Studies on group communications have revealed that the effectiveness of a work group is directly correlated to the amount and types of communications within that group.
Interpersonal Management
Simply put, there are two key objectives when interacting/communicating within a team setting that will reduce errors and increase overall effectiveness:
1. Become more aware of our interactions/communications
2. Learn what it takes to improve those interactions/communications
Ineffective Teams Communicate LESS
An ineffective team or group tends to communicate less overall. When they do communicate, it tends to generally be more negative - expressions of frustration & anger, high incidence of disagreements, uncertain or confusing responses and sometimes even embarrassment or humiliation can occur.
Groups who communicate in this way, not surprisingly, have a much higher rate of potentially disastrous incidences caused by human error. (If this sounds like something you are currently experiencing, we highly suggest looking into the Error Prevention Training Course to get your team on the right track...find out more here). Left unchecked, this type of communication "breakdown" could negatively impact your company as a whole.
Effective Teams Communicate MORE
On the other hand, an effective team (yep you guessed it) communicates more. Along with fluent communications, these types of groups generally have effective leadership that provides task delegation with clear direction and acknowledgement of any concerns that may arise. This creates an atmosphere that is open to suggestions, acknowledges everyone's concerns and provides direct, open and concise lines of communication between all members of the group. Options are openly discussed and incidents of mistakes and human error are naturally diminished.
Which Communication Style Does Your Team/Group Operate Under?
Of course we all strive to achieve the level of communication described in the latter example. When it comes to safety within your organization, remember that quality = safety. If an organization does not have a safe work environment they most likely will not put out a quality product; and if they don't have high quality standards, their adherence to safety measures will most likely be weak.
Effective communication is just one of many components to enhancing both the quality, and safety within an organization. To learn more about how EPI helps individuals and teams to perform at their highest levels of effectiveness, visit www.errorprevention.com or contact us at 602-962-1450.
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