FAILURE TO COMMUNICATE

All work is a process that is accomplished by communicating. Whether they will admit it or not, many supervisors fail to establish and maintain a good communications system within their department and their company. If the people around you are to become sufficiently informed, you must set up a system to ensure that it happens. You will have to weave it into your departmental plan and put it on your priority list. You must make time to communicate. If you don't, you'll be faced with a constant flow of human relations problems from your employees because they will feel left out, neglected, unappreciated, and frustrated. Serious misinterpretations will occur between you and others both inside and outside your department. Morale will eventually drop, and so will productivity.

How can you set up a communications system to prevent this deterioration from happening? Here are some suggestions.

Create daily two-way conversations. Consider taking ten, twenty, or thirty minutes each day to talk things over with your employees. If you supervise many people, you might rotate among them so that you will have some personal communication at least every week or so. Keep in mind that it is sometimes more important to listen than to talk.

Set up a bulletin board as a communications headquarters. When the proper physical facilities are available, a bulletin board can be a valuable tool. Let's look at how it is used by one supervisor.

Linda has trained her nine employees to check the bulletin board the first thing in the morning and two or three times during the day. Sometimes she leaves messages for the whole group and sometimes for individuals. Employees are, of course, encouraged to leave messages for others, including Linda. Here is how she puts it: “My little bulletin board is an integral part of my system. I just don't have time to contact everyone personally all the time, so I write a lot of bulletins and notes. It really works.”

An “electronic bulletin board” can be accomplished on a network of computers to replace or supplement the traditional kind.

Hold group meetings. Try to hold short group meetings from time to time for communication purposes. Nothing can substitute for the interplay of group communications if such meetings do not take too long, are not overstructured, and are held when necessary. Group meetings are extremely useful when major changes in procedure are necessary.

Send interoffice communications. Many organizations have a voice mail or electronic mail system to keep upper management, supervisors, and other staff people informed. This written form of communication should be used to (1) keep others informed, (2) initiate requests, and (3) reply to inquiries, whether written or by telephone.

Use other communication techniques. In addition to the frequent use of the telephone, the supervisor can arrange formal two-way meetings in the office, arrange for luncheon communication sessions, and sometimes take advantage of coffee breaks and trips outside the plant or office for communication purposes. Conversations between supervisors of different work units promote teamwork. Look for ways to help peers. Regular informal communication helps you learn about the business and how you can make a greater contribution.

You will, of course, have to develop your own system based upon your particular situation and needs. The most important factor, however, is to maintain the system on a daily basis. It is a difficult responsibility and no one has created a perfect system, but everyone seems to agree that unless you keep people informed, they can and will misinterpret you, resulting in problems for everyone involved. Constant and effective communication with your employees sends the message that you value them as people.