Big on business

Updated on: Monday, December 28, 2009

WITH an over-riding emphasis on teamwork, the corporate sector has had a continuing need for people with effective communication skills. "However, today apart from basic communication skills, candidates must be conversant with the nuances of business communication," says Anoup Munshi, course director, Indian School of Integrated Learning, (ISIL).

"Business communication skills or business proficiency skills are the skills which specifically aid individuals to enhance their corporate careers. They include presentation skills, business development skills, business writing skills, networking skills, among others. These skills at one level induce tactical ability and self confidence that are indispensable attributes for success in the corporate framework," explains Munshi.

Explaining the importance of business proficiency skills, Munshi says, "In today's globalised corporate order it becomes imperative for organisations to formulate business strategies and communication that can cut across cultural diversities.

Moreover, today discreet business communication is being widely acknowledged by many organisations across the world as a differentiating strategy, as far as competition is concerned. This coupled with the fact that customers are a discerning and sophisticated lot as far as product and service expectations are concerned places a pivotal premium on business communication skills." Munshi adds that given their generic propensities these skills are not sector specific.

"It is important to understand that these skills are at the ethos of service functions. Although traditionally the need for these skills were addressed in the hospitality and aviation sectors today there is a profound need for these skills across industries," he continues.

On how educational institutions can help to groom students, Munshi says, "While imparting domain knowledge it is important for educational institutions to reiterate the importance of a professional attitude and approach towards work. This can augur the much needed foundation on which business proficiency skills can be cultivated and developed. In fact, universities who expose students to cultural diversity, interactive skills, business etiquettes and many such skills manage to secure better placements."

Though the academia is gradually taking cognisance of the need to inculcate soft skills in students a lot remains to be achieved. "Universities need to incorporate practical oriented skills as part of their mainstream curriculum," opines Munshi. There is a broad consensus among academicians and soft-skill specialists that the industry needs to work in close consonance with the academia in terms of developing the framework for soft skill courses.

Within organisations, HR departments can extend an important role in terms of developing these skills. "At the outset HR departments have to identify the exact training requirements in relation to the existing workforce. In other words they have to be adept at employee profiling that in turn can reveal a precise index of individual employee strengths, potentials and requirements. A collective analysis of the broad trends in terms of employee needs can help in formulating effective strategies in terms of developing business proficiency skills," says Munshi.

Soft skills can also help in building leadership capabilities. "Leadership, at a people level, is all about building and sustaining amiable and productive relationships at the workplace. This requires persuasion ability, convincing and effective communication, people orientation, empathy and networking ability all of which essentially are soft skills," sums up Cheryl Holland, senior consultant, Speak First, UK.

Timesofindia

Big on business

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