Global statistics show that large companies lose tens of millions of dollars annually due to ineffective communication. For smaller companies, the losses amount to hundreds of thousands. As a result, 70% of employers emphasize that effective communication is a crucial skill for potential employees.
The Impact of Poor Communication Skills
Poorly developed communication skills quickly make themselves known. Among the signs are employee passivity, missed deadlines, lack of trust within the team, the desire to bet on sports instead of completing work duties, loss of clients, and other costly errors.
What Are Communication Skills?
Almost every job posting lists communication skills as a requirement. But which ones are most important for your team? Is it the ability to listen, persuade, or justify one’s point of view? Or is it the skill of building successful communication strategies? The more precisely you define it, the better fit you will find in a candidate.
Communication skills are the abilities that allow a person to communicate effectively, accurately, and productively. Mastering the art of communication determines success in both professional and social relationships.
Forms of Communication
Meetings, presentations, and business correspondence are formal business interactions. Informal communication includes chatting, exchanging information, discussing work issues, requests, and approvals. These informal dialogues support social ties, establish communication culture, and build trust between employees.
Key Active Communication Skills
Psychologists highlight 10 essential communication skills needed in the workplace:
- Oral Communication & Reading (verbal communication) — Developing language skills helps a person express their ideas and thoughts clearly. Professionals who can speak convincingly are always valued.
- Written Communication — The ability to write emails, reports, and documents. The more adept you are at simplifying complex topics, conveying information persuasively, and holding the reader’s attention, the stronger your written communication skills become.
- Active Listening — This involves listening without interruption, showing interest, asking questions, avoiding hasty conclusions, and summarizing. It helps better understand colleagues and clients, speeding up problem-solving. As Stephen R. Covey writes in The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People: “Most people don’t listen with the intent to understand; they listen with the intent to reply.”
- Empathy — The ability to put yourself in someone else’s shoes and understand their perspective and feelings. Empathy helps foster business relationships and a cooperative atmosphere.
- Constructive Defense of Opinions — Clearly and respectfully expressing ideas and opinions without aggression or pressure.
- Non-Verbal Communication — Body language, facial expressions, and gestures can enhance workplace interactions.
- Adaptability in Communication — Adjusting your communication style depending on the situation and context.
- Diplomatic Conflict Resolution — Skills in engaging in constructive dialogue help resolve conflicts and find common ground.
- Presenting Information Convincingly — Being able to clearly communicate project ideas and updates during presentations and meetings improves team interaction.
- Providing Constructive Feedback — Offering meaningful feedback strengthens individual and team development.
Why Developing Communication Skills Is Crucial for Employees
Statistics offer a clear answer to why communication skills are vital for business:
- 40% of employees believe their companies lack collaboration and communication.
- 33% mention a lack of transparency in internal communications.
- 43% say they lose trust in management due to poor communication.
- Productivity can increase by up to 30% when employees are given effective communication tools and training.
- Strong communication and collaboration in teams improve employee retention by 4.5 times.
Good communication is the foundation of corporate culture and directly influences a company’s productivity. Regardless of industry, investing in developing these skills has a positive impact on employees’ career and personal growth.
How Teams Benefit from Developing Communication Skills
- Clarity and Understanding: Effective communication eliminates misunderstandings and misinterpretations. Employees with strong verbal skills can articulate their ideas clearly and concisely.
- Better Interpersonal Relationships: Strong communication skills help build solid relationships between colleagues, managers, subordinates, and clients. Empathy fosters better understanding, leading to more open and motivated communication.
- Reduced Workplace Conflicts: The ability to communicate constructively helps resolve disputes before they escalate into unsolvable issues, often preventing resignations.
- Improved Teamwork and Collaboration: With clear understanding of roles, teams save time and resources, enhancing productivity.
- More Effective Leadership: Leaders with communication skills inspire and motivate teams, unite people, and provide clear direction.
- Enhanced Company Image: Productive communication with clients and partners reduces customer attrition and boosts the company’s reputation.
- Career Growth Opportunities: Clear and convincing speech is highly valued in leadership and management roles.
- Increased Innovation: A well-communicating team fosters creativity, driving business profitability.
Methods for Assessing Communication Skills
Testing is commonly used to evaluate candidates’ communication abilities. HR’s task is to prepare a set of tests that best match the skills needed for the position. For example, if you want to assess how well a person listens and articulates their thoughts, you’ll need to evaluate written and verbal communication, as well as non-verbal cues and active listening.
When hiring sales representatives, customer service managers, or administrative workers, it’s essential to evaluate their ability to express thoughts verbally, understand others, and use appropriate gestures and body language.
Suitable Testing Methods
- Psychological Tests — Assess behavior, motivation, character traits, dialogue skills, and the ability to build harmonious relationships.
- Situational Tests — Assess how a candidate reacts to unexpected or conflict situations.
- Competency-Based Interviews — Used to understand a candidate’s past experience and behavior in various situations. Often applied when hiring top managers or leaders.
- Employee Surveys — Best initiated by assessing leadership communication skills. A self-reflection or employee feedback can highlight areas for improvement.
- 360-Degree Feedback — This HR tool evaluates team members’ qualities based on a competency matrix. Colleagues, subordinates, managers, clients, and partners participate. Conducting the survey on a specialized platform enhances its effectiveness.
Methods for Developing Communication Skills
Strong communication skills are not innate; anyone can develop them with time and resources. There are various methods: training, courses, online marathons, business coaching, case-solving, and more. Group practical exercises on techniques like active listening, productive negotiations, and setting a positive tone can be especially helpful.
Tips for Improving Communication Skills
You can also improve communication skills individually by setting a few rules for yourself in dialogues:
- Ask yourself five questions before the conversation:
- Why is this important to me?
- Who needs to understand my message?
- What is my main goal?
- What result am I aiming for?
- What format is best for this communication?
- Start conversations with the main point, ensuring your audience immediately understands the topic.
- Find simple and clear ways to express your thoughts, ask questions, and engage participants in the dialogue.
- Record your conversations on video and observe yourself: Did you maintain eye contact? Did you appear confident, calm, or tense?
- Ask for feedback from participants after the conversation to understand how effective your communication was.
To maintain regular and open communication, follow these principles:
- Schedule regular face-to-face meetings.
- Meet with working groups weekly.
- Ensure everyone understands their expectations.
- Focus on the productivity of meetings and the psychological safety of participants.