Communicating Strategically

Far too frequently, the people who have the most to say have the hardest time saying it. Many of the best minds in our society, our most talented employees and our most promising students, fail to have the impact they could because of ineffective strategies for communicating their ideas and insights to others. This five-week refresher is geared toward experts (scientists, engineers, and other technical professionals) and will help them effectively communicate with non-scientists, usually management, to inform organizational decision-making. Join us as we examine and learn the essential components of communication strategy.

• Though many students learn communications skills early in their academic career, they may have not practiced, or may have forgotten, many useful communications tactics. Additionally, by the time these students begin to develop expertise in specific disciplines and begin working in certain industries, the communication needs become specialized and more challenging.
• Some people don't want to communicate. They don't feel it is their job. They want to focus on their own technical areas of expertise. Perhaps they fear it a little because it is not their "area" or they simply dismiss it as unimportant. Either way, such beliefs ultimately become constraints on their own success and run counter to the expectations of others who oversee their work.
• Many people often underestimate how hard it is to effectively communicate and think they do a better job than they actually do. After all, their content makes sense to them, and if someone else doesn't understand, it must be their fault.