The Art of Communication™: Creating Shared Meaning

Within teams, cross-functionally, up, down, across, and beyond our organizations, we have to be able to communicate in order to inform, influence, and learn from one another. We need the ability to express needs directly, share information appropriately, solicit information, listen to others, and advocate positions, all while building and maintaining strong relationships. 

The Art of Communication™ is a skill-development program focused on creating shared meaning and a common language. The skills are used for moving information and ideas efficiently and effectively within and among organizational units and with key stakeholders. In this intensive and experiential program, you will practice three aspects of communication: message, style, and behaviors. You will develop your communication skills and strategy, gain insight into your communication style and its impact, and recognize and test the assumptions that underlie your own worldview and that of others. You will gain tools that are useful in developing plans for effective communication. 

Learning Objectives

Participants will gain practical skills to:

• Achieve business results by more clearly stating what you expect, need, or offer
• Build relationships by effectively sharing and soliciting information and providing balanced feedback
• Identify cultural, power, and style issues that may be interfering with communication and address those issues
• Analyze your own style of communication, what impact it has, and how it differs from the styles of others
• Practice specific behaviors that will increase your effectiveness as a communicator
• Plan a strategy for effective communication. 
   

Who Should Attend

The Art of Communication™ course is appropriate for individuals who are:

• Anyone in an organization who relies on effective communication to achieve results.

Prerequisite

There is no prerequisite for this course. It functions as a stand-alone course.

Materials

You will receive a course workbook containing copies of presentation slides, exercises, and suggested solutions.

What You Will Learn

Overview and Positioning

• Introduction to the program, program objectives, agenda, definitions, and expectations 

A Framework for Communication

• Results/Intent and Goal, Relationship, Context, and Approach

Communications Behaviour

• Receptive Communication Skills
• Expressive Communication Skills 

Communication Style

• Verbal language
• Non-verbal language
• Modifying communication style 

The Structure of Communication

• Understanding another’s world view
• Framing the message
• Ladder of Inference
• Working with assumptions 

Communicating Cross-Culturally

• High and low context cultures 

Planning Communication

• Why is planning important?
• Communications planning model