Leadership and

Communication
Engr. Ranie B. Canlas
Leadership and
Communication
at a Glance
(Week 1)
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Objectives
This presentation intends that the students will achieve the following:
• Review the context of communication towards effective leadership
• Overview of communication concerns and processes
 Technological Concerns
 Feedback Concerns
 Communication Types
 Communication Channels
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Communication
• What is involved in communication?
• “Leaders communicate to share the vision with others, inspire and
motivate them to strive toward the vision, and build the values and
trust that enable effective working relationships and goal
accomplishment.” (Daft, 2008, p. 259)
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Technological Concerns
• Technology in communication:
• Good & Bad?
• Missing…
• Affect outcomes?
• People as ‘whole’ people?
• Personal?
• Quality of communication?
• Lazy communication?
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Feedback Concerns
• As followers we like to give feedback so why when we are leaders do we
no longer want to hear feedback?
• Why don’t coaches ask for feedback?
• Feedback from assistants?
• Top-down paradigms vs. inverted paradigms.
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Communication Process
• Encoding & Decoding
• Individual differences
• Knowledge.
• Values.
• Attitudes.
• Background.
• Goal: Transfer information WITH shared meaning.
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Communication Types
• Management Communication: directing the traffic of communication.
Collecting pieces of the puzzle and determining who gets to see which
pieces at which time.
• Leadership Communication: using the ‘whole’ person approach and
ensuring everyone can see the vision (the picture on the box of the
puzzle) while striving to promote upward communication links. High use
of purpose, ultimate vision and stories / metaphors.
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Communication Champion

Strategic Purpose Directed

Internal Conversation Leader Direct attention
and Open climate as to vision/values,
external Listening Communication desired
sources Discernment Champion outcomes; use
Dialogue persuasion

Methods
Use rich channels
Stories and
metaphors
Informal
communication
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Open Climate
• Sharing all types of communication across job descriptions (horizontal)
and hierarchies (vertical).
• Surveys show employees want good and bad information. Why don’t
we, as leaders, give open and honest information?
• Ownership in the text is akin to autonomy as we discussed in
Motivation & Empowerment.
Why Open the Communication Channels? FR
An open climate is essential for cascading vision, and cascading is essential
because:
Natural Law 1: You Get What You talk about
• A vision must have ample ‘air time’ in an organization. A vision must be
shared and practiced by leaders at every opportunity.
Natural Law 2: The Climate of an Organization is a
Reflection of the Leader
• A leader who doesn’t embody the vision and values doesn’t have an
organization that does.
Natural Law 3: You Can’t Walk Faster Than One Step at a
Time
• A vision is neither understood nor accepted overnight. Communicating
must be built into continuous, daily interaction so that over time followers
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will internalize it.
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Asking Questions
• Conditioned to have right answers and only give right answers.
• Problems need answers… leaders must have and provide the right
answer.
• Think of school…
• Ripple effect of a leader asking questions is…?
• Leader centered vs. follower-centered.
• Think about categories of leadership…
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Listening
• Most folks are thinking of what to say next while they should be
listening to what is actually being said.
• Average retention rates of auditory information is around 25%.
• Can listening be draining?
Ten Keys to Effective Listening FR
by Lyman Steil

Keys Poor Listener Good Listener

1. Listen actively Is passive, laid Asks questions; paraphrases
back what is said
2. Find areas of interest Tunes out dry Looks for opportunities, new
subjects learning
3. Resist distractions Is easily distracted Fights distractions; tolerates
bad habits; knows how to
concentrate
4. Capitalize on the fact Tends to daydream Challenges, anticipates,
that thought is faster than with slow speakers summarizes; listens between
speech lines to tone of voice
5. Be responsive Is minimally Nods; shows interest, positive
involved feedback
Ten Keys to Effective Listening FR
by Lyman Steil

Keys Poor Listener Good Listener

6. Judge content, not Tunes out if delivery is Judges content; skips over
delivery poor delivery errors
7. Hold one’s fire Has preconceptions; Does not judge until
argues comprehension is complete
8. Listen for ideas Listens for facts Listens to central themes

9. Work at listening No energy output; Works hard; exhibits active

faked attention body state, eye contact
10. Exercise one’s mind Resists difficult Uses heavier material as
material in favor of exercise for the mind
light, recreational
material
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Discernment
• Utilizing nonverbal and situational cues not verbalized during
communication.
• We are taught to be PC and speak words that are less likely to offend.
Most of us aren’t taught how to behave while we are speaking.
• Remember only 25% of our words are retained!
• People watching… full time and not as a boredom quelling activity.
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Dialogue
• Finding that shared meaning in the message and building upon that
base layer by layer with a lack of right vs. wrong and judgments.
• Discussions are taught and encouraged.
• Debates, position statements, right vs. wrong.
• Sports are huge for this. Sometimes called ‘bar room debates’.
• Best 3rd baseman of all-time is…?
Dialogue vs. Discussion FR
Conversation
Lack of understanding,
disagreement, divergent points
Dialogue of view, evaluate others Discussion
Reveal feelings State positions
Explore assumptions Advocate convictions
Suspend convictions Convince others
Build common ground Build oppositions
Result Result
Long-term, innovative Short-term resolution
solutions Agreement by logic
Unified group Opposition beaten down
Shared meaning Mind-sets held onto
Transformed mind-sets
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Communicate like a Champion:
• Establish credibility: knowledge, expertise, relationships, track-record
and demonstrating a ‘we’ mentality.
• Build goals on common ground: show folks how what they do impacts
the overall picture and that the overall picture benefits them.
• Make your position compelling to others: use emotion to your
advantage through symbols, metaphors and stories.
• Connect emotionally: EQ and adapt to the situation to ensure followers
are ready to listen.
A Continuum of Channel Richness FR
by Richard Daft
Electronic
mail, IM, Advantages
Disadvantages
Web, intranet Face-to- Personal
Impersonal Formal face verbal Two-way
One-way report
Slow feedback Fast feedback

Low channel High channel

richness richness

Advantages Disadvantages
Provides record No record
Premeditated Spontaneous
Memos, Telephone
Easily disseminated Dissemination hard
letters
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Channel Richness
• The ability to handle multiple cues simultaneously.
• The ability to facilitate rapid, two-way feedback.
• The ability to establish a personal focus for the communication.
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Stories & Metaphors
• The goal is to further emphasize the emotional connection.
• Must consider the communication process still.
• Information must be congruent with listeners abilities, knowledge
base and/or experiences.
• Select stories carefully as listeners only remember 25% anyway
and the story is more likely to be in that 25% than the
remainder of your verbalized information.
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Informal Communication
• Part is the nonverbal communication (weighted higher than
verbal) and the goal as the leader is to have our verbal and
nonverbal match to enhance our credibility and further
emotional connections.
• Part is the setting. Informal conversations can dramatically
influence the openness of an environment and the transfer of
information.
• Think school…
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References
 Moel, H. & Hoogland, Y. (2005). Communication in Organizations. Psychology Press,
Taylor & Francis Group.
 Pauley, J. & Pauley, J. (2009). Communication: The Key to Effective Leadership. ASQ
Quality Press
 Steil, L. & Bommelje, R. (2004). Listening Leaders: The Ten Golden Rules To Listen, Lead &
Succeed. Beaver's Pond Press
 Daft, R. (2009). The Leadership Experience (Fourth Edition). Cengage
 Leadership Communication. http://www.webpages.uidaho.edu/sportpsych/leadership/
Leadership%20Communication.pptx
 Why Communication Is So Important for Leaders. https://www.ccl.org/articles/leading-
effectively-articles/communication-1-idea-3-facts-5-tips/
 Images:
 https://medium.com/swlh/10-communication-secrets-of-great-leaders-90a834310c5b
 https://www.shrm.org/hr-today/news/hr-magazine/spring2019/pages/how-to-
improve-leaders-communication-skills.aspx
 https://nucleusteq.com/communication-media-and-technology/ 24
Thank You.
Ranie B. Canlas
09175958817
raniecanlas@dhvsu.edu.ph
ranie.canlas@gmail.com