Reading the room
Communication is a funny old thing. It can come in all sorts of shapes and sizes. Observation is a key element of good communications and this came across very strongly the other day when someone said that managers didn’t seem able to ‘read the room’ these days.
Of course what he meant was that few managers have been taught how to look out for telltale signs of things that might be going wrong within their team.
Bearing in mind the current economic climate and uncertainty surrounding so many businesses it might be worth looking at some key ‘hidden communications’ signs.
Appearance can often be a giveaway. Is someone dressing in a different way. Perhaps they have suddenly lost interest in themselves and they start coming to work looking dishevelled. If so it is worth checking out. It could be that the person concerned is depressed, are losing their self respect or may be hiding a medical condition. Whatever the reason it may be that giving them the opportunity to talk might help the manager to understand what can be done to help.
Of course, it could be that they have started turning up to work looking the bees knees. In which case check out to see if they are leaving the office to make telephone calls and having prolonged lunch hours. If so you can be pretty sure that they are probably looking for a new job.
There are other factors that can communicate a lot. Has a normally good timekeeper suddenly become a bad timekeeper? In one recent case it was all because the mother of the employee had been diagnosed with a serious illness. The employee was trying to look after the sick mother and do their work at the same time. The manager concerned was able to arrange for additional time off whilst the mother received treatment.
Watching for the tension in a team can also nip problems in the bud before they get serious. A person refusing to help with the work of another, turning their back on others, talking over other people, rubbishing their contributions. All of these could be seen as signs of a tense situation which needs to be managed.
What about the quality of the work? Telltale signs can be more mistakes made than normal or blame being placed on others because of shoddy work. Or it could be deadlines missed where before they were always met, or an inability to complete work. Where the quality of work deviates from the norm for that employee then the manager should be alert.
How about if they are slow in decision making? It could be that they are unsure about the level of their authority. The manager may have delegated a responsibility to them without making it clear the level of empowerment they have on the project.
In each case it requires effective communication from the manager to ensure that the problem is resolved. But only if the manager knows what to look for in the first instance.
Building a record so that you have the facts in front of you is important. Not being judgemental is equally important. Instead approach the issue calmly, prepare for the meeting and then deal with it directly by sticking to the facts is always the best approach.
Recognising the hidden messages in people’s everyday habits and mannerisms can help managers to be better more attentive and proactive team leaders. That is what ‘reading the room’ Is all about.
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