© 2010 Jones and Bartlett Publishers, LLC

Umiker's Management Skills for the New Health

Care Supervisor, Fifth Edition

Charles McConnell

© 2010 Jones and Bartlett Publishers, LLC

Chapter 32

Spoken CommunicationSpoken Communication

 

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Of Critical Importance

As leaders, supervisors use

communication skills to discharge

their management responsibilities.

Communication is by far the most

important managerial skill. Without

it, all other skills are inoperative.

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Information Sharing Must Be:

multidirectional, moving up, down,

laterally, and diagonally with equal facility;

objective, factual, and true;

comprehensive but not excessive;

credible; and

timely.

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The Informal System

The informal communication network, or

grapevine, flourishes when information is

scarce or changes take place. The

grapevine is rapid, up to date, and

pervasive and distributes information

quickly—BUT IT IS OFTEN UNRELIABLE.

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The Grapevine’s Advantages:

The grapevines two primary advantages are:

• Speed of transmission—information

moves faster than by most other means.

• Depth of penetration—the “rumor mill”

reaches people who never read a

newsletter, look at a bulletin board, etc.

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For Better Messages

Speak with conviction.

Substitute strong responses for weak ones.

Call a difference between people a

misunderstanding rather than a

disagreement.

Say what you can do, not what you cannot

do.

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For Better Messages

Shake hands with enthusiasm and

smile.

Be assertive.

Use people’s names often and

pronounce them correctly.

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Barriers to Verbal Communication

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Every Day We Speak in Five Languages.

1. English

2. Body language

3. Professional and technical jargon

4. Organizational and bureaucratic talk

5. “Computerese”

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Psychological Barriers

interrupting, arguing, blaming, talking

down to, kidding, or being sarcastic;

name calling or threatening;

using patronizing words or sexist terms ;

making statements indicative of

indifference or apathy:

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Body Language

Body language is often a significant

part of any interchange. It is an

important part of the “message,”

especially when the body language

contradicts the spoken words.

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Weakening Your Message

Making requests or demands in

question form.

Using disclaimers: “I know this

sounds silly, but…”

Using weak qualifiers: “sort of,”

“maybe”

Tolerating interruptions

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For Successful Listening

Look as though you are listening.

Sound as though you are listening.

Provide feedback.

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Skilled Listeners

Skilled listeners make frequent use of

supportive, responses and they

avoid defensive, judgmental, and

advisory ones. Skilled listeners also

listen carefully for underlying

feelings.

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A Test of Telephone Answering

Anonymously call your unit after

regular hours and ask a complex

question about an aspect of your

service. Be prepared for a shock.

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For All Telephone Users

Use the caller’s name frequently.

Say what you can do, not what you cannot

do.

Mitigate anger by answering empathetically.

For outbound calls, state your business first

and save the small talk for last.

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For All Telephone Users

Answer promptly and identify yourself.

Sound enthusiastic and cooperative.

Keep the person focused on the reason

for the call.

Keep personal calls short and

infrequent.

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For All Telephone Users

End conversations on a positive

note, and thank the person for

calling.

Make sure that the callers know

what you are going to do, and do it

promptly.

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Avoiding Phone Tag

Pick the best time to call.

Ask to page your party, or ask if there is

another number for reaching the person.

Ask if there is someone else who can

answer your question.

Leave a message.

Use an answering machine or e-mail.

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Voice Mail

Change your greeting regularly

In addition to your name, organization,

and phone number, state the time and

date, the nature of your call, when it is

convenient for you to be called, or

when you will call back.

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Voice Mail

Substitute a message for a request

to be called back.

Suggest a fax response if a

response is needed.

Let callers know when you make

callbacks.

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Some Pluses of Answering Machines

They force you to be brief.

You get no negative feedback or long-

winded conversations.

There is less likely to be

misinterpretation.

They minimize phone tag.

They avoid interruptions at critical times.