Communication Skills for Business Professionals

Greet everyone and Welcome them to the second module of C2W series!

*Participants, what they recall from this picture, Ganguly with Chappel and Indian cricket team with Gary Kirsten.
*Share with them story of failure and success of Indian coaches- Greg Chappel and Gary respectively.
*Chappel and the team, particularly captain, had a miserable communication rather miscommunication that led to mistrust, disrespect and lack of transparency. This led to disastrous performance of the team. Things changed for good with Kirsten who cultivated strong trust, transparency and respect based on a robust communication with all members of the team
*Emphasize the point that communication led to better relationship that in turn led to collaboration à team failure
*Let us learn how to work upon communication to build TTR and enhance collaboration. Also emphasize that Communication skills are not rocket science to develop, a focus on small aspects will give wonderful results. These small aspects are important, interesting and bears far reaching impact on our daily life.

Connect to the next slide- Let us understand how a simple communication gets distorted & see the reasons behind it.

*Its time for an activity.
*Before facilitator shows the next slide, take care of the following aspects.
For classroom session- select 4 volunteers. 1 volunteer to remain in the hall, other 3 to move outside the training hall.
*Now present the next slide.
*For virtual session- directly move to the next slide

Connect to the next slide– Present the story in the next slide

*Show this slide with story and ask the selected 1 participant in the class to read the story. Close the slide once done. The participant in class will ask one of the volunteers to enter the room and tell the story to him. The volunteer will pass on the story to the second and like wise. That volunteer should then narrate the story to another volunteer, one after the other.
*For virtual program- Show slide for a minute. ask one of the participants to tell the story to other participant, repeat this for 3-4 times
Debrief:
At the end, you will hear a very distorted version of the story
Ask the participants what happened now. Was it a communication failure?- If yes, who was responsible ?Explain the below points what happens in actual communication takes place between 2 people.
We all agree humans have a natural tendency to forget. At the same time , one must understand that supplying a lot of fresh information in one go may lead to forgetting some aspects by the listener.
As a communicator, most of the time we presume that said things are understood by the listener. A sender or a communicator has a pivotal role for making a communication effective.

Connect to the next slide– Let us revisit the universal communication process and how it is made successful.

*Sender and receiver are the two important persons in any communication
*For a successful communication, it is imperative that message of the sender is understood by the receiver in the same way as intended by the sender.

Connect to the next slide– Before we learn aspects to practice for a successful communication w.r.t a sender & receiver, let us take a self appraisal.

*This is sender’s tool with 12 simple questions.
*Project it and ask participants to self rate on the questions in their diary. These are for self realization/ introspection. Scores need not be shared.
*If required explain the Hindi translation of the questions. Hindi version file is attached.
For a classroom session- Print of the same may be provided to the participants. (file attached)

Connect to the next slide–

*Let is revisit aspects of communication, that are small in nature but carries a huge impact on building TTR.
*We will understand the concepts better through multiple engaging activities. Ask the participants if they are ready for it.

Connect to the next slide– Ask the question in next slide as a precursor to begin the aspects.

*Ask the question, see the response and then establish the fact by activity in the next slide
*Most of the participants will respond that verbal and non verbal are equally important or verbal is important than non verbal.
*Simply listen and take them through the activity as mentioned in next slide.

Connect to the next slide– Make the participants ready for the activity associated with the question shown in this slide.

•You all must be wondering what the facilitator is going to ask us to do seeing this slide. So you are not wrong , pls stand up and watch and hear facilitator clearly and do what is instructed.
•Facilitator to participants- Lets first give thumbs up to all, touch your hair, bend down , raise your hand , touch your chin (here instead of chin the facilitator touches his cheeks) and observe how participants copied your actions.
Debrief:
*Ask participants to share briefly some insights they gained from this rapid experience.
*Many of the participants will touch cheeks seeing what facilitator doing. So here comes the role of non Verbal communication.
*Facilitator then explain how Nonverbal communication is more powerful than verbal communication. So going ahead, what should we learn. WE should see and practice that our verbal and non verbal parts are in congruence or synch. For example ask participants to say” I’m Happy” or “ I’m excited to learn more about communication” keeping a synch with verbal and non verbal aspects. Then Tone, voice, gestures will determine the nature of message.

Connect to the next slide– Share the statistics based on a scientific research as in the next slide.

*TO everyone’s’ surprise, non verbal or your body language/expressions are more impactful in communication.
*The figures are based on a scientific study.
*7% is Verbal
*93% is Non verbal
*This is simple when you are communicating in person or face to face or when you are able to see one another.

Connect to the next slide– This slide was w.r.t a face to face communication. Ask participants -What happens when it is telephonic communication. Statistics related to telephonic communication is presented in the next slide.

* In a telephonic communication, words carry-18%, while non verbal part i.e sound, tone carries 82% weightage.
Debrief-Vocal Qualities
Tone
◦ Expresses feeling or emotion
􀁠 Inflection
◦ Emphasizing words and syllables to enhance message
􀁠 Pitch
◦ How high or deep voice sounds
􀁠 Rate
◦ How many words are spoken per minute
􀁠 Volume
◦ How loud or soft voice sounds

Connect to the next slide– Tone and sound is important. Also important is the stress or emphasis given on the words. To illustrate – take them through the activity on “Did you really kiss her”

*Apart from tone and sound, stressing on words also creates impact and different interpretation of a message.
*Ask one of the participants to read the sentence, 5 times, stressing on one word at a time. Different interpretations of the message will be observed.

Connect to the next slide– So it is understood that- it is not what you say but how you say that matters.

Connect to the next slide– We have seen verbal/non verbal aspects till now. Let us see some important pointers for written communication.

*Focus on some important aspects in written communication that has an impact of building Trust transparency & respect.
*e.g avoiding commands in mails, using and checking the right tone of the message, etiquettes while following up, proof reading and acknowledging the mails.

Connect to the next slide– Capture learning till now.

*Take a quick learning recap before you move ahead, ask participants to write the learning in notepads.
*One or two participants may be asked to share their learning.
*Participants should be encouraged to write specific learning, that they can implement.

Connect to the next slide– Like sender’s tool, receiver’s tool in next slide for introspection/self realization.

*Before understanding the aspects related to recipient, ask participants to undergo the receiver’s tool.
*Again, like the senders’ tool, this tool is for self appraisal and gaining insights.
*If required explain the Hindi translation of the questions. Hindi version file is attached.
For a classroom session- Print of the same may be provided (file attached)

Connect to the next slide– Let us understand the qualities of a good listener. Put forth question as in the next slide.

*We have seen senders part, let us understands aspects related to receiver.
*Ask the question as shown on the slide.
*Ask the participants to think of a very good listener form their team at work or for that matter any other person. Ask them to tell the behaviours that they think make him/her a better listener. List the responses on a whiteboard. For virtual set-up, a blank slide to be used
*After a moment, ask the participants: How do they feel while talking with the people who are good listeners.
*Now Ask them to tell the behavior’s of a poor listener. This will help them understand behaviors related to a better and a poor listener.

Connect to the next slide– Establish the fact that we listen not only through our ears but with our eyes, mind and heart. In fact listening involves complete involvement of body.

*Ask –Is listening an activity only through ears…? We listen with our entire body…when we say that one is fully involved in listening, one is focusing on tone, gesture, voice, emotions etc.
*So we listen not only with our ears but our eyes and heart too.
*We listen with ears-to listen the words, tone, pace
*We listen with eyes-to listen non verbal cues, gestures, body language
*We listen with heart-to listen the emotions, feelings
*Its also important to maintain proper body language while listening. Listener must avoid common distractions- continuous leg movement, playing with pen etc while listening
Listening is not a competitive sport.
Tip: Picture what the speaker is saying. Feel the emotions expressed

Connect to the next slide– Ask the participants if they would like to be a good listener & develop the required qualities.

Connect to the next slide-SOFTEN and APT as in the next slide

*SOFTEN as the above mentioned technique can be consciously practiced to develop listening abilities.
*ATP from the below 3 boxes- ATP is the unit of energy. Listening is not mere a exercise, it requires energy to practice.
*All these things will demonstrate one’s full/total involvement
*Note-Touch is a very effective part of SOFTEN.

Connect to the next slide– Reiterate that a good listener is completely involved through his/her ears, eyes, mind, heart .

*Recap- Total involvement in listening with – Eyes, ears, heart, brain
*To take effective listening to the next level, empathetic listening is the key.

Connect to the next slide– To take our listening abilities to the next level, let us understand the concept of empathetic listening.

*Empathy is to understanding beyond the words. Its understanding how the speaker feels
*One of the most important aspects of Empathy is understanding other, even if not in agreement with them.
*Play video to further emphasize the point

Connect to the next slide– Having understood the meaning of empathetic listening, let us understand the benefits associated.

*Benefits of Empathetic listening as above
*How empathy helps in innovation as well- Infact Empathetic listening is one of the fundamentals of Design thinking.
*Give example of Ola/Uber which originated when the developers started empathizing with the situations of different kinds of users(elderly people, working population etc). It begins with knowing, understanding what user needs in different situation.

Connect to the next slide– Capture learning till now.

Connect to the next slide– We have seen that in communication, one has constantly switch the role of a communicator and a receiver.

*Its important to know when to get in the role of a communicator or a listener in communication. With the thoughts and the aspects learnt till now, Rupesh’s Finance Expert Effective Communication is developed, which is presented in the next slides.

*Connect to the next slide– We have also seen the universal communication process. We have learnt that if the message as send by the sender is rightly decoded by the receiver, communication is successful. Ruepsh’s Finance Expert communication model is based on these learning.

*As we know, in a communication process, one cannot be a sender or a listener all throughout. One has to keep changing the roles very frequently and effectively.
*Let us understand how collaboration is build with a successful communication through sender’s/receiver’s accountability.
*Let us see Ruepsh’s Finance Expert way of communication

Connect to the next slide– Let us first understand accountabilities of a sender or a speaker.

When sender- Focus on CBI:
C-CLARITY
B-BREVITY
I-IMPACT

Connect to the next slide– Let us see what are the aspects under C- Clarity

*Read the points related to clarity. These are all self explanatory.
*To emphasize on the last point- give example of army-where after every command an officers uses the phrase- “Koi shak” “koi sawaal” to check the right understanding of his message by the receiver.

Connect to the next slide– Let us see what are the aspects under B- Brevity

*Read the points related to brevity which means short and simple. These are all self explanatory.
*Brevity= KISS- keep it short and simple
*On the last point it may be highlighted that day by day span of attention of individuals are decreasing. Thus holding listener’s attention assumes importance.

Connect to the next slide– Let us see what are the aspects under I- Impact

*Read the points related to impact. These are all self explanatory.

Connect to the next slide– Let us now understand receiver’s accountability.

*Like Sender’s Accountability has CBI, Receiver’s accountability has IBC.

Connect to the next slide– Let us see the aspects under I B C

*I- Involve yourself completely – recall using our ears, eyes, heart and mind
*B- Be empathetic- listen to understand before being understood
*C-Get clarity to understand, ask questions- re-read the message, call for clarity

Connect to the next slide– Rupesh’s Finance Expert communication model is derived from the simplified aspects under Sender’s accountability and Receiver’s accountability. The same is called as “SARAS”

*Ask one of the participants to recap Senders and Receivers accountability. Then present SARAS.
*Rupesh’s Effective Communication model or “SARAS” comes from Sender’s accountability or “SA” + Receiver’s Accountability or “RA” which is “Simplified”, thus SARAS.
*SARAS has different meanings like Best, Excellent, Superb all indicating Excellence.

Connect to the next slide– Logo of SARAS

*Logo of SARAS- Rupesh’s Effective Communication Model.
*The curve lines in the Centre denotes the constant alteration of the role of a sender and a receiver in communication, forming a DNA like shape.
*Going ahead, SARAS using CBI and IBC should be part of our DNA.

Connect to the next slide– Having understood the important aspects and Rupesh’s communication model or SARAS, let us see how we can implement SARAS through behavior’s in our various professional aspects. These behaviors will help us build Trust, Transparency and Respect

*Before taking participants through the behaviours in the next slides, ask them on what SARAS communication behaviours they would like to see first in “Emails” part. Once they respond, click on the “Email” box and show the behaviours as mentioned using the hyperlink. Use the arrow at the bottom of the slides with behaviours to come back to this slide.
*Similarly take inputs on “Response Time/Closing Loop” , click on the box and show the behaviours that are to be practiced. Use the arrow at the bottom of the slides with behaviours to come back to this slide.
*Follow similar steps for “Cross Functional inetractions” , Other platforms like “Whatsapp”, “Team meetings”, Management Routines like weekly reviews, daily calls .
*Link it to the aspects, participants have shared earlier- good listener, good collaborator.

*The idea is to identify communication related behaviours to build Trust, Transparency and Respect that in turn would enhance Collaboration amongst the peopels.

*Participants can now be asked to capture their learning using SARAS model and clearly write actions that they would like to practice on CBI * IBC.
For a classroom session- Print of the same to be provided (file attached)

Connect to the next slide– Let us revisit how Communication rather SARAS communication will help us build Trust , Transparency and Respect that will eventually improve collaboration.

•Choose your words carefully to reflect courtesy and positivity. consider using positive words like ‘please’, ‘good try’, ‘thank you’ and ‘better luck next time’ instead of negative words like ‘careless’, ‘failure’ and ‘disappointed’.
The tone and style of your email should be suitable for the audience you are writing to. Hence, it is always better to gain some understanding of your recipient’s background and tailor your email accordingly.
Keep your email short and focused. Use short sentences and organize the content into small paragraphs. State the reason for writing the email so that the recipient knows what you are going to discuss. Use specific references while referring to any previous communication.

Cc – CC stands for Carbon Copy It is mainly used to send E mail’s carbon copy to the recipients and each recipient will able to see the list of all other recipients. When we want to send an email to someone without addressing them personally, then CC is used. Even for group communication, we use CC as it will keep management and employees in the loop without concern them directly. When we want to receive a response from recipients associated with the email, CC is used. CC also help to inform other recipients about the email
Bcc- BCC stands for Blind Carbon Copy. It is mainly used to send E mail’s carbon copy to the multiple recipients but each recipient will not be able to see the list of all other recipients. When we want to send email to large number of recipients, BCC is used. BCC provides privacy of each recipient as they will not be able to see each others mail address.
BCC SHOULD NOT BE USED FOR SPYING PURPOSES !!

All messages should have clear subject lines that
Describes the message content,
Poor subject line is either too lengthy or short hence purpose of mail is not conveyed

Forward
When forwarding a long email thread, a common courtesy is to summarize what’s being discussed below so the recipient knows exactly what you want from them. • Do not forward anything without editing out all the forwarding signs, other email addresses, headers and commentary from all the other forwarders, unless it is an important information for the recipient.

Reply Vs Reply All-
It will not contain any attachment
When deciding between Reply and Reply All, ask yourself a series of questions:
Does more than one person need to know the email was responded to?
Will the other recipients be confused if they don’t see me respond?
Do the others need to remain on the chain?

Switch on auto correct
When presenting facts or justification it is always better to mention in sequence or points as it enables in effectively conveying the message. Each paragraph should bring out a single point clearly.
A good email communication is one which leaves a lasting impression on others. Proof read the email so as to ensure that it is grammatically correct.

Using active voice make it sounds more personal
Using ACTIVE voice helps sound determined, professional, and ready for action
Using passive voice show the other person that you are not as serious about what you are writing and you allow wiggle room for not so punctual responses
Passive voice isn’t inherently wrong, however in a professional context using active voice can help you come across as confident and authoritative. It sends a strong, clear message, so, why not use it?
A quick refresher: Active voice is when a subject acts on the verb, whereas passive voice is when the subject receives the action. Therefore, it’s easy to turn a sentence written in passive voice into active voice.
A good email communication is one which leaves a lasting impression on others. Proof read the email so as to ensure that it is grammatically correct.

When presenting facts or justification it is always better to mention in sequence or points as it enables in effectively conveying the message. Each paragraph should bring out a single point clearly.
A good email communication is one which leaves a lasting impression on others. Proof read the email so as to ensure that it is grammatically correct.