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The latest issue of Strategic Communication Management shares a case study on how a 2-day master class is helping BP's IT managers to understand and practice more effective communication with their teams.
In an effort to move away from passive training, the program attempts to demonstrate how managers can engage employees in a more personal way than via e-mail or a dull presentation.
Kathleen Rojas, director of BP's Digital & Communications Technology department, shares an example of one approach used during training to help get the message across.
The most basic communication tool
"Early on in the course, those attending were invited to examine that most basic of communication tools – the story. The group looked at how the human brain is hardwired to understand and learn by hearing stories.
"They investigated the classic story structure – the dilemma or conflict and the road leading to resolution. From this, our managers began to understand how to use this fundamental aspect of the human experience to grab an audience; and to engage people in communication in the workplace just as you would outside the office.
"In a 'forum theater' participants observed a scene in which actors portrayed a manager in a meeting with staff. Afterwards, participants got the chance to interview the characters in the scene – how did they feel the meeting went? Did they feel that they were listened to? What would have worked better for them?
"They then coached the manager and the scene was replayed with an opportunity to hit an imaginary 'pause' button. This allowed them to give further advice to the manager as the scene unfolded the second time round, this time with the manager acting on advice from the team."
See you next week.
Mandy Thatcher
Editor
mandy.thatcher@melcrum.com
P.S. On the Melcrum Podcast: interviews from the recent IABC conference in New Orleans, with Angela Sinickas, Shel Holtz and Roger D'Aprix.
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internal communication. Through our global networks, we connect
more than 18,000 professional communicators in sharing what
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