Clear communication is essential for a productive work environment. This involves striking a balance between
- Sharing all needed information, including stating the obvious on occasion.
- Removing unneeded communication
The above is neatly summarised as
Quote
Share information once, and only once
Share all needed information
When presenting information and conclusions, it is easy to assume baseline information that might not be shared, either because the audience is new to our work environment, or because diverse backgrounds make for diverse assumptions about how the world works. It is best to state our assumptions, even obvious ones, explicitly, allowing us to quickly get to the bottom of misunderstandings and be able to cooperate effectively
Share information only once
Once a useful communication channel is established, avoid repeating the same message: Examples of what to avoid:
- Redundant company communications are often ignored, and lead to a communication channel being ignored all together
- ❌ Inform employees of a new bonus scheme via email, slack and an in-person meeting
- âś… Send an email, linking to the documentation containing all needed information. Bonus point for including a pixel tracker that allows you to see who opened the email, allowing the company to reach out individually to those who might have missed the email.
- Help forums tend to be very efficient but also very strict about their communications.
- ❌ Ask the same question on multiple channels.
- âś… Find the most appropriate channel for your question.