Introduction
Based on the conversation with Tim Smith, it is notable that the transfer of information is coupled with significant challenges that not only hinders how employees receive it but also the delivery process. Drop in morale is experienced, which leads to deteriorated performance and reduced collaboration among workers. Considering that employees are given a project to manage, it is crucial for the team to engage in a practical communication training session that will enhance their interaction and sustain good outcomes for the project. Tim Smith has already purchased the USA Effective Communication Training Module, from which additional competencies are added to streamline the process. The following is an outline of the necessary studies and techniques required to foster proper communication with the team for sustained interaction and better project outcomes.
Aims of the Training Session
The primary purpose of the training process will focus on ensuring effective communication between the manager and the subordinate staff. According to Peltier (2016), employee’s morale is determined by their interaction with leaders and satisfaction with their tasks in the departments. This means that Tim Smith must understand various concerns causing impairment to his communication with the project teams and mitigate the same. Another aim of the training session will entail educating team members on decoding information presented to them by the management and how to properly apply their skills in meeting the project requirements (Hwang, Lai and Wang, 2015). Interaction between members themselves will also be examined since it has a significant impact on the morale of individuals as they engage with their tasks in the project.
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Research on the best means of Communication
The target audience originates from a multicultural setting; their collaboration is based on a professional level. According to Kostić-Bobanović, Novak and Bobanović (2016), it is imperative to understand the standard language for the team members to offer guidance in creation of better decisions on the training practices. The professional setting, therefore, implies that only one language is common to the workers hence reducing the concerns over language barriers. Communication functions with smaller groups, personal relationships and on a public context are essential. According to Kane, Palmer, Phillips, Kiron and Buckley (2015), the manager is expected to understand each on a personal basis. Tim Smith should be researching every team member with the interest of knowing their challenges within the group, how they respond to various questions and their way of offering feedback on any perspective. This is integral since it ensures that the manager can tell when the employee is responding rudely or adequately. Listening competencies for Tim Smith will also be a crucial aspect of consideration. The manager should first study his perception of others and how he offers the team members’ time to express their concerns (Hollenbeck, and Jamieson, 2015). The manager must determine the root cause of the increasing communication problem before invoking the training essentials that are aimed at improving the interaction and morale of the team members.
Involvement of the Manager in the Communication Process
One of the training essentials is to focus on involvement of the manager in the overall communication process with the team. Tim Smith argues to be facing the challenge that the project coordinators when they communicate with the members, it comes out as a rude gesture. Moreover, it is evident that the project teams do not understand what is going hence the teams seem not to be doing their work. The project coordinators should be actively involved with the teams they lead and ensure all information regarding the project is passed through to the respective individuals. According to Peltier (2016), the training must ensure that coordinators are given active roles in leading the project teams, which will entail provision of related information about the project and assessment of the outcomes from each. The training must emphasise on having proper collaboration with coordinators to create a continuous communication and thus meet project requirements.
The coordinators should also be involved in the communication process through the development of small-group skills. According to Kostić-Bobanović, Novak and Bobanović, (2016), the coordinators should be trained on further breaking down their teams into smaller groups and dealing with each of these groups individually. The practice is integral in ensuring that both listening and speaking are taken care of with fewer destructions. Moreover, issues can be clarified with the manager hence reducing conflict and lack of understanding within the departments (Luftman, Lyytinen, and Zvi, 2017). The practice will be essential in the training process. The coordinators must understand its need in ensuring improved collaboration and interaction within their teams.
Each of the sessions should be developed with an outline of the agenda for the training, which can be passed to the personnel in advance to help them prepare for the same. The sessions should start through team-building practices where interactive activities such as inquisitive sessions, sharing names and other aspects about themselves (Kernbach, Eppler, and Bresciani, 2015). The necessary skills that each is expected to understand can be presented in the training process. With the Skype Session, the leader can articulate on the importance of communication while involving members on various tasks to help their interaction. Through such practices, it is evident that association of the members will improve and communication practices enhanced for better practices.
Potential Barriers to Effective Communication in the Training
There are various barriers expected to occur in the training process that can hinder effective communication between the trainer and the teams. One of the most common hinderance is language and choice of words. According to Dingsøyr, Røyrvik and Djarraya, (2019), language and word choice are sensitive aspects that relate to effectiveness of the communication process. The sparse language will lead to improper decoding of messages presented to individuals, which implies that quality of communication will have gaps. Moreover, as argued by Noe, Hollenbeck, Gerhart and Wright (2017), offensive language distorts the message hence influencing the understanding of the listener, which can have detrimental outcomes.
Another potential impendiment to effective communication in the case of Tim Smith is the defensiveness and distorted perception that can occur due to various factors among the project coordinators and team members. According to Luftman, Lyytinen and Zvi (2017), the named aspects can lead to lack of concentration thereby affecting the delivery process. Noise and other inconsistencies in the training room can also affect delivery from the trainer, hence leading to poor communication and consequently lack of information gain. According to Cloutier, Felusiak, Hill and Pemberton-Jones (2015), assumptions, lack of clarification, absence of feedback and selective hearing, among other aspects, can also lead to poor communication in the training process. Cultural differences and lack of understanding of non-verbal cues, among other actions, can also hinder proper delivery from the trainer.
The trainer must be attentive to note these aspects before the training sessions and have possible solutions towards the same. According to Morrison, Ross, Morrison and Kalman, (2019), the trainer should have an interactive session which ensures that all persons participates in the session and limits lack of concentration. Cultural competency will be necessary to help the trainer chose the best language and words to use in the sessions. Moreover, it is imperative for the leader to use familiar non-verbal cues that are easily understandable, and that will not be confusing to the persons based on their cultural differences.
Conclusion
The research purposed to present an outline for the training practice that is necessary in ensuring that Tim Smith’s IT management staff appropriately collaborates with teams assigned to realize improved outcomes. It is notable that the communication issue exudes from either lack of proper understanding for the team members or improper delivery of information by the project coordinators. This means that the training practice must focus on both parties as a practice towards ensuring good project outcomes. It is notable that the project coordinators must be actively involved through dealing with small teams and providing feedback where necessary. Furthermore, the leaders must assess the projects on how they are conducted to verify if they meet required standards. The team members must work hand-in-hand with each other and with the project coordinator. All information is to be passed in a top-bottom manner, which will foster continued communication among individuals hence realizing intended functional outcomes.
References
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