, judgments, emotionalities, etc.
It is very important that organizations provide sufficient elements so that there can be efficient performance in the middle management. Among these elements, the role of conversations in the company must be defined, making it clear that non-manual work is conversational, all the staff that make up the company, call them Directors, executives and professionals are conversational agents. We must see the company as a dynamic network of conversations.
From the human point of view, the hierarchical level of the middle managers is of vital importance within the organization, since it is known to all that in many cases, the results that are required not only from managers but also from their collaborators, they take precedence over quality of life, and this has a great impact on what we call the work environment; Under this scheme, the role of the leader must be regulated to have conversations in which he inquires about the needs and concerns of others, carries out proposals that respond to such concerns and promotes action with others.
Many times we think that we know reality and that we can describe it, the truth is that we do not know "the truth" or "reality", we only interpret what we perceive; we speak and listen from the type of observer we are.
“Language generates realities. Every time we talk, we make something happen. We interpret human beings as linguistic beings, we interpret language as generative, we interpret that human beings create themselves in and through language ”. Rafael Echeverría
From our point of view, as human beings it is clear to us that there are three domains that we all have: Body (body expression of how I say things), Emotionality (the way I say it, emotions and moods), Language (what I hear, what I say). The combination of all three results in CONGRUENCE, and being consistent is also leadership and communication!
In the middle management is the Know how of the organization, so it is not only essential to recognize the value of knowing how to communicate, but also that of knowing how to listen, but what do we understand by listening?
We speak to be heard, that is, listening validates speaking. Speaking DOES NOT GUARANTEE listening, one says what he says and the other hears what he hears. Listening we don't produce it, it happens.
Listen = Hear + Interpret + Perceive; understanding by interpreting is to give meaning to what a person is saying to us.
Communicating, generating, transforming identities, transforming worlds, transforming possibilities, transforming futures, makes us more creative. Communication is not easy, it is not only an exchange of words, it is also an exchange of expressions, emotions, ways of saying things and attitudes; So Empathy is not putting yourself in shoes to see things from the other person's point of view, it is the ability to get along with people.
All of us have different interests, so it is important that when communicating with another person, we take into account the context in which the conversation takes place: what is the message involved in what the other person is saying to us? Are you asking for understanding, are your ideas clear, what kind of feelings are you expressing, are you asking for, scolding, thanking, questioning, acting? What is my corporality and emotionality before the one who is speaking to me, and how is the one of the one who speaks to me?
Empathy should help us get to know the other person and "speak to them from the heart." Many times we put a breastplate in front of us to appear inflexible, impenetrable and hermetic, but empathy is the key to cross that barrier and get to know the ideas; then communication is possible.
If we talk about our own ideas or concerns, being clear in our way of analyzing the situation and the course of actions that we must take, then we are PROPOSING, we are sharing our concerns, not only saying what I want to say, but why I say it. Talking so that the other shows their ideas and shares the way in which they observe the situations and shares the action that they consider most appropriate, so we are INQUIRING, and to inquire is to know what the other person is taking charge of when speaking? Why does it say what it says?
We must not assume that we have understood what the other person has just told us, we must verify listening. Empathy helps us to have better communication; The relations of the middle managers with their superiors and subordinates must improve as people are known.
I can affirm that communication is the pillar on which success in companies rests, without it we would not be able to effectively manage our organizations; we simply could not do a good Planning, Organization, Direction and Control. Communication allows us to transmit information; This flow of information should include all levels of the organization and mainly middle managers, who are the ones who transmit the instructions to the rest of the staff. The transmitted information may be affected by obstacles that prevent it from reaching the receiver in a clear, specific and concrete way; In addition to this, it must be borne in mind that each person is different and the interpretation of the information received will not be the same that we have when issuing it.
How can we confirm that the receiver has understood the message that we have emitted? For the feedback! That is nothing other than the communication that the receiver has with the sender to CONFIRM that she has understood the message emitted.
What is feedback?
It is a description of facts, perceptions and feelings. It is described by oneself, with the intention of helping; feedback must be timely (that is, at the right time, with the right person and in the right place). It is directed to the behavior that the other can change and has the characteristic that the other takes it or leaves it if she wants and it occurs after asking permission to do so.
What is not feedback?
Evaluation, judgment, reproach, advice. It is discussed, it is polemicized, it wants to impose itself; when speaking for others, when speaking in impersonal, in hints; when it is addressed to everyone and nobody. Isolated, imposed, untimely and directed to aspects that the other cannot change.
Due to the importance of feedback, I can say that it has a marked impact on the emotionality of the group, its willingness to act, the quality of interpersonal relationships, the trust between group members and the possibilities for learning..
Putting communication into practice is not a simple thing, knowing how to listen is basic and not doing so leads us to make mistakes that can be voluntary or involuntary, that IMPACT communication.
So what are the enemies of communication?
Having a negative emotionality, holding conversations based on judgments does not build relationships, on the contrary, it destroys them.
Not knowing how to ask. Knowing how to ask is a fundamental competence; Many times we have judgments that block asking, for example:
"They will discover that I do not know", I show that I am vulnerable, If I ask I remain committed, "I am going to bother", "They are going to say no to me".
Not keeping promises. Who promises assumes the commitment to produce something in the future by performing certain actions. The promise is the responsibility of the one who promises.
Close to negotiations. Every time we communicate, when we meet to seek an agreement, we are negotiating. A serious offense in the negotiation is half-listening or disconnecting from the conversation or "giving the plane" to the other person and / or interrupting when another is still talking.
Communicating is not easy, but we must try to make it clear, concise, effective, enriching, that is, seek to make it transcendent.
Practice being better listeners, give value to the feelings of the other person, not do to the fortune teller (intuit what the other person is going to tell us), if we know what we are looking for, we will be on the right track.
The ability to sell, to communicate with another human being, customer, employee, boss, wife or son, is the basis of personal success. Communication skills, such as speaking, writing, and negotiating, are critical to a successful life. Robert Kiyosaki.
Footnotes
- Organizational communication-Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.Rafael Echeverría, Doctor of Philosophy from the University of London, currently serves as President of The Newfield Group, in San Francisco, California, a company dedicated to developing the approach known as «the ontology of language »And the training of people in the emerging discipline of« ontological coaching ».Robert Kiyosaki Born: April 8, 1947. Place: Hilo, Hawaii, United States. Biography: American businessman, writer, and motivational speaker, widely known for the "Rich Dad, Poor Dad" book series.
