Welcoming Bill Hennigan, iVoice Communication Guest Blogger
At one time I was a top-down leader. Determined. Brazen. Groomed with a purpose and it was not always mine.
It worked, until it didn’t.
There was a time that I wielded authority in a manner that just doesn’t work any longer in the modern business world. This is and was a challenge of great change for me. We need authoritative skills, we need to work across generational and cultural gaps, or chasms. As leaders in our companies, it’s our responsibility to lead the way.
We must be agile with a multiple of communication skills and styles. Business still functions from top down and bottom up for management structure. I understand this and feel fortunate to have had these experiences with the opportunity to evolve to understand how we can cross the chasm(s).
Change is slow and often painful. To be that leader who knows how to engage and inspire people towards being their best selves is what’s needed today. To be successful one must understand the value of diverse and cross-generation teams. Especially in a time of not only emotional complexities, but technology as well.
How to cultivate the skills to improve company culture is a powerful opportunity. When we work to bring all generational or cultural brackets together, to share knowledge and information, it bridges these chasms.
This blog post today is written by a guy (me) who, over his career, has lived through recessions, inflation, social change, and participated in a variety of projects, designs, developments that required us to collaborate, organize and build skills to meet business and cultural needs. All of this work was based on our ability to communicate through change.
To get to where we want to go. To build a united workforce as opposed to a workforce that’s divided or siloed, we need to provide a safe and secure way to go deeper into our understanding of not only ourselves, but the potential of team and human dynamics.
This takes introspection, an honest assessment of how we communicate, the necessary skills, and how to cultivate to meet what we hope to achieve, which is the ability to change. Continual change can be arduous yet quite valuable and well worth the effort.
As we work though our busy workdays on never-ending opportunities; employee retention and succession planning are major business requirements that can’t be forgotten. To step back and assess our people; what we all have in common including our uniqueness.
Organizations want employees to take initiative which means taking charge; having a positive attitude with an entrepreneurial spirit; being results-oriented team players; dependable and responsible with a desire for continued learning.
We want those things even before the employee begins to work with us!
What iVoice Communication teaches is conceptual and experiential but founded on empirical data.
- “…86% of employees and executives cite the lack of effective collaboration and communication as the main causes for workplace failures.” (Workplace communication statistics 2022)
- “…teams who communicate effectively may increase their productivity by as much as 25%.” (McKinsey & Company)
- The 2021 State of Global Workplace report from Gallop pegs lack of engagement costs the global economy US $8.1 trillion, that’s nearly 10% of GDP, in lost productivity each year.
This formerly brazed leader has been awakened.
The 6 Pillars of Mindful Communication can create the foundation for reflection and introspection for organizations to become better versions of themselves and better leaders.
Adults learn through experience and our learning experiences create the foundation for a stronger, more balanced, and communicative future, closing the gap to the chasm. Great musicians, communicators and leaders are built through a continual learning process. This work takes time. And practice.
Upskilling, coaching, and teaching happens simultaneously and is not for the faint of heart. The 6-Pillars align with my desire to be a better leader.
People want to be developed, to be better, to be part of a healthy work environment, and it happens through understanding and continual improvement. We, all of us, can be lifelong learners. There is a sense of urgency today, and it seems imperative in this new business world.
I’m thrilled to be part of the iVoice Communication support team. As I delve deeper into wellness and mindfulness, to become a yoga instructor moving from that brazen top-down leader to someone different. We are all part of the system and unique in our own ways. It’s a continual journey with challenges to do better.
I look forward to our collaboration in how we can identify your employees’ communication capabilities, their uniqueness and help create success as we work to close the chasm of an ever-changing business landscape.
