Improving People Skills

SUBMITTED BY: SACHIN RAUT DESSAI (125) ROSHNY MARIA KOSHY(135) SHILPA PANDEY (145) SK. MISBAHUL QADIR (155) SURAJ G PATIL (165) VIPIN JANARDHANAN (175)
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CONTENTS
1) Introduction 2) Importance of People Skills 3) Techniques to Improve People Skills 4) Case Study 5) Conclusion 6) References

INTRODUCTION

According to the Portland Business Journal, people skills are often described as:

understanding ourselves and moderating our responses talking effectively and empathizing accurately Building relationships of trust, respect and productive interactions.

People skills are key to the success of managers. Therefore, managers need to improve their people skills such as communication skills, skills to delegate authority and to create effective teams. Organizational behaviour provides some useful insights to improve people skills of managers. It enables them to learn about their own behaviour as well as the behaviour of others. It also provides ways to modify their own behaviour as well as that of others, thus improving their interpersonal skills and perform once on the job. HR professionals and headhunters classify skills into two categories, hard skills and soft skills. Hard skills are easier to define because they apply to a specific function computer programming, database management, driving a truck, piloting a plane, designing a house or office building (architect), building a cabinet (carpenter) or wiring a building (electrician). Soft skills, on the other hand, embrace all the interpersonal relationships vital to selling a companys products or services. In the past, many organizations considered hard skills more important than soft ones when considering job candidates. While an IT or engineering company may initially put more weight on technical skills when evaluating job candidates, they look for candidates who have both. Theyre ultimately the most valuable because they have the potential to go the furthest. Improving people skills include designing motivating jobs, creating effective teams and techniques for improving interpersonal skill. Interpersonal skills involve using skills such as active listening and tone of voice, they include delegation and leadership. It is how well you communicate with someone and how well you behave or carry yourself. Also they help people further their careers.

2. IMPORTANCE OF PEOPLE SKILLS

People skills play a key role in the success of managers. Therefore, managers need to improve their people skills such as communication skills, skills to delegate authority and to create effective teams. OB provides some useful insights to improve people skills of managers. It enables them to learn about their own behaviour as well as the behaviour of others. OB also provides ways to modify their own behaviour as well as that of others, thus improving their interpersonal skills and perform once on the job. The most important qualities you can bring to your job are technical skills and the ability to complete tasks well. However, also important is your ability to develop your people skills. Without these skills, technical skills can only get you so far. The success of a project often rests on the understanding of related people and management issues, rather than technical issues. Career success is about finding a balance between technical and interpersonal skills. People Skills Open Career Doors The quality of interpersonal or people skills is one of the important reasons rank-and-file employees are promoted to management positions, according to John Agno, an Ann Arbor, Mich.-based executive coach and career counsellor. As they move up the organizational ladder people skills become even more important. Executives are promoted for their abilities to bring in the numbers, take tough stands and create strategic plans, says Agno, But when they bomb, it is usually because of poor or mediocre people skills.

3. IMPROVING PEOPLE SKILLS

1. Understand How People communicate especially in Intercultural communication

Culture affects every aspect of our lives, including communication. Therefore, in order to communicate effectively, one must have an understanding of how others' cultures impact the way in which they communicate, as well as how one's culture influences one's own communication. Effective communicators are motivated to understand themselves, as well those who they are communicating with in order to enhance the communication process. Therefore, effective interpersonal communication is a person's ability to interact and adjust to others from various backgrounds. In order to become an effective intercultural communicator, you must first understand why communication is sometimes hindered between people from different cultures. When people come from the same or similar cultural backgrounds, the way in which they communicate is often very similar, which means they often interpret similar meanings and have similar perceptions of when and how it is appropriate to use certain types and styles of communication. However, when speakers have different cultural assumptions, the possibility of communication breakdown significantly increases. This breakdown in communication that is caused by misinterpretation and misunderstanding is called communication dissonance. Dissonance can occur both intentionally and unintentionally, and intra-culturally and interculturally. Dissonance can occur for multiple reasons, but essentially comes down to the inability to understand what is meant by what is said. Therefore, understanding how people communicate is imperative to better communication.
2. Express Your Thoughts and Feelings Clearly

Teams need people who speak up and express their thoughts and ideas clearly, directly, honestly, and with respect for others and for the work of the team. That's what it means to communicate constructively. Such a team member does not shy away from making a point but makes it in the best way possible in a positive, confident, and respectful manner. You cant read the minds of people around you, so dont expect them to intuitively know what you are thinking or feeling either. This applies to your team members and your boss.
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If you are angry or frustrated, take a few minutes to cool down then find a quiet place to communicate with the person who is the source of your anger or frustration. Let them know not only how you think and feel but why you think and feel the way you do. In all your relationships, personal as well as professional, this is an essential people skill. Discussing feelings wont be confrontational if you depersonalize it talk about the issue, not the person. Avoid using you, you are anything that smacks of finger pointing. Remember to use appropriate body language and observe the other persons body language.
3. Speak up When Your Needs are Not Being Met Chances are the need you have that is not being met is related to one of the things this list. Morality Creativity Spontaneity Problem-solving Acceptance of fact Prejudice Self-esteem Confidence Achievement Respect Depersonalize this discussion again. Address the issue. Dont place blame. Be sure you resolve the issue or it will keep popping up again until you do. Be willing to accept the fact that an unrealistic expectation on your part might be part of the problem. This should be part of your people skills portfolio all by itself. 4. Ask for Feedback from Others and Give Quality Feedback in Return Your organization may have a formal performance appraisal process in place that managers are required to follow. But review time can be a tense and nerve-wracking time for everyone involved because thats usually when money and promotions are discussed - requiring your very best people skills. So dont let that become the only time you provide performance feedback to your team members.

One-minute goal-settings Keep them simple Make sure you both agree on them Have your team members summarize agreed-upon goals in writing on no more than one page Focus on the 20% of activities that will lead to 80% of the gains (The Pareto Principle) Dont make the process of managing too many goals overwhelming no more than 3 6 at a time One-minute praisings Pay close attention to team members starting up front Monitor their activity, looking for things done right that you can praise Praise in person, specifically pointing out what was done well Be consistent even if youre having a tough day or week, praise the positive

One-minute reprimands Dont let mistakes pile up! Immediately correct mistakes dont wait until review time to bombard someone Be consistent Be specific agree on the facts Be clear about how you feel about poor behaviour Dont attack the person address the behaviour, not the individual After communicating dissatisfaction with behaviour, praise the individual Establish the fact that you are sharing your disappointment because you respect them and expect so much from them Also, Toastmasters International teaches a useful, informal feedback technique: CRC - or Commend, Recommend, Commend. 5. Influence How Others Think and Act The idea is to inform people into yes (influence them) rather than coerce or deceive them (exert power). Of all your people skills this one will work to your advantage most frequently.

Robert Cialdinis six principles of persuasion move people to say yes. Why? Because the art of persuading creates influence which has a much longer professional lifespan than power? Power can be here today and gone tomorrow, frequently leaving a whole new set of problems in its wake. What are the principles of persuasion? Authority: People will defer to experts. If an ad says four out of five doctors recommend this product, they are relying on the authority of medical professionals to influence consumers. Consistency: People will uphold their stated commitments. After signing a petition in support of a social cause they feel obligated to back up a public statement. Liking: People like those who like them. Finding common interests and offering praise are two ways to foster liking. Reciprocity: People will repay in kind. People feel obligated to reciprocate when they receive a gift or favour, even if it was unsolicited. Scarcity: People want things (tangible and intangible) that are rare or scarce. Look at all the ads that say limited time only or while supplies last. Social Proof: People follow the lead of their peers. For example, a door-to-door charity campaign was found to be more successful when prospective donors were shown a list of neighbours who had already contributed. Cialdini learned that the key to influencing how people respond is not as much in the request itself as the way the request is made you have to sell it, but ethics are paramount. These six principles can be adapted to any industry one is a part of. 6. Bring Conflict to the Surface and Get it Resolved A formal negotiating or arbitration process tends to involve people who have little understanding of how and why the conflict occurred in the first place, have no vested interest in finding a lasting resolution so the conflict can not only continue but ultimately spin out of control. As part of your people skills agenda, its your job as a manager or team leader to make your own decision about how you deal with conflict. Getting it done, putting it behind you and moving forward is the ultimate goal of conflict resolution. Know the people involved and the organizational ramifications of a particular conflict use your own judgment about the best way to proceed. 8

7. Collaborate with Others The quickest way to bury yourself in a mountain of work is to try doing everything yourself. This is not the right approach; your team will think you dont trust them to do their jobs. Collaboration is defined as working jointly with others or together especially in an intellectual endeavour. Sounds like a pretty good idea when you consider the alternatives: Avoiding solves nothing Accommodating avoids confrontation but probably wont solve a problem Compromising the easiest solution, but not necessarily a win/win Competing leaves the other persons needs unmet

Collaboration is the maximum, sustainable solution when you are facing a problem, dealing with conflict or any major challenge. If you are not a natural collaborator, this is a "must add" to your people skills list. 8. Shift Gears When Relationships are Unproductive Albert Einstein once said The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results. Sometimes you need to walk away acknowledge that youve done everything you can do to make a relationship work, but it just wasnt enough. As the boss, sometimes you need to jettison unhealthy cargo a team member whose attitude is bringing everyone else down, even after youve counselled him or her of the consequences of continued negative behaviour. Sometimes you need to take drastic steps to regain balance and momentum if your relationship with your boss becomes unsupportive, or even hostile. Sometimes an increase your level of assertiveness will resolve relationship issues, but when that doesnt work, you have some hard decisions to make and you are the only person who can make them. Theres no magic bullet to fix broken work relationships. Its something you have to deal with using effective people skills.

9. Clearly Define Working Relationships As a manager, one advantage to having friendships with your employees is that you already have strong, positive relationships with them. You know what motivates them because you know their interests, their families and their goals in life. But you are a manager now and you need to be careful to distinctly define the boundaries between you and your friends on the team. Here are a few pointers. Clarify your relationship. Be clear about what your goals are, how your team members are to help you accomplish them and what they can expect from you. By communicating these things clearly, you minimize the risk that a team member will misinterpret your friendship and behave in an unprofessional manner. Dont play favourites. Or even do anything that might be construed as favouritism. If you favour certain team members because they are good friends, other team members will quickly start to distrust you. Step back and be sure that the way you treat your friends correlates more to what they do than how you feel about them. Keep it confidential. No matter how close you are to any of your team members, resist the temptation to give them the inside scoop. Confidential information (salaries, hiring and firing decisions, quarterly earnings, etc.) must never be shared. Face the firing line. Sometimes a friend and team member isnt performing up to par. You need to be able to take a cold, hard look at the fact that this persons behaviour is impacting morale, schedules, customer service; time spent fixing mistakes in short, the companys bottom line. In a case like this, you are the manager first and a friend second. Early in your role as a manager it will be tempting to rely on your friendships from your previous position. Finely tuned people skills require that you find a few degrees of separation.

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CASE STUDIES
Case 1
Situation: Two senior leaders of a Construction and Development company with over 500 employees and a diverse portfolio of national projects were at odds with each other, costing the company delays, inefficiencies, poor resource utilization, and other serious problems due to interpersonal conflict and chronic misunderstandings. The ongoing conflict had spread to their teams showing up as morale problems negatively affecting product quality and project schedules. Action: Both executives had a genuine desire to get to the bottom of the conflict. They realized that their conflict had negatively affected their teams and they wanted resolution. As president of The People Skills Group, I was called in to provide an initial assessment of the issues and establish a dialogue between the two leaders. Once rapport and trust were established in that first meeting, they hired The People Skills Group to tackle the bigger issues of reducing organizational silos and establishing a more productive working relationship. Results: Through our Become a 360 Leader program, we addressed gaps in skill, knowledge and self-awareness that prevented the VPs from operating effectively with each other and their teams. The two VPs have been operating with a higher level of cooperation and openness, improving productivity measures across the organization from the executive suite all the way down to the construction trailers on job sites.

Case 2 The Brehon Case Study

The Brehon hotel is part of the Gleneagle Group of companies. The Brehon hotel and spa set in an exquisite location in the South West of Ireland, offers a unique experience with caring and efficient staff. The hotel is aimed at the corporate conference, commercial and leisure market that should provide a young, affluent client base. Newly built and opened, the
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management team needed to orientate multi cultural staff to the brand and what it meant in terms of customer service delivery. The debate centred on how to recreate the story of The Brehon and communicating that story to employees in a unique and engaging way. It was important that employees understood what that meant for them in terms of behaviour towards each other and towards the delivery of The Brehon customer experience. The People Skills Business designed an event that was suitable for all levels of staff, catered to a multi-cultural audience and was engaging. We created The Brehon Way Experience. The design centred on all aspects of the brand and included a combination of discovery exercises and group work. The learning environment was created to stimulate the senses thus increasing learning capacity. Design and delivery of The Brehon Way Experience was completed within 8 weeks. The project was managed and facilitated by The People Skills Business in partnership with Senior Management and included a management engagement session, programme roll out, communication and measurement. A management event was held to build management commitment to the brand and help them to identify what they needed to do to lead The Brehon Way. This was followed by all staff attending The Brehon Way Experience. Following the event, notable results included staff telling stories to the customers about The Brehon and how the brand was created. Success was measured through customer feedback on their experience in the Hotel and discussed in department and management meetings. The Brehon Way Experience now forms part of the new starter orientation programme and is also linked to Ireland's Best, a government quality initiative.

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CONCLUSION

The importance of interpersonal skills cannot be discounted in an organization.As a professional, you must communicate with people all the time.How you are perceived by your manager and coworkers plays a large role in things as minor as your day-to-day happiness at the office and as major as the future of your career. No matter how hard you work or how many brilliant ideas you may have, if you cant connect with the people who work around you, your professional life will suffer. The good news is that there are several concrete things that you can do to improve your social skills. All of these tools will ultimately help you succeed in todays working world. Acquiring the skills of good communication is not difficult. Using them when it really matters is the difficult part. It is when you use your communication skills that real improvements in relationships and in problem solving become possible.

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REFERENCES
i. ii. iii. iv. v. en.wikipedia.org transtutors.com financialpost.com ehow.com Human Capital

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