Soft Skills for the Professional Services Industry

CHAPTER 16Effective Communication Tools

THE FOURTH TOOL OF successful professionals is the proper use of effective communication tools. Unlike rhetoric, which is about the “how,” communication tools are about the means. The “how” in communication is much more important than the means. These are tools that support you in your professional and personal life. Nowadays, in critical situations with employees, customers, family members, and friends, text messages, chats, or emails are too often sent when a face‐to‐face conversation would be the more adequate means of communication. What's more, in written communication often neither the right “tone” or expression are used, nor is an appropriate form maintained. Essential information such as body language and voice cannot not be transmitted in an e‐mail, chat, or text message (unless it is a video or voice message). On the other hand, phone calls or face‐to‐face meetings are usually more time‐consuming than an email, chat, or text message, which the recipient can then read or listen to when they want.

A communication tool is effective if it helps you achieve your goals. Using the right communication tools can significantly increase a professional's effectiveness and efficiency. With this in mind, the following suggestions and tips are intended to help you consider when to use which means of communication to transmit information to colleagues, family members, and friends.

There are basically three types of communication tools: You ...