Why good conversations improve performance

Which of us are having authentic, open conversations that actually improve our organisation's performance?

Today's leaders need to move away from the traditional, top-down, command and control model that inhibits conversation and tends to suppress creativity and innovation.

Employees are the new storytellers within organisations and, by openly encouraging employees to tell the company's story, business leaders are leveraging employee engagement positively as a business driver and using it to impact the company's bottom line positively.

By adopting the principles of face-to-face conversation, leaders create a collaborative culture that stimulates discussion at executive level and the wider organisation. Such a culture engenders an environment where people challenge one another, share ideas and debate solutions regardless of their level in the organisation, which is crucial for sound decision-making, creativity and innovation.

In Context Consulting, a strategic business consultancy which provides services to small, medium and large organisations, in collaboration with internationally acclaimed conversational leadership advocate, Dik Veenman, will host accreditation workshops in Cape Town and Gauteng in March this year.

The workshops are aimed at HR managers, HR practitioners, team leaders, communication specialists or other independent consultants who recognise the need for a better understanding and implementation of conversational leadership programmes within organisations.

Mr Veenman, an MBA-graduate from the London Business School, with 20 years' experience as a communication consultant, is a qualified executive coach and has extensive experience of enabling conversations at all levels for several global organisations. Consequent to this, he developed a set of unique and proprietary diagnostic tools, training courses, and consulting services to help leaders engage in more productive conversations with their teams and organisations.

Mr Veenman says, "The barriers to conversational leadership could be easily overcome if companies recognised that the usual internal communication methods often were simply management talking down to employees. As a result there was very little debate and, instead of encouraging questions, answers were being supplied from on high." He adds that people tend to avoid conflict and let "conversations become comfortable rituals rather than rigorous and challenging".

In Context Founder and Managing Partner, Mari Lategan, states that the collaboration with Mr Veenman and The Right Conversation™ aligns with In Context's specialty which is the development and delivery of fully integrated strategies in line with their clients' business goals.

"There is considerable pressure within the organisational environment for greater accountability, inclusion, and, frankly, open conversations," said Ms Lategan. "However, many leaders are at a loss as to how to even begin this conversation, let alone improve on it. The result is a 'nice to have' instead of a priority."

"The Right Conversation™ focuses on improving the types of conversation that take place in all organisations," said Ms Lategan. "More than ever, we need honest, open conversations in the workplace, and this will enhance In Context's offering of change and communication interventions, which effectively engage all stakeholders to bring about the required behavioural change and improved performance needed within an organisation."

The workshops aim to assist leaders and managers to have more productive conversations to accelerate change and improve business performance. The benefits of improved dialogue within an organisation are numerous, such as

• Improved employee engagement and retention
  
• Faster and more informed decision-making
  
• Greater cross-functional collaboration
  
• Improved capacity for innovation
  
• More productive meetings
  
• Greater trust in leaders
  
• A culture that is open and transparent

Join the In Context team in Cape Town and Johannesburg (18 and 19 March) for a unique engagement and accreditation opportunity with Dik Veenman. After the workshop, attendees interested in accreditation will be required to run The Team Conversational Norms Diagnostic process with a team of their choice, whilst being fully supported by The Right Conversation™ team. Once completed, accreditation will be issued.

For more information regarding the workshops please contact: In Context on Tel: 021 914 1999 / 2415 or email: az.oc.txetnocni@ofni, or connect with us on https://twitter.com/_InContext