Good morning and happy Wednesday to everyone. Just felt like sharing a recent HR win at my workplace. The Climb isn’t over yet- but it is rewarding to get the feeling that things are starting to shift.

I’ve been working really hard on culture here, and by that I mean how we do things. I could use a number of HR buzz words, but really when it comes down to it- that’s what it is all about. There was room for improvement in the way we did things here so I started with the leader’s onsite.

I started out with an awesome presentation on leadership and management (or so I thought). We had a brief discussion (or ranting session of 1.5 hours) and then I asked them all to volunteer to do an LSI assessment.

Yeah it got shot down and they left frustrated that I didn’t understand what they were experiencing. I did acknowledge the hardships and frustration, but perhaps this didn’t come across very well. Additionally, I was pretty firm on the fact that it didn’t matter what was happening- nothing excuses poor behaviour towards others in the workplace. Many argued that their behaviour was out of their control- personality is all down to brain chemistry and that this was a form of brain washing. Surprisingly, they agreed to do the LSI and I booked in the debriefings.

The debriefings were held in two sessions and again it brought another barrage of complaints. The passive-aggressive were convinced that the culture was fine the way it was and the passive-defensives argued that their angry/hostile behaviour was a product of the environment and conditions they were placed in. I kept on with my stance that they had to work with things that they could control, and find ways to cope with those that they couldn’t.

I really like this point, and try to remember it when I get stressed:

God grant me the serenity
To accept the things I cannot change;
Courage to change the things I can;
And wisdom to know the difference.

However, I did wonder if I was wasting my time at this point.

They did raise an interesting point though in their debriefings. “Why should we demonstrate this behaviour when we aren’t seeing it from the leaders above?”

I responded saying that I agreed it would be good to see it from the top. In absence of that (from their own perceptions) I argued that it would be great to lead as the example here and push this positivity upwards. They left grumpy and I thought about what I could do.

Next steps: I got the very Senior Leaders to complete the LSI and they have agreed to share their results with the others. They will explain what they need to work on, and encourage others to create a development plan based on the findings from the LSI.

Then an executive was going to be onsite for a few days so I asked him to speak to the leaders here. It was amazing. He spoke about all the changes that had been happening and plans for the future. He apologised for the lack of communication and explained how he intended on communicating in the future. He acknowledge things were tough but reemphasized the need to act as role models at all times. Great conversation and the leaders walked away (my own perception) feeling listened to.

Finally, with Bully and Harassment training refresher training due I thought let’s roll with this top down thing I am trying to get happening here. I put together the presentation but didn’t want it to be a HR tick-in-the-box kinda compliance thing. I wanted it to be thought-provoking, sink in and tie into all the stuff we’d been talking about behaviour.

So I asked one of the leaders to present it to the rest of the group and it was a really positive experience. He put it into their language, they talked about their own experiences and then we talked through some cases studies.

At the end of it, I put it to the group on how we would communicate this to the other staff and they volunteered to present the message to their groups with my support.

Such a different attitude to the ones I started with. I’m very excited to see a shift happening and hopefully it’s the start of more changes to come.

I’ve spoken a lot about change recently, and perhaps that’s because the last few years has meant huge changes for me in terms of my working life and also my personal life.

We know that everyone is impacted differently by change, and we can even point to models where people talk about the various stages people go through; like denial, resistance, exploration and then finally commitment (Scott and Jaffe. 1998).

One of the most important strategies with change is effective communication. However in some organisations this may not be considered your ‘domain’ or ‘area of expertise’.

Again it’s that mentality that HR does the hiring and firing and shouldn’t get involved in other areas of the business. But it’s the silo way of thinking that gets the organisation into trouble i.e. “I look after my area and you look after yours”.

If we in HR are going to work on strategic projects like lifting employee engagement, talent management, recruitment campaigns and cultural change don’t you think we should get involved with how it is going to be communicated?

In terms of employer branding I believe we need to be involved and actually even lead this discussion. It’s no good letting the comms team choose your images or look and feel of your recruitment adverts if they contradict with the message that HR is putting out there about the brand. It’s imperative that the two functions actually work together.

I mean I haven’t got a communications degree, but I have studied communication management at a Masters level and have some appreciation of what it’s all about. I also place my ‘HR hat’ on, and realise the detrimental impact poor internal communication can have on our people. Working on recruitment and selection campaigns also gives me insight into our brand perception, and how we attract staff.

I guess I’m talking about a real collaboration between these two functions. And in saying that, ‘collaboration’ is a bit of a buzz word that people like to throw around, particularly since the GFC where resources have become scarce.

The free dictionary interestingly defines ‘collaboration’ as

1. the act of working with another or others on a joint project
2. something created by working jointly with another or others
3. the act of cooperating as a traitor, esp with an enemy occupying one’s own country

Hmm so perhaps HR working with Comms is more like cooperating as a traitor?? (only kidding!).

Harvard Business argues that ” Many people, we suspect, would define collaboration as any situation where people work together in a coordinated way to achieve common objectives and would include highly specified and synchronized coordination, such as traditional assembly line operations”.

They go as far as to talk about different types of collaboration:
Transactional versus Relational Collaboration
Loosely versus Tightly Coupled
Static versus Dynamic

So how do you get this collaboration to get started when it appears that you have a power struggle on your hands or that you have to prove you know what you are talking about?

At his stage, I’m being polite, persistent and keeping myself grounded in research. At the same time, things like this generally need to come from the top so it’s important that the Senior leaders in HR get the ball rolling. I try to keep an open mind, and also to keep focussed on how I can change my approach to better influence them.

I’ll keep you posted with this, but in the meantime drop me a line if you’ve ever had this experience before and want to pass on some tips!

This morning I was reading an article by Towers Perrin called ‘Ten Tips to Help Your Employees Manage Change in Uncertain Times’ and they had a couple of great ideas that I really loved.

Of course there are the commonly articulated tips like for example, make sure you clarify your strategy and vision for dealing with the economic uncertainty as this will help you communicate the goals and priorities to employees. Communication during times of change is talked about a lot but often not done very well (see an earlier post on this).

I love the idea of setting up a web site where employees can learn what your company is doing — and what your competitors are doing — to manage the crisis. It shows huge transparency and can help employees to feel a lot less angst and even paranoia, during these change periods. In order to build trust, you need to ensure that staff have access to the knowledge it needs to deal with the current situation.

They also suggest sending a weekly e-mail update with successes and challenges. They say that employees respect when leadership is candid, and by communicating with your people, you’ll help them gain confidence in the organization’s future. What a great idea- although I’ve always been a fan of leaders who touch base with their people even if its to say ‘there is no news’.

Another good idea is to meet with groups of employees to listen to their concerns and take onboard their solutions. Some of the best ideas come from the frontline, and this is also true with organisational change. Embrace their opinions and participation, and they will feel valued by the organisation and more committed to seeing out the changes required to ensure future success.

Previously I’ve spoken about organisational change, change management and emotional intelligence which are all timely issues right now. In addition to these areas, I like to highlight the importance of the communications strategy in managing organisational change.

Covin and Kilman’s (1990) research note that:

‘Failure to share information or to inform people adequately of what changes are necessary and why they are necessary were viewed as having a highly negative impact. Secrecy, dishonesty, and the failure to assess dysfunctional rumours were also issues of concern’.

Hence, a positive communication strategy would involve announcing the change early (even if incomplete); establishing an information timeline; commenting on the inability to give further information; clarifying the values and protocol for change decisions; tailoring each communication to the intended audience and finally, involving those affected by the changes in as much planning as possible (DiFonzo and Bordia. 1998).

This is a particularly key point as participation in the process can greatly assist in reducing employee resistance to change (Robbins, Waters-Marsh, Cacioppe and Millett. 1994), however full participation in the processes is not always possible due to the nature and sensitivity required by some changes (such as a restructure) and time constraints. It is also wise to use a variety of media to deliver your messages, however face-to-face should always remain the preferred medium.

Finally, it’s important from a HR standpoint to view the communication process and the implementation of organizational change as inextricably linked processes (Lewis. 1999) that must be carried out systematically in order to assist people to cope with change and achieve a positive impact upon the business.

Do you know of any good or bad examples of organisations trying to communicate change?

We also communicate non-verbally using what is known as paralanguage. This includes features such as “speech rate and intensity; pitch, modulation and quality of voice; and articulation and rhythm control” (Hargie et al. 2004, p. 55). Paralanguage is an important form of non-verbal communication when you consider situations in the working environment such as speaking to influence during meetings, business presentations and performance management of staff. This is because studies have shown that the effects of voice tone for example (particularly negative voice tone) make a disproportionately stronger impact on decoders i.e. those who decode the non-verbally communication, than the actual verbal content (Graham et al (1991).

Consider this in the context in the working environment in a performance management meeting between an employee and their supervisor. For example, suppose a supervisor needs to deliver a message to an employee they really like and enjoy working with, or alternatively someone who actually infuriates and angers them. The supervisor may feel a range of emotions such as nervousness, anxiety, apprehension, anger, or distress. As such, many managers attempt to hide their true emotions from their subordinates and this in turn sends hugely conflicting non-verbal communication. Its confusing because the message they are verbalising is inconsistent with the messages they are communication through their body language.

The overall message? Be more cognizant about the situation and make real efforts to ensure that the verbal and non-verbal communications are consistent with one another, as discrepancies can lead to miscommunication, distrust and frustration.

Another component of body language as a form on non-verbal communication that impacts the working environment is that of kinesics relating to the face. Again if we consider the situational context of an employee interview (organisational recruitment) or even a performance management meeting between a manager and employee, one of the most common deception-related gestures are hand-to-face movements.

For example, Waltman & Golen (1993) maintain that during deception the hand is often used to cover the mouth and “the person talks through the fingers as if hiding or trying to keep words from escaping”. Similarly, scratching the neck is likely to suggest that one is uncertain, concerned or doubtful; rubbing the ear can indicate that the person feels they have heard enough and chin stroking can be a prelude to one making a decision (Fletcher. 2000). Hence, the importance of being aware of our own body language, and learning to read others non-verbal communication in many situations in the modern working environment is highlighted in these examples.

One of the most obvious forms of body language is that of facial expressions and is somewhat more universal than some of the other forms of body language. It is through the use of over 20 facial muscles that we encode in excess of 1000 distinct expressions that indicate our emotion and communicate a non-verbal message (Hargie, Dickson & Tourish. 2004, p. 49). Facial expressions are also said to be the most accurate predictors of attitudes and feelings (Graham et al (1991).

Facial expressions are arranged into six universally recognized basic categories including fear, happiness, sadness, disgust, anger and surprise (Ekman & Friesen, 1975; Izard, 1971). In comparison with differing meanings for eye contact as mentioned earlier, facial expressions can generally be identified in a similar manner across different backgrounds and also cultures (Ekman & Friesen, 1975; Izard, 1971; Izard, 1994).

Despite this, there are still some cultural implications to be considered. For example, Japanese articulate that negative emotions should not be shown, thus the smile is used as a ‘mask’ for negative emotion including embarrassment or reserve (Ramsey, 1994). This may be relevant to know in the instance of delivering performance feedback to an employee for example. Hence although the facial expressions can be predominantly read across cultures; the way in which they are used to non-verbally communicate in the working environment varies.

Interesting stuff when you consider how we analyse non-verbal communication in scenarios such as job interviews, performance management meetings and negotiations. It also shows what a powerful too it can be, and that you need to be aware of your own non-verbal cues.

One of the most commonly recognised forms of non-verbal communication is body language and eye contact can be one of the most powerful forms. For instance during a normal conversation we, on average, look at each other about one-third of the time, however if one makes contact less than this it can convey boredom, lack of interest and make the other person feel uncomfortable. In contrast, if you make eye contact more often, you increase the ability to engage the other person and illustrate interest and/or enthusiasm (Fletcher (2000). If you consider this in an environment such as a workplace interview, it’s crucial to use eye contact to convey interest for the position and the organisation while creating the best impression.

However, most nonverbal communication is decoded in the limbic system in our brain which is beyond our conscious control (Thorne (2005). An example of this in relation to body language and eye contact is the iris because when something is of interest to us the iris dilates. In this way, when you consider a Human Resources context such as a negotiation between employers and unions, a sharp negotiator may be able to read if you are still willing to make concessions or not (Barnum & Wolniansky. 1989). Pretty amazing, hey?

It’s also useful to consider that there is cultural disparity in the way in which body language is used and interpreted. For example, maintaining eye contact when you are being asked a question in considered polite in some cultures, whilst rude in others. This was made clearly apparent when Barbara Walters interviewed Colonel Muamar el-Qaddafi in Libya (Barnum & Wolniansky. 1989). After the interview she commented that he looked all over the room, gazing past her and refusing to look her in the eye. She explained that in America, refusing to look someone in the eye conveys a somewhat ‘shifty’ or untrustworthy quality in a person.

However, in an Arab context this non-verbal communication through the use of body language was actually a compliment as it is a way of paying respect. Looking a woman in the eye straight on, would be perceived on a similar level to physical assault in some parts of the world where women still wear a veil to avoid eye contact with men (Barnum & Wolniansky. 1989). This example highlights how the cultural framework that one uses to view non-verbal communication through, can impact the way the message is interpreted and received.

This was something I hadn’t really thought much about before, but found to be quite interesting.

- Why is non-verbal communication important to HR Pros?

Many of you will know that non-verbal communication is important because it conveys important messages via our body movements, intonations, facial expressions and gestures etc. You might think of watching your body language while presenting but have you ever thought about it strictly in the sense of HR scenarios at work? Or have you ever prepped your managers on non-verbal communication in these situations? What about when you go for a job interview?

An experiment by Forbes and Jackson (1980) observed behaviours of accepted candidates and compared them to applicants who were deemed unsuccessful for the roles on offer. Consequently they discovered that the accepted candidates engaged more in direct eye contact, had more head movements and smiled more than who were unsuccessful. *notes down for next interview*

These posts will hopefully give you some food for thought when considering your own non-verbal communication as a HR Professional and how to interpret other people’s non-verbal cues in the workplace.

Some key stats:

• Non-verbal channels such as facial expression, body movement, and voice tone contribute 93 per cent of the “attitudinal” message to the receiver (Graham, Unruh, & Jennings. 1991).
• Words account for 7%, tone of voice accounts for 38% and body language 55% of whether we like the person.
• Facial expressions are almost eight times as powerful as the words we use (Fletcher. 2000).

Non-verbal communication takes place every time one person interacts with another individual, and it can be intentional or unintentional

Consider a candidate who is nervous for an interview. Unintentionally they may communicate this non-verbally through their body language such as fidgety hands, playing with jewellery or tapping their fingers on the table. The way they sit in the chair throughout the interview may also indicate how comfortable they are and some non-verbal behaviour may even suggest whether they are lying or telling the truth. However, they may not even realise or be conscious of the non-verbal communicative signs they are emitting.

Another scenario is the negotiator in an Industrial Relations environment. In order to be successful during a negotiation it’s crucial that the individual is acutely aware of what they are communicating verbally and that it additionally matches their non-verbal cues. Most notably cues are concerned with the hands and face, and they must be careful not to illustrate their true emotions or intentions in the heat of the moment. Negotiations may be likened to poker, where players intend not to communicate to the others players the cards that they have been dealt, or where they intentionally express a particular emotion in an attempt to fool the other players. Hence, as HR professionals we all need to be able to use our ‘poker face’ in a variety of situations in the workplace.

Interestingly studies (Manusov & J. Scott Rodriguez (1989) suggest that positively labelled non-verbal communication messages are usually interpreted as intentional, whereas negative messages were perceived as unintentional.

Are you aware of what you are communicating non-verbally at work and does it match what you are actually saying?