'I believe in lifelong improvement'

Effective communication is absolutely crucial for businesses to thrive in today’s complex and fast-paced world. It’s the foundation for strong internal operations and positive external relationships, impacting everything from employee satisfaction to customer loyalty. In today’s globalised world, businesses also need to consider intercultural communication. With diverse teams and clientele, the ability to bridge cultural gaps and communicate effectively across borders is essential for success. Overall, effective communication is the cornerstone of a healthy business culture. By prioritising clear and open communication, businesses can build strong relationships with employees, customers and partners, ultimately achieving long-term success.

To delve into the specifics of effective communication we spoke to Su Bridgman, a leading figure in the field of communication, recognised for her work on Communication Intelligence (CQ) and its power to transform communication effectiveness.

Bridgman’s expertise is acknowledged by Forbes Books, a platform known for featuring thought leaders in various industries. Her book, ‘The CQ Edge: How to Ignite Confidence, Eliminate Anxiety, and Maximise Your Communication Intelligence’, delves into the practical application of her CQ framework. Bridgman developed the concept of Communication Intelligence, which challenges the traditional view of communication anxieties as unchangeable traits. Her approach emphasises that communication skills can be learned and enhanced, empowering individuals to overcome anxieties and communicate with confidence.

In a world increasingly influenced by artificial intelligence, Bridgman champions the importance of ‘human-centric communication’. She emphasises the vital role of emotional intelligence and persuasive communication skills in achieving success, especially in leadership and professional settings.

Bridgman’s expertise extends beyond theory. She founded SpeakFluence Global, a company dedicated to providing communication training and development programmes. This venture allows her to equip individuals and organisations with the practical tools they need to improve their communication effectiveness. Interestingly, Bridgman’s background also includes legal qualifications. She is a qualified barrister, which adds another dimension to her understanding of communication and its role in various professional contexts.

Bridgman’s unique blend of communication expertise, business experience and legal background positions her as a valuable resource for anyone seeking to improve communication skills and navigate the complexities of communication in today’s world. 

In this edition of Business 360, we spoke to Bridgman regarding communications intelligence and what effective communication entails. Excerpts: 

What is communications intelligence?

Communication intelligence is a key personal competency required for the digital age. You will notice although it is called communication intelligence, it is a quotient which means that there are certain measurable competencies which comprise your ability to have high CQ. This includes four elements. The first is your content, which is the words, how you express yourself. The second is your vocalisation, including your articulation, elocution and prosody. The third is the non-verbal communication and that includes a whole list of different elements from head to toe. And the fourth is your ability to maximise your confidence by minimising your physiological response to any kind of anxiety or stress that is induced in a communication context.

How do you get good communication through digital mediums?

My specialty is verbal communication. What is fascinating, actually, is that the book was rewritten post the Covid 19 pandemic because the communication formula completely changed. Whereas if you look at the formula for communication, it includes words, vocalisation and nonverbal. If you were to divide it up into percentages in terms of how you impact your audience, 7% is your words, 38% is your vocalisation and then 55% is nonverbal. As we are on screens, we lose on the nonverbal. So that means we have to readjust our emphasis on the words and the vocalisation. So, in order to ensure you are very impactful and memorable, which is key, you need to readjust how you focus on those other two elements.

How important do you think communication skills will be going forward with artificial intelligence?

My perspective in terms of CQ in relation to AI is more about the relevance of humans in the age of AI. Not so much communicating with AI but remaining relevant. Well, I like to say we want to beat the bots. So how do we do that? If you look at the current status of AI, it is very effective in many ways in terms of technical skills. People are concerned about perhaps losing their relevance with respect to those skills that can be done through technical methods. However, if you look at communication as I believe, the essence of human existence, if we can retain and nurture it, I believe that we will be able to beat the bots.
The three things that you would say are essential in terms of communications skills.

Number one, in order to actually share any brilliance with the world, with any audience, you cannot access that information if your physiological system is fighting you. So, what we need to do is biohack. And there are ways to do that, which is what I cover in the book. In terms of how you bio-hack and be effective in recalling information. That’s number one. 

Number two, we need to make sure that we adjust what we are saying based on our audience and also understand the neurochemistry of the audience. So, I talk a lot about hormones and chemical responses of words, of allocution, of tone, of non-verbal and how that impacts our audience. So that is essential if we are not adjusting and only worrying about what we are saying, rather about how we are being received, we are really losing our opportunity to be impactful.

And in terms of the third opportunity, I think we need to have self-awareness. In order to improve your communication skills, you really need to be able to look at yourself as an individual. I have been doing this for over 27 years. I am never going to be a 10 out of 10. That is my perspective. I believe in lifelong learning. I believe in lifelong improvement. Whether you are a CEO, whether you are a young professional, whether you are an individual returning to work after parental leave, whatever your personal context, you need to be able to be self-aware and think, how will I improve? And then develop a pre-presentation routine. And the tools for those pre-presentation routines is what actually decreases your cognitive load and allows you to be extemporaneous and memorable in the moment.

Why are communication skills necessary for leaders?

I am going to give you a two-fold response. Number one, communication is important organisationally. When we are looking at organisations, we need to think of how we change our value system as an organisation to include communication intelligence and CQ as a part of our organisational ethos. So, you need a CQ ethos that is developed in consultation with somebody who is aware of it and then figure out how to implement it.

Number two priority is how you implement that organisationally. Because it does not matter what the leader thinks, you need to be able to implement that vision. If your vision and mission include CQ, then you can figure out how to train your workforce to have a workforce-wide CQ ethos. I really hope businesses realise that CQ is a quotient. It is measurable, just like we have EQ and IQ. CQ is not just a soft skill. It is measurable. The return on investment for organisations far outweighs any investment, because you would develop workers and leaders who are client facing, have trusting relationships with their clients and stakeholders, and that is priceless.