Knowledge Worker for the Robotic Age: Communication Skills

The popular business and lifestyle press is full of dire predictions about what will happen to the future of work given the rapid application of automation, robotics and artificial intelligence technologies. To avoid obsolescence, modern knowledge workers must adapt by building themselves into multi-disciplinary, versatile thought and action leaders who can thrive in a new business environment where robots perform many roles previously done by humans.

In my article, Five Tool Knowledge Worker for the Robotic Age, I outlined the skills required for modern knowledge workers to continue to make unique contributions that will keep them one step ahead. The five tools are quantitative thinking, communication, people centricity, planning/process thinking and critical thinking. In this post, I will talk about different communication skills that are vital to making the human side of business effective.

I have so much that I want to share on this subject. What should I include and what can I leave out? Will anyone care? What’s important to the reader? And most importantly, how should I organize my thoughts so that the ideas are coherent and people understand what I’m trying to say? These are just a few challenges of any communication effort. Here is my attempt to frame  some thoughts and recommendations for making communication skills stronger tools in your knowledge worker tool box.

Written Communication– In a business context, the written word is rapidly becoming a lost art. Instant messaging, email and PowerPoint have made communication very basic and superficial. In my research, I come across well-written whitepapers and thought leaderships pieces, but they are the exception to the rule of one sentence reply-alls, bullet points and jargon. If you want to convey an idea or influence decision-makers, you had better dust off the classic five paragraph persuasive essay approach you learned in college. The model of a topic opening section, body content and summary closing is perfect for making your case. Simple, direct and declarative sentences are the way to go-take it from the king of the run-on sentence. Good writing is hard work. Expect to go through multiple drafts. I like to walk away and come back to a written piece several times to get perspective and avoid the trap of not seeing the forest for the trees. If you don’t have cause to write a whitepaper or scholarly journal article, find another way to practice your writing. Try writing a trip report, analysis of business results or a memo to your boss using multiple paragraphs and no bullet points.

Spoken Communication – Public speaking is a common fear and most people avoid it like the plague, but doing this well will set you apart from others. I separate speaking scenarios into two types. The first involves speaking in front of familiar people when you are knowledgeable in the subject about which you are speaking. The relative comfort of this setting means that you should prepare, but not overly so. Seize on any and all opportunities to do this kind of presenting and actively solicit feedback from this friendly audience. Practice and repetition will make you better and prepare you for a bigger stage. The second speaking scenario is when you are presenting to an unfamiliar audience (often large) where the topic is a specific, one-time event. Trade shows, sales meeting, conferences and outside-of-work occasions are examples of these higher anxiety settings. For these, I recommend heavy preparation and rehearsing. It may seem silly at first, but you need to practice for these high-stakes occasions by memorizing the talk-track and rehearsing by talking out loud. If something requires this level of preparation and makes you nervous, why do you want to do such a thing? I can only speak for myself, but I do it to prove to myself that I can. Not everyone can stand and deliver, but those that can will stand out from the crowd, not to mention robots…

Listening – Effective communication is a two-way street. You need to be constantly assessing how much to talk, when to pause and invite feedback to ensure that effective communication is occurring. Sometimes we have so much to say that we don’t allow the time and space for the other person to engage. Allowing others to speak and internalizing what they are saying makes for a balanced exchange that has a better chance of being effective. I have seen a couple of blog posts refer to the acronym, WAIT, which stands for “Why Am I Talking?” I think this is a great thought to keep in mind when communicating. Asking for questions or using a phrase such as “does that make sense?” before moving on can give that opening for others to talk and engage. 

Vocabulary and Grammar – I’ll admit that I’m a bit of a geek so I get great satisfaction out of using the precise, correct word for something. You should always be building your vocabulary to increase the inventory of words that you may need to use to educate, influence or explain. The best way to learn new and useful words is by reading. Learning words through reading also teaches you the context, tone and how to use the word in a sentence. These are learnings which you  won’t get from the word-a-day calendar on your desk. Don’t use fancy/big words just for the sake of it. People will see right through that. Don’t force it.  A robust vocabulary will naturally provide you with the right word at the right time. Also, I’m not the grammar police but pay attention to tenses, punctuation and spelling. People draw conclusions from any data they have. If you’re sloppy with the communication basics, it won’t reflect well in their opinions of you.

How well you communicate greatly influences the perceived and actual effectiveness of your work. Others know you through your communication abilities - written, verbal and listening skills. Bosses, subordinates and peers use your words and their interactions with you as part of their judgement to promote, follow or collaborate. Getting better at anything takes practice. Find opportunities to write, speak and listen.  

The first tool that I briefed, quantitative thinking, is foundational for the modern knowledge worker. Building on that, communication skills give you the ability to disseminate knowledge, influence action and get people on the same page. In my next post, I will elaborate on people-centricity for the knowledge worker. Please feel free to contribute your comments and feedback.