A U.S. Dept. of Transportation’s Tips for Goal-Setting in the DBE These tips on goal-setting provide guidance and information for compliance with …
COMMUNICATING EFFECTIVELY IN NEW ROLES
Changing business conditions are providing opportunities for information
professionals to put their skills into practice in different areas Some of
the functions now assumed by information professionals include those of
analyst, consultant, negotiator, and trainer In addition to practical know-
how, the information professional must be sensitive to how he/she
communicates in these roles for maximum effectiveness In all of these
roles, careful listening is a crucial element of successful communication
Analyst
It is exciting for information professionals to move beyond the find-and-
retrieve stage of information gathering to actually analyze the information
for input into business decisions Analysis might involve culling nuggets
of high-value information from lengthy articles or reports, pulling
together the big picture view from a variety of background items, or
reviewing pertinent information and then synthesizing it into a concise
paragraph or report to answer a specific request for information After the
challenging work of analyzing information, results of the analysis must be
communicated
clearly to the persons needing the information
For in-person presentations, consider these communication tips:
ž Be prepared”focusing on the context of the business decision at hand
ž Project your confidence in the analysis process used and be prepared to
defend it”including credibility of resources and timeliness of data used,
and threads of information that led to conclusions being presented
ž Avoid library jargon in the presentation
ž Use appropriate media to unobtrusively support presentation of
analysis”whether PowerPoint slides, transparencies, or print summary If
presenting to a team, take cues from how others are presenting
ž Provide a concise written overview of the analysis to the person or team
needing the information including your name and contact information as
well as the logo and letterhead of the Information Center if
appropriate
For non-verbal presentation of the analysis, consider these tips:
ž Deliver the analysis in the format most convenient for the persons
needing the information”whether it be in print or sent electronically”for
example, a spreadsheet, a report, or an HTML document for posting to a
web site
ž Have a
cover page with highlights of the analysis with your name and
contact information, as well as the logo and letterhead of the
Information Center if appropriate
ž Use word processing tools such as highlighting, bulleting, and creation
of tables of contents to help the user find key points in the information
presented
In both situations, it is important to:
ž Offer suggestions about how to take the next steps of information
gathering and analysis if the topic is going to be pursued further
ž Contact persons receiving the analyzed information to make sure it meets
their expectations and to see if there is follow-up work required
Consultant
With high-quality information resources being deployed to the desktop of
knowledge workers, information professionals frequently find themselves
consulting with IT and other departments to determine the best resources,
how to launch new products, how to train users, and how to achieve maximum
return on the investment in information Rather than conducting research or
analyzing information, information professionals are involved in critical
decision-making committees This brings the
opportunity for a new level of
exposure for information professionals, so it is critical that we showcase
our best communications skills in this role
When consulting with other departments about information resources to
support business objectives, consider the following tips:
ž Be well prepared for meetings
ž Actively contribute when you have good ideas and particularly where you
have expertise
ž Study to understand needs of various user groups”not only their
information needs, but objectives of their group/team, technology they
are using, work products they produce
ž Proactively communicate information to person or teams to which you
serve as a consultant, including notices of new resources to be
considered, benchmarking studies, etc
ž Consider business needs; learn to speak in the business jargon of
persons with whom you are dealing
ž Leverage your relationships with information vendors so as to have as
much information about their services as possible
ž Keep up to date with information service/product offerings to be able to
advise appropriately and in order to be viewed as the expert in this area
ž Offer to take the lead in evaluating services
being considered and
subsequent use of information resources
ž Rely on your professional training and experience to evaluate quality of
information resources and be prepared to justify your recommendations
Trainer
Public speaking is known to be one of the things that people most fear As
an information professional, you may be called upon to lead library
orientation tours for new users, lead library instruction classes, train
users on desktop information products, or train users in information
research processes”all public speaking opportunities While training may be
provided to an individual or a small group, it is more likely that it will
a larger group Some tips for effective communication in training include:
ž Greet persons attending the training session as they arrive and make
small talk with them to set a comfortable tone for the training
experience
ž Know your audience”especially their level of familiarity or expertise
with the material being presented”so that you can adjust your
presentation to their level Dont talk above or below their level of
understanding
ž Know how they will apply the material
being presented and use examples
that will catch their attention
ž Be flexible If persons in the training session learn very rapidly,
adjust your tempo to keep them engaged
ž Know your material Questions or distractions are not likely to throw
your presentation off track if you know your material extremely well
ž Believe in what you are presenting If you strongly believe that the
training you are providing will help people in their work, your
confidence will be increased and this will be evident in your
presentation
ž Speak clearly
ž Present material in small, logical concepts; remember to present what is
necessary to know vs what is nice to know
ž Ask questions of audience to test for understanding
ž Repeat frequently for reinforcement of key ideas
ž Use simple, easy-to-understand training aids
ž NOTE: You will find more resources on this topic in Unit 6 of the
InfoPro Resource Center, Training Tools for the Information
Professional
Negotiator
Considering the role of negotiator, one is inclined to think of negotiating
contracts”which is definitely an activity for which information
professionals need
to be developing skills In addition, information
professionals will find themselves negotiating for resources, and
negotiating deadlines and decisions on deliverables with users
Good negotiators are always looking for the proverbial win-win situation
This requires placing yourself in the shoes of the person with whom you are
negotiating to examine the situation from their point of view It involves
listening carefully to their perspective and their objectives and being as
flexible as you can within the reality of your own situation”whether it is
a budget or schedule or workload situation It also involves clearly
communicating your own parameters
When preparing for formal negotiations, consider the following pointers:
ž Be prepared Rehearse what you plan to present
ž Know what you must accomplish Know where you can be flexible and where
you must be firm
ž Know the limits of what you can settle on
ž Listen carefully and respectfully
ž Clarify your position and objectives
ž Try to avoid an adversarial stance; you will likely have to have a
working relationship with the person with whom you are negotiating after
the specific negotiation interaction
ž Brainstorm
options or suitable alternatives to arrive at what you need
ž Avoid setting false expectations
ž Set and stick to a deadline for finalizing a deal
ž If you are not the final decision maker, keep the decision maker
informed of all negotiating activity Make well-reasoned recommendations
to the decision maker
Many of these pointers apply to day-to-day negotiations for resources,
deadlines and deliverables as well While all are not strictly
communications skills, they play an important role in the communication
process
Source:factiva.com
