Role of Communication in Employee Relationship

A healthy employee relationship ensures a positive environment at work and also helps the employees to achieve their targets at a much faster rate. People are more focussed, can concentrate better in their assignments and hence the output increases. Employees are not engaged in constant fights, are eager to help each other and do not take work as a burden. They enjoy each and every moment at work and do not take leaves often.

Communication is not only important in our daily lives but also plays a crucial role at workplace. It is one of the most important factors which either improves or spoils the relationship among employees.

The communication has to be transparent and precise for a warm relationship among employees. Clarity in thoughts is important. Don’t assume that the other person will come to know on his own what is going on in your mind. The thoughts must be converted sensibly into relevant words such that the other person is able to understand you well.

The employees must be very clear about what is being expected from them. Their key responsibility areas, roles and responsibilities must be communicated to them in the desired form for them to perform their level best. Don’t play with words. Be straightforward and precise in what you expect from your team members. Don’t blame them later. Haphazard thoughts and abstract ideas only lead to confusions and spoil the relationship among the employees.

Let us go through the below example:

Janet was working as a key accounts manager with a leading advertising firm. First she wanted Ted to prepare a report on marketing and sales strategies undertaken by her organization, then she wanted him to prepare a report on the branding techniques and finally she asked him to also include the promotion strategies. She herself was not very clear about her expectations. Poor Ted was so confused that he submitted an incomplete report to Janet. She was not at all happy with Ted’s performance and always side-lined him in future.

In the above example, Janet was not very clear about the content of the report and also confused Ted. One needs to express his ideas clearly for the other person to understand it correctly. Poor communication in this case spoiled the relation between Janet and Ted who were once good friends.

Had Janet told Ted to prepare an exhaustive report on Marketing, sales, branding as well as the promotion techniques undertaken by the organization, things would been crystal clear and Ted would not have made any mistakes. One should be first very clear about his needs, expectations and then only communicate it to the other person.

Don’t change statements quite often. Be firm. One should not tamper any data or manipulate truth. You would never gain anything out of it. Be honest and pass on information in its desired form. If your boss has asked you to download some information to your fellow team members, please do pass it on as it is. Don’t try to add or delete words as it would earn you a bad name. No one would trust you in future or come to your help whenever required. Remember honesty always pays in the long run.

Think twice before you speak. Avoid using foul words against anyone at the workplace as it spoils the ambience of the office and leads to several disputes among individuals. Don’t say anything which would hurt anyone. Avoid lose talks. It is okay to enjoy at work but one should never cross his limit. If you do not agree to anyone’s ideas, it is better to discuss things with him rather being rude or harsh. Whatever you communicate has to be crisp, relevant and should make sense. Don’t utter non sense at work. Be a little professional in your approach.

Important information should be passed on in the presence of each and every employee for better clarity. Every employee should have the liberty to express his views and ideas. Don’t expect you would clear your doubts later on, ask questions then and there. No one would feel bad, rather appreciate your interest and attentiveness but do not jump in between. Do wait for your turn to speak. Don’t meet anyone separately as the other person might feel neglected or left out resulting in major displeasure and conflict among the team members. Do take care of your pitch and tone. It should not be too loud.

Depend more on written modes of communication as they are more reliable as compared to verbal communication. An individual might back out if the information is passed on to him verbally as there are no records, but it never happens in written modes of communication.

Prefer passing on information through Emails. All the related team members must be marked a carbon copy so that everyone knows what is being communicated to his fellow member. One should master the art of writing emails. Remember an email is nothing but a mirror image of one’s thoughts. Make sure that your mail is self-explanatory and everyone is clear about your ideas and opinions.

An employee needs to be constantly motivated to avoid a dip in his performance. If someone has performed exceptionally well, do not hesitate to praise him. Words like “Well done”,“Bravo”,“Great Performance” go a long way in making the individual happy. If you are satisfied with your team member’s performance, do communicate your feelings to him.

Communicate effectively with your fellow team members and you would never have a problem with anyone. People would respect you and work would be fun for you.