What do you do if your leaders need help developing their communication skills to promote innovation?

Help the leaders understand the real "why" behind encouraging teams to be innovative. Often the leaders do not understand that you cannot command the team to be innovative , but create an ecosystem that foster innovation. This is done by active communication by the leaders on what is the vision and goals of the company to the team and call out why being innovative is important. Encourage the teams to experiment and take risks without fear of punishment. Celebrate the wins to keep morale high.

As Simon Sinek says: "Start with why!" Communication is a means to an end. And so is innovation. What are you aiming to create: in terms of results and impact and vis á vis your company culture? Focus the conversation on the vision that motivates your leaders and your teams. And discuss the villain, the enemy, the bad guy, or the situation you are fighting against. Inspiring people into action requires strong emotions. Hope for a better future is one part of that. And the strongest force for movement and change is a common enemy, something to fight against. Help your leadership team get clear on their why - what are they for and what are they against - first. Then, and only then, can they "ignite" their teams.

En base a mi experiencia como coach ejecutivo, en los talleres de liderazgo y de oratoria, lo que siempre suelo encontrarme es falta de autenticidad en la comunicación de las personas, parecen robots, no hablan con el corazón, hablan con la mente, y claro, no resultan creíbles, y eso afecta a la hora de "vender" cambios a las personas o promover iniciativas, del tipo que sean. Trabajando la autenticidad de la persona desde la autoconsciencia, podremos llevarla a un nivel comunicativo mucho más efectivo y creíble.

Está claro, la práctica hace al maestro, y tratándose de habilidades de comunicación, mucho más. Lo importante es que la persona quiera aprender y dejar ciertos "hábitos" que no la permiten avanzar. La consciencia de nuestro lenguaje verbal y no verbal es fundamental para crear el impacto deseado y potenciar el mensaje. Al final, tras aprender y practicar, se adquiere el hábito, y sale de forma natural. Si no me crees, toma la decisión, ponte en marcha y me cuentas ;-)

In our professional spheres, we often operate within our own bubbles, limiting our ability to understand others. This lack of perspective can severely hamper our communication effectiveness, especially in times of change. While managers may focus on highlighting the benefits for the company and discussing competition, employees impacted by change have different priorities. They want to know how the change will affect them personally, how they can navigate it, and what's in it for them. Failure to address these concerns leads to ineffective communication. To bridge this gap, leaders must step into the shoes of their teams. Once this foundation is laid, leaders can implement communication techniques to convey information.

Strong communication skills are crucial to drive a culture of communication agility. Try these ideas: Traditional training can be helpful, but growth comes from real-time objective feedback. The "feedback sandwich", where the presenter, receive honest objective feedback, this normalizes constructive criticism, fostering a culture of continuous improvement. Host informal "Innovation Cafes" where all team members openly discuss challenges and brainstorm solutions. This casual setting breaks down silos, encourages diverse perspectives, allowing leaders to hone active listening skills in a pressure-free environment. A dynamic communication ecosystem, equips leaders with the agility to adapt their message, fostering a culture of innovation.

Storytelling is a powerful communication tool for inspiring and engaging teams. Start by practising in low-risk environments and gradually move to high-stakes settings. After each application, debrief and refine your storytelling skills. Also, practice "listen to innovate" to understand stakeholders' deeper needs, concerns, and possibilities. Lean in with curiosity and ask questions to surface hidden insight.

Uno de los factores que más ayudan en una comunicacipon efectiva es al empatía, es decir, "ponernos en los zapatos de los demás, siendo conscientes de que esos zapatos no son nuestros". Podemos aspirar a tratar de entender por lo que está pasando la otra personas (esa es la esencia de la empatía) pero no podemos pretender experimentar o sentir lo mismo que ella si no estamos en su mismo contexto, y aun asi, tampoco, porque no experimentamos las emociones ni de la misma manera ni con la misma intensidad. Ser empáticos es una decisión personal, es algo intencional, y que solo trae beneficios a nuestras relaciones con los demás.

To aid leaders in enhancing their communication skills for innovation, emphasize developing empathy. Understanding team perspectives and emotions is crucial for meaningful dialogue. Executive coaching, utilizing role-reversal exercises and reflective practices, can deepen leaders' empathy, enabling them to connect more effectively with their teams. This empathetic approach creates a nurturing atmosphere that encourages innovation and risk-taking, which is essential for fostering a culture of creativity and progress.

As leaders thrive on creative ideas, build on innovative solutions and create an environment which is all about open communication, feedback, and identification of gaps. The more you encourage sharing the more teams gel in and bring forth their best.

Creativity and innovations require more LISTENING rather than talking. Encourage your leaders to listen more and speak less to foster innovation. Do not shoot down somebody's idea labelling it as 'unrealistic' or 'too old' or 'too ambitious.' Encourage them to speak up. Let idea generation be encouraged. When you have a huge number of ideas then start considering them from the implementation angle. What make sis a good idea? What could be better about it? What are the resources required. What could be the impact? Your leaders could specifically be trained in implementing various methods of creativity and innovation, like brainstorming, NGT, Six thinking hats, story boarding, lateral thinking in their own teams.

Leaders must foster an open communication culture to nurture innovation, where ideas are freely exchanged without judgment. Executive coaching can equip leaders with the skills to encourage such an environment, focusing on inclusive dialogue that invites and values diverse perspectives. By learning to communicate effectively and actively seek contributions from their teams, leaders can create a space where innovation is not just encouraged but flourished. This approach signals to team members that their ideas are valuable, setting the stage for innovative breakthroughs.

Cuando se trata de innovación y creatividad, todo vale, no existen ideas absurdas, lo cual genera un ambiente... digamos que, psicológicamente seguro para que las personas quieran expresarse y no quedarse calladas. Por lo tanto, fomentar la apertura de mente y el pensamiento divergente ayuda mucho para poder llegar a concluir en ideas accionables.

Imagine leading an improv troupe where the leader whispers the play's theme once. That's innovation without consistent communication. Executive coaching helps leaders ditch the whispers and belt out a clear, catchy innovation vision. It's like a consistent melody – updates, roadblocks, and triumphs – that fosters trust, keeps everyone in tune, and lets the team riff on ideas together, transforming innovation from a solo act to a harmonious symphony.

When you have built a culture of coaching that is founded upon trust, you can get feedback in real time. At the end of every meeting you have, ask each person to rate the meeting from 1-10. 1 = this was a waste of my time. 10 = this was the best use of my time. Have them also explain why the scored it what they did. This fosters feedback on how things were communicated during the meeting and sets you up to communicate better for future meetings.

The points above are well made and useful. To add something a little different, I would suggest helping them to find their own adventurous spirit. To approach innovation as something they get to do rather than something they have to do. An adventurous spirit is ignited by curiosity and wonder. When paired with meaning and purpose, it becomes a powerfully contagious force.

Feedback is a powerful tool for leaders to refine their communication but as an executive coach, I see the need to go a step further. Here's how we can create leaders who not just receive feedback, but transform it into action and inspire their teams: Traditional feedback often focuses on the past. Instead, shift the conversation to "feedforward". In coaching sessions, help leaders translate feedback into actionable steps for the future. This future-oriented approach fuels a growth mindset and fosters innovation. Many leaders struggle with truly active listening. Coaching empowers leaders to listen not just to the words, but also the emotions and underlying ideas behind the feedback, uncovering valuable insights.

I like to make this an opportunity to “play and explore”. Coaching and formal training are great if you are getting ready for television or a major conference. However all that most people need is some reps with story telling. The great thing about story telling is that you can find ways to do it in every aspect of your business and with team members of any level. Furthermore, listening to others tell stories can inform your own approach. Toastmasters, Vistage and other professional groups and associations can help with expanding communication skills outside of the organization too. A great place to start is finding a way to grab one of these initiatives in a way that it serves the leader in their work or customer interactions.

These are all good points. I would add: Determine whether a leader is a single-focused thinker or a multi-focused thinker. (Nobody is all one or the other. It's a spectrum.) If Single-focused, help them recognize the value that the multi-focused thinkers bring to the team. Teach them that the multi-focused thinkers are Relational, so they need to be acknowledged. If the leader is multi-focused, encourage them to give concise presentations for the sake of the team. The key is to recognize that these two styles exist simultaneously. It's like two different languages.

Sometimes looking outside of your internal organization is best practice as it pushes not only leadership but also you/your team to really think outside the box.

One simple yet often overlooked solution I found is encouraging leaders to ask open-ended questions. Open-ended questions are a far more effective way of creating meaningful conversations, encouraging diverse perspectives, and promoting innovative thinking among team members than relying solely on closed-ended requests.

Communication skill sis way too broad a term. It needs to be broken down into - content to be communicated - communication channel to be used - timing of communication - language - purpose, intent and objective of communication All of these need to be planned properly.