By Jennifer Farnsworth
Despite living in an age with so many types of communication, more and more businesses are looking to professionals to help them zero in on making communication more effective in the workplace.
Many business advisors say if communications are made a top priority, success will be that much more obtainable.
Leslie Kendall of Kendall & Associates Organization Development in Queensbury, said with communication comes the importance of team building. She said the process of team building is not difficult, it just takes commitment.
Michael Cruz of Lighthouse Advisors LLC in Queensbury said the best advice he gives to companies looking to improve communication is to simply be honest. He said many organizations make the mistake of talking around issues. He said they have to be able to communicate by talking directly to people instead of talking around them.
“Figure out your goals and what each person’s contribution is. You are all in this together,” he said.
Kendall said she helps organizations develop a path to success by developing a list of what their priorities are. This is done through using proven problem-solving methods that identify and prioritize potential obstacles. Her company provides workshops in grant writing, proposal development, team building, and working through changes in management.
Kendall said being strategic while planning is key. She advises people to look at their greatest challenges before putting together an idea of how they want to tackle issues. Being proactive is something that she says is important.
“Look at your obstacles before choosing the resources you plan to use. Find the root and the cause and then do your analysis. Get after your obstacles first,” said Kendall.
Cruz said businesses should focus on the plan, look into the emotional side and find a vision through being tactical and strategic. “Business leaders have to be able to face issues truthfully and fearlessly,” said Cruz.
Cruz said most clients are first timers who hit challenges. They start seeing a problem and they know they need to change direction. He suggests focusing on having the right priorities.
Kendall has worked with the University of Phoenix on facilitated instruction method, mediation and conflict resolution, community violence prevention, and school safety planning projects. In the local market, she said she is getting an increase in requests for workshops. In the workshops, they look at leadership and team development, putting a focus on the importance of each player in a company and how to build relationships with those players.
“Teams building is about how to get a handle on change by having trust and confidence in each other, not by feeling threatened by newness. When employers can accomplish this, all employees win and vice versa,” said Kendall.
“You need the right people with the right priorities who are in the right and appropriate seats,”said Cruz..
He said he deals with a fair amount of nonprofits who have an extra layer. He said that their job, fundamentally, is to do good, while still being successful. He tries to help them sort through this by helping them to focus on their mission.
Cruz emphasizes teaching how to get the right people on a team. Like Kendall, he said businesses need to make sure that everyone has the same priorities and is working for the same goals.
Lighthouse Advisors offers programs to help companies and individuals increase executive and employee productivity in addition to overall well being. The programs they offer include personality assessment, personal coaching and programs on a variety of topics. Cruz said the types of services they offer has not really changed over the years because people haven’t changed.
“Business market and their needs and demands may change, but people really don’t. The need for building relationships has always been what is necessary,” he said.
Kendall said one of the most effective models she uses, whether it be nonprofit or a thriving commercial business,centers around understanding that growth does not have to be a vertical hierarchy. Kendall and Cruz both said these types of services are sought out by small businesses as well as large organizations.
“Everyone can be a leader and everyone can be a follower,” said Kendall.