Getting People Onside
Communication styles
Note: The following notes were written by a dozen people in four brainstorming sessions at the "Getting People Onside" workshop at LIANZA09 - I'm merely the scribe.
- establish - adapt styles
- choose the language - targeting audience
- flexibility
- adaptability
Type of people you are presenting to - either detailed or broad brushstrokes - choose the most appropriate approach, visual or detailed - varied styles of delivery - [library redacted] is using tools like Snagit to self-learn (too impatient and independent for 1 on 1)
- Read your audience
- Be adaptable
- Vary your approach
- staff development
- develop teamwork
- reduce jargon
- think about them, 'read' them, how do they communicate
- KISS "keep it simple, stupid"
- think about the audience especially group
- think about their need, how they'll interpret
- People who think that you are not communicating when you don't agree
- Age differences - phone vs email vs personal contact
- Email - record of communication
- Avoid use of jargon
- Mis-communication with words - different meanings - reserve, hold, "put aside"
- Training tool - psychometric testing for personal style
- Who are you talking to? Adapt as necessary
- Bridging gap - it's okay to make mistakes (eg language)
- Be prepared to adapt
- Know the potential modes of communication
- Be open to communication styles
- Vary your communication styles
- Customers/staff don't want assumptions made about their communication styles and preferred mode of delivery.
- Don't want to waste time trying to understand. Adapt to any/majority of communications styles required.
- Don't lose focus of the end result - ensure you have a clear understanding of what is required.
- new manager ->
- language in culture of library -> policy, acronyms
- good communicator
- advantage of newcomers / or changes
- acronyms -> explain and learn / ask, take time
- make sure that newcomers have good induction / training
- communication suited to the audience: call centre (people to people); statisticians (facts!)
- be flexible with your language
recognise / be aware of differences
- choice of medium
- jargon
- tailoring communication to audience
- reading audience
- be flexible
except where noted
except where noted