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1. Best communication
practices for leaders
KAITLYN ORR
COLORADO STATE UNIVERSITY GLOBAL
ORG: 536 CONTEMPORARY BUSINESS WRITING AND COMMUNICATION
BRIAN NEFF
SEPTEMBER, 12 2021

2. Digital Communication Best Practices
 Select the best platforms / software
 Research different systems (Zoom, Microsoft Teams, etc.) to see which will be the best
fit for the organization and its employees
 Make sure employees know how to best utilize the software
 Hold training workshops
 Periodically check in on the status of employees knowledge of the software and how
they are using it to complete their work
 Be aware of generational differences
 How will this affect learning curves, adoption, productivity, and satisfaction

3.  Don’t become over dependent on technology
 Make sure employees are “unplugging” from technology from time to time
 Be aware how technology can hold the capability to hinder personal growth and the
formulation of unique, authentic and creative ideas (Heffernan, 2019).
 Be aware of isolation
 If working remotely, do regular check-ins or one-on-one’s with employees to make sure
technology is not creating feelings of isolation
 Try to keep working on relationship and team building

4. Written Communication Best Practices
 Pick the best form of communication to match the intended message
 emails, texts, memos, letters, reports, manuals, and contracts among others
(Attan, et al., 2021). Some of these methods are more casual and some are
more professional, choose wisely
 Ensure messages are clear, concise and easy to understand
 Practice proper grammar and punctuation
 Be aware of the recipients knowledge base
 Don’t assume everyone will be familiar with certain phrases or acronyms

5.  Proofread the message to ensure it is formatted in an effective manner
 Use tools such as spellcheck, thesaurus, or Grammarly (Grammarly, 2020).
This Photo by Unknown Author is licensed under CC BY

6. Oral Communication Best Pracitces
 Practice confidence
 Fake it ‘till you make it
 Practice!
 Be aware of many factors that can influence the way a message of received
 Tone of voice, fluctuations, pauses, filler words
 Eye contact
 Gestures
 Appearance

7.  Be authentic
 Use own personal style – do not try to imitate others
 Know the audience
 Demographics
 Knowledge base
 Use presentations that will enhance or oral message
 Use of images or graphs that will enhance the message
 Avoid things that will distract / detract from the message

8. Guide to best practice on when to use
written versus when to use oral
communication

9. Emotional Intelligence Best Practices
 Be self-aware
 Leaders should be aware of how their own emotions affect them, their work, and how
they treat others
 Work on this first

11. References
 Attan, A., Raof, A. H. A., Omar, N. A. M., Abdullah, K. I., & Hamzah, M. (2012).
Establishing the Construct of Workplace Written Communication. Procedia -
Social and Behavioral Sciences, 66, 76–85.
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.sbspro.2012.11.249
 Grammarly. (2020, July 10). 5 ways Grammarly helps you learn while you write.
Retrieved September 11, 2021, from
https://www.Grammarly.com/blog/Grammarly-helps-you-learn/
 Heffernan, M. (2019, July). The human skills we need in an unpredictable
world [Video]. TED
Conferences. https://www.ted.com/talks/margaret_heffernan_the_human_skills_
we_need_in_an_unpredictable_world