In her book Talking From 9 to 5, Deborah Tannen, Ph.D., reports that when it comes to communicating in the workplace, employees who get heard at meetings tend to be those who speak more directly, more loudly, and at greater length than their co-workers.
Trying to be polite may backfire. Says Tannen, "Many people try to avoid seeming presumptuous by prefacing their statements with a disclaimer such as, 'I don't know if this will work, but ...' or 'You've probably already thought of this, but ...'." Such disclaimers may result in the rest of the communication being ignored.
By Tag Goulet
However, simply telling employees to speak up is not the answer to ensuring everyone's contributions are heard. Some employees may need time to reflect before speaking, while others may not speak up at all for fear of looking foolish.
Companies that want to take advantage of contributions from all their employees need to teach their managers and group leaders to foster communications.
Says Tannen, "The most important point is for managers to become skilled at observing group process and noticing the role that each group member takes." The group leader can then give credit where it is due and encourage greater participation from all.
Going around the table and asking everyone to state their opinion is one way to encourage greater participation. However, participants are often influenced by what has been said before them and may not risk disagreeing with someone higher up in the organisation.
A better idea, therefore, is to invite employees to submit their opinions in writing either before or at the meeting.
Another option is the Japanese practice of "nemawashi" in which a facilitator meets one-on-one with participants before the meeting. The facilitator can then make a presentation which includes the variety of opinions, thereby ensuring that everyone's opinion is taken into account and saving face for those whose suggestions are not followed.
To elicit ideas from those who need time to reflect after the meeting, Dr. Sonia suggests managers conclude with a comment such as "If anyone has any more ideas before tomorrow morning, put them in writing and leave them on my desk."
Companies that follow such practices may be rewarded with ideas and innovations well beyond those expressed during the meeting itself.
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Tag Goulet is Chief Executive Officer of fabjob.com and author of the fabjob.com Guide to Become a Motivational Speaker.
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