Overview

Clear communication is a skill that many assume they have but can prove elusive in times of crisis. Leadership is dependent on unambiguous communication and can be enhanced with practice and the application of a few simple principles, a splash of empathy and a fair measure of common sense. This course examines several real-life examples of ‘less than good’ communication inflicted on the Author during his career and gives the delegates a chance to practice communicating in a safe and friendly environment.

Two of the key lessons of this course are that communication is a two way process and should if at all possible be enjoyable. So, there will be plenty of opportunity for interaction and discussion in a friendly environment. In fact, when David recounts some of his own experiences of being ‘communicated at’ you may well find yourself nodding in a cathartic/sympathetic way as he talks about some of the communication gaffes he has been on the wrong end of! At the end of the course you will have a new perception of the terms ‘cascade failure’, ‘sheep-dip’ and ‘super-awesome’ and a very clear understanding of why whoever invented the term ‘burning platform’ should be put on one……!

Learning Objectives

The session has an overall objective of making your personal communications more effective. It will also allow you to:

  • Understand the barriers to effective communication and how to overcome them
  • Understand the different types of communication required for different circumstances
  • Understanding the qualities of effective communication
  • Understand the optimum structure of effective communication
  • Construct a communication plan that engages rather than outrages

Course Outline

What is the purpose of communication?

  • Group discussion to allow for sharing of ideas

Introducing the barriers to effective communication:

  • Lack of clarity
  • Lack of apparent benefit to recipient
  • Lack of impact
  • Lack of respect
  • Lack of call to action

How to break through those barriers:

  • Ensuring clarity
  • Ensuring recipients are interested and stay interested
  • Adding impact
  • Ensuring respect
  • Creating a call to action

Understanding the different types of communication and when/where they should be used:

  • The differing types of communication
  • Managing bad news messages
  • How not to do it – epic fail bingo
  • Planning a communication campaign
  • How not to do it – the impending doom scenario

Exercises

Delegates split into small groups of 4-6 and are given a communication scenario to consider. The scenarios are:

  • Announcement of company restructure
  • Announcement of good yearly results
  • Announcement of potential redundancies
  • Announcement of actual redundancies

NB: Delegates are free to create the specific details within their groups as it is the messaging style and context that is important to this exercise rather than the specifics of the content. 

Exercise 1: Delegates use either a prepared event/example or one from their own experience to do the following within the group:

  • Discuss their own experience and feelings regarding the scenario
  • Identify the primary audience and analyse what they may be expecting to hear
  • Construct their own message based on session material above
  • Playback to entire group

Discuss and feedback

Exercise 2: Construct a communication plan from example chosen by the group

  • Delegates create a plan to manage the communication of their chosen example
  • Delegates discuss and identify potential risks and mitigation actions of their plan
  • Playback to entire group

Discuss and feedback

Summary and Course Close

Who It's For

Business Professionals who want to be outstanding communicators.

Speaker

David Beckham

Principal Consultant

ChuDo Consulting

David Beckham has spent his career working in Financial Services, initially at Norwich Union then subsequently with Aviva. His career began in policy administration then moved into IT and he has been a Business Analyst in different guises since 1995. A founding member of the Business Analysis Practice he later had two terms as the Practice Lead. He worked on numerous large change programmes and was heavily involved in building the capability of Business Analysis within the organisation over the last decade. He has regularly presented at the European BA Conference and has had several articles published on Business Analysis topics. Despite being diagnosed with Parkinson’s Disease in 2010 at the age of 43 David continues to be a passionate advocate of the profession and the benefits it gives to organisations everywhere. Since 2015 David has regularly spoken on the positive power of change both on a professional and personal basis. David left Aviva in 2019 after 33 years to start his own consultancy.

BA Conference 2020 Session: The Mythic BA

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