When you hear the word ‘communication’ you probably assume that this is just people talking to one another. Whilst that’s part of the deal, it doesn’t show the whole picture.
Within a business setting, communication can be anything from letters, emails, meetings presentations, discussions, phone calls, messaging conversations, video calls, or even faxes in some cases. The success of a business hinges on effective communication and without it, chaos will literally reign.
Most people have some communication skills, but learning how to improve your communication skills will give you an edge and help you to work more effectively at your office desk and whilst you’re collaborating around the modern boardroom tables too.
To highlight the importance of effective communication, let’s check out 8 benefits of quality communication in the workplace.
- Better working relationships - Open and honest lines of communication will help to strengthen working relationships and therefore boost the quality of work, cut down on misunderstandings, and ensure collaboration around the boardroom furniture is high quality.
- More ideas and suggestions - When people communication well, they are able to come up with new ideas and suggestions. This is ideal for collaboration and could allow the business to solve problems in a more creative and innovative way.
- Increased business growth - High-quality communication helps a business to thrive. Customers need to feel that they’re listened to and kept informed, you’re more able to promote your goods and services in an effective way and all of this adds up to an increased amount of business growth over time.
- Increased productivity - If you have an office full of people sat at their office chairs, not speaking and not coming up with ideas between small groups, do you think the space is going to be productive? Of course not! High-quality communication boosts productivity.
- Fewer mistakes are made - When people talk about problems and ask for help, fewer mistakes are made. This adds to the productivity picture and boosts employee confidence. Of course, this also ensures that customers remain happy too.
- Reduces the chance of office conflicts - When people talk about things rather than allowing misunderstandings to fester and turn into major problems, there is far less chance of conflict tearing the office apart.
- Increased morale - When people are open and honest with one another, when the space is productive and when there is less conflict, morale will be higher. This makes the office a pleasant place to work and ensures increased productivity too.
- Increased employee motivation - Being able to communicate openly and freely, being able to come up with new ideas and feeling supported helps to motivate employees. When this happens, the entire office feels positive and uplifted, which has its own range of benefits too.
With those 8 benefits on offer, it’s no wonder that businesses are always looking for ways to help communication in the workplace easier and more effective.
Of course, there are always going to be occasional misunderstandings and sometimes this can lead to conflict. Learning how to deal with this and sidestep a major drama is important for both employees and managers. On the whole, however, learning how to communicate in a careful, fair, and open way means that there is a lower chance of problems occurring and everyone will feel supported and able to have their say, in a safe and healthy way.
Learning how to communicate effectively is something which can be learnt and with time and experience, it becomes second nature. This also extends to written communication skills too, as it can be very easy to write something in an email which is taken the wrong way by the receiver. Double-checking everything and being careful with your words is therefore vital, especially if you’re sending correspondence to a customer or client.