PRESENTATION OBJECTIVES
At the end of this lesson you will be able to:
• Establish and maintain open communication processes with
all stakeholders
• Communicate information from line manager/management
to the team
• Communicate unresolved issues, concerns and problems
raised by team members and follow-up with line manager/
management and other relevant stakeholders
• Evaluate and take necessary corrective action regarding
unresolved issues, concerns and problems raised by internal
or external stakeholders
3
OPEN COMMUNICATION WITH STAKEHOLDERS
• Employee productivity and the need to empower people revolves
around the use of teams
• Teams have enhanced productivity and employee relations – they
can only do so when they have effective communication amongst
team members, with the team leader and with all other
stakeholders
• Communication barriers caused by miscommunications are
common within organisations
• Misunderstandings can be overcome if the communication network
is open, honest and each person in the communication chain
makes the effort to overcome barriers
4
OPEN COMMUNICATION WITH ALL STAKEHOLDERS
• Preventing miscommunication requires that you understand your
own communication behaviours or style and the way in which is
differs from others
• Take account of and make allowance for diversity
• Learn to communicate naturally with whom you are attempting to
communicate
• Effective communication must exist between leaders/managers
and workers, between workers, and between the various
management levels in the organisation
5
OPEN COMMUNICATION WITH STAKEHOLDERS
Excellent leaders/managers:
- Are assertive – not aggressive 11. Use situational leadership techniques
- Provide positive reinforcement 12. Lead by example/role modelling
- Give constructive feedback 13. Manage diversity
- Provide clear and consistent directions 14. Promote continuous learning
- Make their expectations clear 15. Involve people in decision-making
- Actively listen and respond to employees
and customers 16. Encourage innovation and creativity - Behave with honesty and integrity 17. Put what is best for their workers ahead
of what is best for them - Inspire and enthuse others 18. Are agents for quality, positive
continuous change and improvement - Have strategic influence 19. Choose to develop the company’s most
valuable asset: the people - Influence organisational culture
6
OPEN COMMUNICATION WITH STAKEHOLDERS
Poor communication and information sharing systems are major
reasons some work teams never reach their potential.
Command and control workplaces restrict communication, particularly
between the different levels within the organisation. Managers believe it
is in their best interest to control information as a power centre.
Without good communication between all hierarchical levels of the
organisation, productivity decreases and employee satisfaction and
morale declines.
Limited access to support and understanding of management will break
down successful communication.
Low levels of worker satisfaction and moral throughout the organisation
lead to decreased productivity and support for organisational goals.
7
COMMUNICATION WITH STAKEHOLDERS
Why communicate
•Communication is
necessary to monitor
progress of the team
and any issues,
concerns or problems
can be known before
they escalate
How to communicate
•Use a variety of ways
including the following:
•Face to face
•Formal/informal
interaction
•Verbal
•Written
•Electronic
communication
•How a team
communicates with
managers depends on
the information to be
communicated and
reason for the
communication
When to communicate
•This will be determined
by the parameters in
the setting up of the
team. However, it is
important to maintain
open communication at
all times
•It is far better to
communicate more
often than not enough
•Management needs to
be aware of the team’s
progress at all times.
This may be by means
of daily or weekly
reports
•Issues that arise
needing urgent
attention must be
immediately
communicated to the
appropriate manager
What to communicate
•Depends on
parameters set out for
the team
•Usually a team charter
sets out progress
reports necessary for
the team to
communicate to
management
•There may be a
meeting schedule to be
maintained
•These items need to be
communicated to
management at times
required
•Managers like to be
kept in the loop, so
team leaders may keep
the line manager up to
date with the progress
and aspects of the
team through informal
discussions
8
COMMUNICATE WITH LINE MANAGER/MANAGEMENT
Team leaders provide the primary communication link between team
members and other levels of management in the organisation. They
are often responsible for conveying the overall strategy of the
company and translating it into meaningful information for the team.
There are three elements to effective team communication:
• Willingness to talk and share information and effectively
presenting your point of view
• Active listening
• Understanding
9
COMMUNICATE FROM LINE MANAGER/MANAGEMENT
Active listening
Ask other’s opinions before you present yours Don’t hide feelings but keep emotions under
control
Be prepared; think things through before
speaking
Present concrete specifics instead of overriding
generalisations
Use a positive or neutral tone of voice Backup your opinions with a important key points
Focus on the issue, not the person Keep your cool do not lose your temper
Avoid blanket, know-it-all statements, loaded
words and hyperbole
Avoid a hidden agenda and the potential to
politicise an issue
Portray what seems like an individual problem as
a mutual concern
Find the areas of agreement as the bases for
collaboration
Show an interest in the other person’s views and feelings
10
COMMUNICATE FROM LINE MANAGER/MANAGEMENT
Understanding
Just because the receiver thought he or she heard the message, it
does not ensure that the message was correctly received
Often, it is important to check that the message was properly
received to:
• Verify its accuracy
• Confirm to the speaker that you in fact received and
understood the message
11
COMMUNICATE WITH LINE MANAGER/MANAGEMENT
Willingness to talk and share information and effectively presenting
your point of view
This involves several factors:
• Personal styles (extraversion and introversion)
• Trust that the information will not be used in a negative way
• ‘Politics’ – the belief that information is power – which would inhibit
people from sharing it for fear of losing power
• Effort by the speaker to depersonalise issues that would otherwise
create defensiveness
Extraverted and introverted people need to recognise their style differences
and how it will affect communications.
Introverted people may need to have their viewpoints drawn out.
12
COMMUNICATE WITH LINE MANAGER/MANAGEMENT
Effective team leaders are able to be a conduit for information and need to present
information in a meaningful and appropriate way to facilitate understanding by team
members. Team leaders should:
• Filter communicated information to provide relevant information and to maintain
encouraging and motivating messages for their teams , not just filter information received
to suit their own needs
• Not choose not to disclose information simply because they do not believe other team
members need to know
• Communicate openly and sensitively or the staff may no longer understand the position of
the organisation
Example There is a problem communicated to you. As team leader you should :
• Raise the issues that affect the team
• Filter that information to motivate your team and improve results
• Call a team meeting to discuss the issue
• Offer support to help the team move towards a resolution
13
COMMUNICATE FROM LINE MANAGER/MANAGEMENT
• Team leaders provide the main communication link between team
members and other levels of management in the organisation
• They are often responsible for conveying the overall strategy of
the company and translating it into information for the team
• They use their communication skill to keep the team committed
and focused by keeping them on track
• Facilitating effective communication that fosters a high performing
team culture, is more than passing on messages
14
COMMUNICATE FROM LINE MANAGER/MANAGEMENT
Team leaders might be called upon to communicate key aspects
which can include, but are not limited to:
• Strategy/business direction/goals
• Praise
• Concerns/difficult news
• Budgetary implication
• Competitor information
• Effective team leaders are conduit for information
• Do not filter information to suit their own needs
15
COMMUNICATE FROM LINE MANAGER/MANAGEMENT
General rules for effective communication of information include:
• Break large amounts of information down into smaller, easier to
digest chunks
• Link new knowledge to existing knowledge
• Use examples, facts and analogies to help people to understand
• Do not just give data – explain what it means for the team’s
performance
• Use the ‘What’s In It For The Team’ (WIIFTT) principle
16
COMMUNICATE FROM LINE MANAGER/MANAGEMENT
Inspiring vision
• A leader’s role establishes direction, influences and motivates others to work toward
the same goals. This can be achieved by developing an inspirational vision,
empowering people and encouraging change
• Flexible and open-minded employees require leaders who are flexible and open-minded
• Good leaders lead from the front line, are visible, known and approachable
• From the front line you see what your employees do – what rules stifle rather than
empower them
• Work with your customers to find out what they really think of your company
• Ensure open lines of communication facilitate knowledge sharing across the team and
build a culture of collectivism rather than competition
• Open communication actively serves to increase effectiveness, efficiency and make the
team pleasant to be a part of
• Make sure you give credit and recognition to all members of the supplier-customer
interface
17
COMMUNICATE FROM LINE MANAGER/MANAGEMENT
Delegate
• Delegation works if you hire and train people correctly
• If you set and adhere to high standards then others will as well
• Horizontal management refers to the process of removing traditional
management hierarchies and decreasing the layers of management
within an organisation
• Workers are given more responsibility for their own work and for quality
and continuous improvement of products and processes
• Smart, secure managers delegate responsibility and authority to staff
• They involve people in decision making, treat everyone with respect and
spread the power in the organisation so that they are, in effect,
answerable to their staff
18
COMMUNICATE FROM LINE MANAGER/MANAGEMENT
Sense of urgency
• This does not mean everyone should panic, it means breaking down
barriers increases information sharing and team collaboration
• Constantly test, change and improve processes, challenge the
status quo, simplify process management, make operations
straightforward
• As a result, employee motivation levels will increase
• People will act to ensure that tasks are completed within
timeframes an at the required standards
• Be energetic, confident, act decisively, and move quickly on
opportunities – lead by example
19
UNRESOLVED ISSUES, CONCERNS AND PROBLEMS
Issues, problems and concerns can affect the whole team and escalate if not
dealt with immediately. All teams get blocked at some point in their life cycle:
• It is not the number or nature of blockages but how the team overcomes
them
• Conflict is not necessarily a bad thing if it provokes conversation and
innovative solutions.
If the team and its leaders always agree on the best way to work or achieve
may not necessarily be effective. Not agreeing or consistently achieving
consensus doesn’t mean your team is dysfunctional but that they are
confident in their team mates and their skills to challenge and contribute to
discussions and alternatives.
‘Conflict’ can stimulate individual growth and provide opportunity for thorough
examination of issues and options by team members as a team.
20
UNRESOLVED ISSUES, CONCERNS AND PROBLEMS
Blockages are as varied as teams themselves some examples include: unsupportive
management, poor resourcing, external competition, internal competition and unclear
goals.
Behaviours that result from a blocked team can be damaging and counterproductive
to both the team and their outputs. They can include:
• A reduction in energy and enthusiasm
• A sense of helplessness
• A loss of purpose
• Increasing numbers of one sided discussions
• Cynicism
• Mistrust
• Interpersonal attacks
• Blame laying
21
UNRESOLVED ISSUES, CONCERNS AND PROBLEMS
As we have discussed
there are basic steps to
problem resolution. To
remind you here is the
diagram again. This time
with one important extra
step. What if, despite your
best efforts you cannot
resolve the issue?
Unresolved issues exist.
They are either unable to
be resolved due to issues
outside your control or
conflict remains even
when a solution looks
suitable and sufficient.
22
CORRECTIVE ACTION
Issues that are unable to be
resolved may need to be
escalated to the most
appropriate personnel. Usually
this would start with a
manager or other authorised
person. Eg: HR departments
and their personnel trained in
conflict management and are
able to support you and your
team member.
Steps that can be taken to
help with unresolved issues
can include:
Unresolved
issues
23
CORRECTIVE ACTION
Issues that are difficult to resolve need to be communicated to all
stakeholders especially those personnel who can help you and provide the
necessary support.
Another piece of the puzzle is to agree on the outcome of the
communication. What needs to happen now? How often should you
communicate to your managers? You need to know how you can measure
and monitor the progress of the team. You can:
• Schedule meetings
• Ask for progress reports
• Observe your team
• Ask questions of the team
• Communicate and communicate again!
24
CORRECTIVE ACTION
Breaking log jams:
In some instances the issue may not be able to be resolved
internally, and an external person must be called in. External people
are able help because they:
• Can see the problem with ‘fresh eyes’
• Are removed from any team interpersonal conflict
• Are not party to organisational / team politics
• May have specialised skills/ knowledge at their disposal
25
CORRECTIVE ACTION
Follow up action is important – it must be measureable and on time. This may require
some negotiation! When an issue is unable to be satisfactorily resolved within the team it is
often for one of the following reasons:
• Team members cannot see the problem clearly eg: clouded in personal values, history of
behaviour or distrust
• It requires external intervention eg: senior executive must approve additional
expenditure
• Team members do not have communication skills to be able to reach a resolution
As a manager of a team you are likely to be in a position to observe first-hand or gather
facts relating to the nature of the problem. You can consider the members of the team as a
whole and how they interrelate – there might be concerns on both sides! You are likely to
be able to objectively analyse the issues and to capture their essence.
On some occasions feeding your observations back to the team will be enough to help them
crystallise the issue. In other circumstances however, you should use this clarity to bring in
external help. Knowing the true essence of the problem helps to ensure that you get the
right help at the right time.
26
CORRECTIVE ACTION
Seek assistance:
Teams might need advice, support or expertise of external stakeholders to resolve
issues blocking their progress. External help can be:
• External to the team but internal to the organisation e.g. a senior executive or
human resource manager
• External to the team and external to the organisation e.g. a technical expert or a
team’s expect
Regardless where the expertise is found, the person/s giving the advice must:
• Be credible
• Be experienced in the area of advice sought
• Understand the exact nature of the issue
• Understand why they are being asked to intervene and have a clear understanding
of what is expected from them
• Be in a position to offer advice or practical support
27
CORRECTIVE ACTION
Ten principles in resolving conflict:
• Take shared responsibility for the conflict
• Vulnerability can be useful for resolution – open up and share your feelings
• Recognise and appreciate differences among people
• Do not assume people are being difficult intentionally
• Preserve individual dignity
• Choose a safe place or person with whom you can vent and clarify the issues for
yourself
• Listen carefully and with empathy, listen to understand, communicate, do not debate
• Generate solutions – find agreement
• Be calm. Do not give in to emotional outbursts or reactions
• Follow up to ensure resolution and modify if necessary
28
CORRECTIVE ACTION
Team members have to learn two fundamentals:
• Having different opinions is an essential benefit of teamwork
• Team members have strong feelings and emotions
• A team cannot achieve its full potential with only logic and
information
• Take steps to minimise/resolve any conflict or disagreement that
may be dangerously escalating. These steps include:
• Identify the type of conflict
• Depersonalise the conflict
• Discuss the issues
29
PRESENTATION SUMMARY
Now that you have completed this presentation you should be able
to:
• Establish and maintain open communication processes with all
stakeholders
• Communicate information from line manager/management to the
team
• Communicate unresolved issues, concerns and problems raised by
team members and follow-up with line manager/management and
other relevant stakeholders
• Evaluate and take necessary corrective action regarding
unresolved issues, concerns and problems raised by internal or
external stakeholders
The post LEAD AND MANAGE TEAM EFFECTIVENESS PRESENTATION 4 appeared first on My Assignment Online.
Plagiarism Free Assignment Help
Expert Help With This Assignment — On Your Terms
✓ Native UK, USA & Australia writers
✓ Deadline from 3 hours
✓ 100% Plagiarism-Free — Turnitin included
✓ Unlimited free revisions
✓ Free to submit — compare quotes