Communication Skills: Interpersonal & Written

Communication is an all-encompassing trait that defines each individual.

Superior communication skills are considered as a pre-requisite to excel in not only at work, but also in life as a whole. It may be impossible to see any job placement that does not require a candidate to have excellent communication skills. In reality, most individuals have average communication skills and a small lucky percentage is naturally gifted communicators.

Business Communication is complex due to the formality of communication structure, hierarchies and major financial gains or losses involved.  The challenge many professionals encounter is the absence of formal coaching on business communications. As a result, most of the learning is through observation and experience.

Interpersonal communications in majority could improve with increased and varied experiences. However, written business communication is a greater challenge, whereby it can improve only marginally with experience and effort. It is not uncommon for any critical written communication document to be reviewed for clarity, framing, mistakes and for the tone in most organizations. Hence, improvement in these skills typically requires formal coaching or extensive mentoring.

Our two day workshop is attempted to close this gap at a foundational level. The learnings are imparted through a combination of exercises, games and role-plays.

• Discover their communication styles and the improvement strategies.
• Become knowledgeable on the theories, science and best practices related to interpersonal communication
• Learn on the basic rules for written communications
• Embark on the path to become a better communicator.

  Day 1 – Interpersonal Communication

• Introduction, Objectives and Agenda
• The Communication Loop
• Communication Styles
  • Assertive, Aggressive, Passive, Passive-Assertive

• One-way / two-way  communication (Formal and Informal)
• Effective Communication Strategies for:
  • Small group communication
  • Meetings
  • Large group communication
  • Non-Verbal communication
    • Appearance
    • Body Language
    • Sound
• Barriers to communication
  • Lack of ownership
  • Stereotyping
  • Perception
• Role of Emotions
• Expressing and Accepting Feedback
• Listening
• Success Factors for Interpersonal Communication
  • Focus on Results
  • Assumptions
  • People Orientation
    

  Day 2    - Written Communication

• Welcome and recap
• Attendee presentations
• Forms of written communications in the workplace
• Common Mistakes
• The ABC’s of good writing
  • (A) Accuracy
    • Data
    • Language
    • Structure
    • Grammar
    • Voice
    • Punctuation
  • (B) Brevity
    • Short sentences
    • Proper words
    • Paragraphs
    • Fog Index
  • (C) Correctness
    • Mirroring technique
    • Positive framing
    • Removing the “You” attitude
• A Few “Not to Do’s”
• E-mail writing etiquette
• Practice session
• Summary
• Five Point Action plan
• Closure