Sometimes it is hard to communicate your feelings without becoming angry or even a little aggressive especially when you feel that others are disregarding your point of view and not taking account of your feelings or opinion. It is important to understand and control how you react to situations of conflict. Sometimes individuals who want to avoid conflict at all costs will become passive and quickly back down from the position they hold or else will not discuss certain subjects with colleagues or line managers. Other members of the team may find it difficult to communicate their ideas and therefore react very negatively when certain subjects arise and use destructive, even aggressive and humiliating tactics to ensure that their needs and requirements are always met over and above those working with them. Issues such as these ultimately affect the management team and the effectiveness of the organisation!
Assertiveness is the ability of either an individual, or a management team, to confidently express themselves and communicate directly in a controlled way their requirements, whilst having empathy with the requirements of others. Body language, such as posture, eye contact, gestures, facial expression and voice speed and tone, also have a large part to play in highlighting to others passive, assertive or indeed aggressive behaviour.
If a quality manager feels that they need to stop a production line because of a quality problem how do they communicate this to the production manager?
(a) STOP the line NOW!
(b) YOU are ALWAYS messing up and now YOU’VE done it again!
(c0 I feel WE have a problem, can WE discuss it and agree the actions WE need to take to resolve the issue?
Assertiveness is about establishing your integrity and why you have a right to express your own values, opinions and implement the requirements of your job. It is also about being able to ask for information or assistance, take appropriate time to reach conclusions, or even change your mind without feeling that such a request undermines your position in the team. Team assertiveness is about recognising that as humans we all capable of make mistakes or missing targets and that these issues can be more easily rectified in a positive rather than a negative working atmosphere. Assertiveness is about understanding how a situation will affect others and working out how you can address their concerns and questions in order to ensure they understand why you are making the statement, or decision especially when they do not have any role in the decision making process.
Assertiveness is about demonstrating the positive personal face of management and the organisation internally to other colleagues and externally to your customers.
http://thehumanimprint.typepad.com/the_human_imprint/2007/06/assertiveness.html
Tags: aggressive behaviour, assertiveness, body language, c0, colleagues, conflict, empathy, eye contact, facial expression, feelings, gestures, line managers, management team, passive, posture, production line, production manager, quality manager, quality problem, resolve
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