Face to Face

MANAGEMENT

Social media have their place, but do not forget
to talk to each other face to face.

Social media are reducing the number of face-to-face
conversations. “In person” encounters allow a person
to speak while another responds spontaneously
without resorting to the more formal structure of
the written word.

Why do we seem to prefer Facebook/Twitter or emails
rather than meeting with someone to discuss issues?
The most obvious answer is that electronic media is
more effective and saves us time. Psychologists tell us
we find interacting with others through the computer
is easier because a computer does not require us to
become emotionally involved.

When to Meet Face to Face

Certainly there are situations when communicating via
social media is effective, such as when sending a quick
inquiry to a colleague. But when owner-managers need
to announce decisions that will have an emotional impact
and bring employee reaction, face-to-face meetings are
a must for the following reasons:

• Face-to-face communication has incredible advantages
  since you receive an immediate response. If,
  on the other hand, you text someone and they do
  not respond, uncertainty prevails.
• One-on-one proximity allows you to “read” the
  respondent’s reaction to the message. A shrug of
  the shoulders, a deep sigh, or an unexpected expletive
  are great indicators of the recipient’s acceptance
  or understanding of what has been said.
• People need to be able to express how they feel
  about a project, a change in venue or a performance
  review. Face-to-face meetings allow each
  party to add a level of interpretation to the message
  by providing and reading body language,
  eye contact, or voice intonations. The meaning of
  words alone can often be misinterpreted. Receiving
  a text saying “The project is due next week.” sends
  a different message than someone who laughs and
  says “The project is due next week!” then rolls
  their eyes.

Talking face to face allows more
effective negotiation.

• Talking face to face allows each party to negotiate
  more effectively by immediately understanding the
  obstacles and opportunities that may not be easily
  understood by simply reading a progress report or
  a job description.
• Communicating face to face provides each party
  a better opportunity to adjust their approach to
  ensure the end results are achieved. Interpreted
  another way, face-to-face interaction builds trust,
  creates understanding, and assists both parties to
  understand they share a mission for the project
  and the organization.
• Face-to-face meetings force interactions, which
  in turn create new ideas and approaches that are
  essential to success. Yahoo’s CEO Marissa Mayer
  indicated in a memo:

  Some of the best decisions and insights come
  from hallway and cafeteria discussions, meeting
  new people, and impromptu team meetings.
  Speed and quality are often sacrificed
  when we work from home. We need to be one
  Yahoo!, and that starts with physically being
  together.

Meeting through Skype is a means of communicating
with remote jobsites. Surveys indicate employees like
Skype because it allows them to “get more done” as
they can handle one-on-one meetings without the
distractions of social graces. However, such methods
still disconnect the workers from each other and the
company and as such it is important for management
to instill the need to maintain one-on-one
personal contact.

Communicating face to face embraces the seven most
important elements of interpersonal communication by:

1. clarifying expectations and purpose
2. creating brief, unambiguous communication
3. focusing all parties on a purpose
4. setting a consistency of tone that allows individuals
   to understand the underlying pattern and seriousness
   of the message
5. addressing all issues without the need to wait
   for additional instructions
6. ensuring that all points relevant to both sides
   of the discussion are brought to the table and
   discussed
7. allowing both parties to measure the knowledge
   and competence of the other party.

Get Back to Personal Contact

Even though Twitter has lifted the 140 character limit
on messages, both owner-managers and employees must
recognize that regardless of the length of the message,
projects must be discussed face to face to generate the
best results possible for the company, the employee and
its customers.