THEORETICAL BACKGROUND
The work environment has changed in a positive way in the last years, meaning that there is no more tolerance for toxicity, bullying, or gossip either if it comes from the employer or the employee. Also, in 2022 it is demanded especially from supervisors/employers to not only supervise but most importantly to communicate, lead by example, motivate, and listen to what their employees need and/or suggest which may be an important request for a personal matter or even a suggestion for a change in the companies/organisation procedures.
Considering the above it is crucially important for the VETTER E-Learning course to have a module whose final outcome is to teach the user “How to be an effective leader”. In that way and having in mind that the direct target group for this course are everyone who works in the VET industry, this module is specifically designed to help the internship tutors, mentors, career counsellors, VET schools, companies and employers involved in work placements host effective and fruitful internships both for them/the company they work for and for the interns.
After studying the needs of employees in the workplace and what they expect from a supervisor, we narrowed it down to the following important knowledge/skills that are required by someone to be an effective leader:
Effective communication techniques
Group leadership techniques
Conflict management techniques
Active listening techniques
Observation techniques
Communicative mediation techniques
Elements of animation theory and technique
Motivation and empowerment techniques communication and interpersonal techniques for managing interviews, meetings and promoting agreements
Negotiation techniques for negotiating agreements with companies, entities and institutions skills assessment techniques
The above were divided in the same structure as sub-modules in this module and each one has been broken down in a way to provide all the important information the user needs to accumulate in order to build a base of knowledge so he/she can use to excel and become or grow as an effective leader. Below the topics will be shortly explained and what is their targeted outcomes.
Why effective communication techniques
A vital life skill is the ability to communicate ideas clearly, accurately, and as intended. If you are an effective communicator, you will be able to share all the right information, minimise conflict and confusion, save time and money, establish a quality bond with your colleague, have intended results achieved, the right feedback being given and received, help build strong relationships. Also, the receiver of the information will be confident on what he will be doing and have better results because he/she will have clear instructions.
Of course, it’s very important to mention possible results of poor communication skills in order to showcase the importance of the above. Poor communication can send mixed messages instead of a shared understanding, something that increases risk of a negative outcome which in the end lead to conflict and strained relationships. Not only that, but results will not be achieved, or partially achieved, something that creates stress, emotional confusion or distraction for the employee.
Why group leadership techniques
The aim of a group leader is to help his subordinates feel part of a team and make safe, satisfying, and healthy decisions without imposing his/her own moral standards or judgments on the group. Group leaders need to strike a balance between exercising strong leadership and fostering a friendly environment for group members. Effective group leaders are empathetic and clear communicators who employ active listening techniques to understand the needs and emotions of group members. Especially though group counselling sessions the group leader must resist getting upset with participants, even if they act disrespectful or aggressive. Group leaders should modify their approaches based on the demands of the certain group. They should approach each case by modifying their qualities between Autocratic, Democratic and Laisses-Faire (Focus, Task-Strategy, and member participation). The skillset of a good leader should be strategic thinking, planning & delivery, people management, change management, communication and persuasion & influence.
Why conflict management techniques
For most people conflict is something undesirable and scary but something that is and will be part of our professional and everyday life and something that all should have the skills to manage. For the work environment and for the supervisor/leader having effective conflict management techniques can help them, the parties involved, and their entire team suffer less from disagreements at work. They essentially translate what you would do with a member of your team when you sense or acknowledge that they disagree/have problem with another member. In less fortunate circumstances, these can be techniques you employ after the issue has already escalated. The 5 main conflict management skills that everyone should know is problem solving, compromising, withdrawing, competing and accommodating.
Why active listening
Active listening is the process of getting ready to listen, pay attention to the verbal and nonverbal cues being used, and then responding appropriately to demonstrate that you are paying attention to what is being said. This kind of listening shows that the listener and speaker are on the same page. Speakers get validation that their message is getting over, while engaged listeners take in more information and comprehend it better.
As body language carries more meaning than spoken words, being able to read someone's body language is a very important skill, especially as a group leader/coordinator. Also, it enables the listener to comprehend the speaker's message more accurately. If you work as a supervisor or regularly engage with co-workers, active listening enables you to comprehend issues and work with others to find solutions, but also demonstrate your patience.
Active listening can help you develop trust with others, better understand them and make them feel more heard. Active listening aims to understand rather than to respond and empathize with others, it is intended that the other person feel understood, affirmed, and motivated to find a solution to their issues.
Why observation techniques
Supervisors in the workplace have every right to use observation as feedback or tool, so there's no need to worry that watching your staff perform can come off as spying. For a variety of reasons, workplace observation is both required and justified. Especially during performance review season, observation can help reveal how effectively a worker is carrying out his tasks. Also, observations are very helpful in order to know whether an employee's complaint regarding unfair work division is of course truthful or not. Finally, one very important plus of observation is that its practice helps build standard operating procedures or corporate processes that increase efficiency.
Also, benefits from observation can be helpful not only when a supervisor observes the subordinates buy also when a staff member observes a colleague with more experience in the field. There are clear advantages that result from workers/trainees watching more experienced workers in action, especially when they work in the vocational industry. Trainees benefit from supervisory observation because a structured debrief provides them with quick feedback on their efforts. All junior workers/trainees should be routinely observed while they are being trained, with feedback based in part on observations of the interpersonal and relational aspects that service users appreciate most. As a result, it is recommended that placements include both the trainee and the supervisor watching each other work. By doing that the benefits will be that the supervisor will be a resource/knowledge base, will provide support while trainee gains confidence, experience of working in co-therapy, opportunity for supervisor to give direct feedback on trainee's work, remove bias of self-report in supervision and supervisor can give positive feedback and constructive criticism on trainee's development .
Why communicative mediation techniques
Mediation is a crucial technique for managing conflicts that can assist you in resolving disagreements that might occur at work. An effective workplace mediator may bargain with various employees and resolve unofficial workplace issues before they get worse. Learning how to do mediation in the workplace may be helpful if you're trying to improve your conflict resolution abilities, but generally mediation can help create: A positive and productive work atmosphere, favourable workplace culture by settling conflicts before they worsen, create and sustain more honest working relationships and most importantly save company money and time by using informal mediation instead of formal processes that could lead to employment tribunals.
Building on your conflict resolution techniques can help mediation in the workplace turn out better. The techniques that will be explained in the appropriated module will further explain how to use mediation to successfully resolve conflicts at work, invite employees to discuss their disputes together, clearly explain what the goal of mediation is, how to remain calm throughout the mediation process, employ active listening skills to better understand the dispute, avoid interruptions throughout the mediation process and focus on the future rather than focusing on what has happened.
Why communication facilitation techniques
Communication facilitation is an important part of any workplace and can be especially beneficial in cross-cultural settings because it can remove barriers and facilitate effective information exchange. If a facilitator uses these techniques right, he/she can create a more productive and harmonious workplace, which is the goal of any organization. Problem-solving, grievance handling, and other tasks can be made much easier by an effective facilitator. Facilitating communication entails creating an environment or culture that encourages communication, but also remove any barriers that might prevent colleagues from communicating effectively.
Some examples of techniques that facilitators can do in instances of miscommunication is making mandatory team meetings, creating a meeting agenda, taking minutes, creating a space for people to share their ideas, eliminating distractions, creating a communication-friendly environment and ensuring that everyone involved and most importantly make the group participate in activities which will help them talk to each other and promotes general communication .
A manager/facilitator must be organized and proactive in order to facilitate team communication, they must hold regular meetings and ensure that everyone has the information they require to do their jobs. In addition, they should be available to answer questions and assign tasks in a timely and efficient manner. Managers can become communication facilitators in a variety of ways, but certain techniques they must use exist for certain cases, the falsification techniques inventory cannot be used freely. In the appropriate module some relevant and important techniques are listed in order to ensure that managers are on the right track technically. Furthermore, we have provided some pointers for managers to consider as they strive to become communication facilitators.