A leader must be an expert at communication skills. Communication is often underestimated. This is because the diversity in the workplace is consistently changing and advancing at such a large pace. The number one compliant I have always heard in any organization is the “lack of communication”. This may be attributed to how difficult “communicating” properly can be. Think about all the different personalities, learning styles, and age-specific words in your workplace. I have 130 different “people” all with different characteristics, personalities, traits, and management styles. I have to cater to each employee differently. The only way anyone is going to get anything done is through proper communication. You must be able to explain exactly what you want and how you want it.
I see value in mass communication when used appropriately. Lowe’s created an open platform for all employees to share ideas, values, problems, and solutions. This is called Connections, which is a platform similar to Facebook with discussion forums, private pages, wiki’s, blogs, and the ability to share multimedia. This allows all employees to access one resource where corporate, merchants, and vendors can interact with store level employees. Connections is used in a positive manner to inspire, motivate, and develop strategies to better merchandise. When Connections first came out, it was nothing but“negativity”. Those employees who do post in a negative manner are sometimes given direct access to Senior Vice Presidents (SVP) or CEO has in order to better understand the problem. I remember one time seeing a SVP replying to an employee discussion asking for a good time to call and talk about the situation (I was shocked). I have personally used some merchandising ideas from Connections; sometimes the best ideas for your problem could already have been answered.