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Section IIBasic Management/

Personal Skills

Chapter 4

Communication: A Critical Management Skill

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Communication: An Overview

• The key to effective interpersonal communication: Seek first to understand, then to be understood.

• Think before you speak; select words that nurture rather than destroy.

• Words are meant to richly bless and empower. Words are not merely to inform but to transform.

• The art of listening well and speaking in appropriate ways are essential to effective leadership.

• Effective communication is about a variety of media, not just talking.

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The Communication Process

• Involves– A message– A sender– A channel

• May include– Feedback

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Conveying Effective Messages

• Communication skills of the sender• Clarity of purpose• Effectiveness of the message itself• Appropriateness of the channel used• Receptivity and communication skills of the receiver• Feedback• Life experience and preexisting biases in either the

sender or receiver

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E-mail and Text Messages

• Quality reflects professionalism.• Take time to read before pressing Send.• Beware of “reply to all.”

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Nonverbal Messages and Body Language• Nonverbal communication

– How messages are transferred without words

• Body language– The mannerisms of people, including

• Eye contact (or lack of it)• Facial expressions• Leg and arm movements

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Listening

• The weakest link in the communication process• Obstacles:

– Gap between speaking and listening rates– Preoccupation

• Active listening includes concentration, full attention and thought.

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Feedback

• The process by which the sender knows whether the receiver has understood the message.

• Without feedback, communication is one way.

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Barriers to Communication

• Noise• Time• Volume of information• Tendency to say what we think others want to hear• Certainty• Failure to select the best word• Prejudices (sender and/or receiver)• Strained sender-receiver relationships

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The Gender Barrier

• Men– Want to project credibility and authority– Downplay doubts

• Women– Often use qualifiers– More likely to downplay certainty

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The Language Barrier

• America will become more racially and ethnically diverse during the next half century.

• Gestures can also be misinterpreted.• Bridging the barrier:

– Hiring more bilingual officers– Employing interpreters or translators

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Communication Enhancers

• Send clear messages.• Select the best communication channel.• Be open.

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Internal Communication

• Downward communication• Upward communication• Vertical communication• Lateral or horizontal communication

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Subordinate Communication

• Essential to managerial responsibility• The grapevine

– Aka the rumor mill– Informal channels that hinder cooperation and teamwork

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Improving Internal Communication

• Newsletters• Intranet

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Communication at Meetings

• A carefully prepared agenda is one key to a successful meeting.

• Types of meetings– Informational– Opinion seeking– Problem solving– New-idea seeking

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Keys for Effective Meetings

• Prepare in advance—have an agenda.• Start and stop on time.• Stick to the agenda.• Facilitate open communication and participation.

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Technology and Communication in the Field• Data is a mission-critical necessity.• Mobile technology empowers agencies to

– Increase productivity– Increase officer morale– Increase community safety

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Tactical Communications

• Not all tactical communications depend on technology.– Depends on leadership and management skills of the

first officer on the scene.– Law enforcement must rely on solid people doing good

police work.

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External Communication

• Communicating with other agencies– Interoperability

• Communicating with the media– What the mainstream media report and what the public

believe as a whole are not the same.– Public information officers

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Communicating with the Community

• Emergency notification systems• Every contact is a public relations contact.• Annual reports• The Internet

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Information Sharing through N-DEx, OneDOJ and LEO• N-Dex

– Used to solve crimes and fight terrorism

• OneDOJ– Allows agencies to get information from all of the

Department of Justice’s investigative components

• LEO– Gives officers access to a variety of information-sharing

services

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Obstacles to Information Sharing

• Technical• Logistic• Political• Ethical