Communication is key to successful manager-employee relationships and strong teams. Our team recently shared some tips for developing more transparent communication with and among your team.
However, first, you will need to analyze the current environment.
- Do your Team Members communicate regularly with you? Do you always have to seek out the Team Member to check-in, or will they come to you?
- Do your Team Members share feedback with you? Do they share accurate depictions of their work and their engagement?
- How do your Team Members react to feedback? Are they ever defensive?
- How do your Team Members handle conflict? Do they come together to move forward?
- Will your Team Members come to you if they make a mistake?
This analysis will help you determine areas that need improvement and consider steps that can be taken to make those improvements.
Strong teams are built on trust and trust requires two-way transparent communication.
According to a report from Gallup, “Employees whose managers hold regular meetings with them are almost three times as likely to be engaged as employees whose managers do not hold regular meetings with them. Gallup also found that engagement is highest among employees who have some form (face to face, phone or digital) of daily communication with their managers. Managers who use a combination of face-to-face, phone and electronic communication are the most successful in engaging employees. And when employees attempt to contact their manager, engaged employees report their manager returns their calls or messages within 24 hours. These ongoing transactions explain why engaged workers are more likely to say their manager knows what projects or tasks they are working on.”
Here are several ways to improve communication using the Truvelop app:
- Evaluation Summaries: With the Evaluation Summary, you get a quick snapshot of where that team member stands today and how you can elevate their performance. Once you complete an employee assessment, talk to your Team Member about their summary and why you answered the questions the way you did. Share your observations in an objective way and leave room for the Team Member to share their experience.
- Proactive Coaching: With Spark, you have the ability to document any Coaching feedback you may be sharing with a Team Member. Stay proactive and guide your Team Member towards the positive behavior change. Once they’ve implemented the coaching feedback, follow-up with a Praise Spark to reinforce the behavior. The extra step of recognizing change shows your Team Member your investment in their development, building their trust in you.
- Connecting Back to Values: Whether you are connecting actions back to the organization’s values or suggesting training that would support a Team Member’s career goals, always aim to bring meaning to a behavior. By attaching a value to a behavior, you are again showing your Team Member your investment in their development. Rather than just saying “do this instead,” or “this was good,” share why an action mattered. This added layer creates more transparency and really helps the Team Member to understand the importance of their work.
Contact us today to learn more about our modern approach to performance management and development that actually improves the manager and employee relationship. Don’t just take our word for it, see what our Customers have to say.
