For everything to run smoothly in the workplace, there has to be ample communication. Communicating effectively means that your ideas and concepts are being heard and people are acting upon them. It also means you are able to listen, understand, and take action on what other people say. Innocent Hagenimana the communications manager at Rwanda Basic Education Board says that a company or the workplace is like a football team, where every player should stand tall in his position but communicate to others so that they will share the end results. “Communication is key to success not only at the workplace but also at the individual level. If a person is able to share their opinion, they are able to expand their thinking which can lead to great decisions or actions. This means that if an employee is able and free to communicate on business matters of the company, at the end of the day, this person will help the company to move in the right direction,” he says. Gloire Kayitare, Project Lead at Talent Match adds that good communication is one of the best strategies to make sure everyone on a team understands clearly what their responsibilities are and the expected outcomes. And not only does it keep everyone working towards the company and its overall goals, it also helps to build trust and create a more enjoyable work environment. Allen Umutoni who works in a sales company says that not only effective communication benefits the company but it also helps the employees and the managers and human resource management to perform well. “Effective communication is much more than conversation, it is about the exchange of information through multiple different mediums where employees are able to share ideas and the company’s management is able to learn where to improve or even get ideas on how to drive the company’s goals to success.” How to improve effective communication According to Kayitare, quality communication in the workplace can eliminate unnecessary problems and promote better performance. The ability to communicate effectively in the workplace can increase overall productivity, and create a strong team, when teams fail to communicate credibly, the results are counterproductive to the company. He adds these few points to help in improving good communication in the company: Make time for regular one-on-ones with employees Schedule weekly work team meetings Sharing minutes with the team Follow up with effective notes and clear job expectations Communicate with employees on a personal level Ensure your team can provide confidential feedback “Managers should understand the need to create an environment where each employee is able to communicate freely to them and the rest of the staff of the company. By the way, this is where innovation and creativity comes from. However, it has to start from you as manager,” Hagenimana says. In one of the Justworks articles on how to improve communication in a workplace, they advise to seek out feedback regularly and take it in stride. Actively seeking out constructive feedback is one of the best ways to improve communication in the workplace. One of the biggest inhibitors to quality communication in the workplace is missed signals and quickly formed assumptions. Some of it is positive “I enjoyed seeing your work ethic this week when confronted with several different blockers,” and some of it is more constructive “I noticed you expressed frustration during our brainstorming meeting this week.” However, those moments of feedback are always an opportunity to get to the heart of a challenge or victory.
