Effective business communication for workplace success

Arguably, the most important soft skill to master in your career is effective business communication. Good business communication improves teamwork and collaboration, mitigates conflicts by reducing the chances of a misunderstanding, and provides emotional support for every team member.

By becoming a better communicator, you’ll build better relationships with your employees, teammates, and clients. Other than boosting engagement, good communication can boost team buy-in and encourage creative thinking.

What is business communication?

Business communication refers to the process of sharing information within an organization and with external stakeholders. It encompasses various forms, including written communication, verbal discussions, and nonverbal communication. Effective communication is essential for organizational success, as it helps achieve business goals and fosters team collaboration.

Types of business communication

Effective business communication takes different forms, and knowing when to use each type ensures clarity and impact.

• Internal communication happens within a company—emails, messages, meetings—to keep teams aligned.
• External communication includes customer interactions, marketing, and PR, shaping the company’s public image.
• Verbal communication is ideal for sensitive conversations or time-sensitive tasks
• Written communication includes emails and reports. It provides a record of the exchange, but requires clarity to avoid misinterpretation.
• Nonverbal Communication: Body language, tone, and facial expressions impact how messages are received and understood.
• Formal communication such as reports and legal documents follow structure and protocol.
• Informal communication such as huddles and check-ins fosters collaboration and agility.

Choosing the right communication method ensures your message is clear, professional, and effective.

Effective business communication techniques

To communicate effectively, you need to be good at active listening, message delivery and asking for feedback. These are some of our favorite techniques for taking communication skills to the next level.

1. Adapt the message to your audience

One of the first things you should do for effective business communication is learn how to adapt your communication (style and messaging) for different audiences. If you’re talking to your safety team about a new policy, they’re probably already aware of the problem, so you can get deeper in the weeds of execution details. But when you roll out the same policy to frontline employees, simplify your communication. Most likely, you’ll take a broader approach. Explain the purpose of the policy and how it should be physically carried out in their day to day.

The same is true for any situation or type of businesses. You would address a group of kindergartners, tech entrepreneurs, cattle farmers and fitness professionals differently based on the topic, what you’re trying to convey and where the discussion is taking place.

2. Prepare for the message delivery

How are you standing? Is your body language open and inviting? Are you making lots of eye contact or looking at a screen?

Before any business communication, whether it’s a one-on-one meeting, team meeting or major speech, prepare yourself. You might spend a few minutes taking deep breaths before a presentation or reviewing a meeting agenda for a video huddle.

3. Be authentic

According to a study by Salesforce, 76% of consumers are more loyal to authentic, relatable brands. This demonstrates the value of building connections with customers through genuine communication. They exude warmth and openness. When talking to colleagues and subordinates, they have a sense of immediacy and are fully present in the conversation.

People also want to work more with authentic leaders and communicators. Being trustworthy and reliable ultimately makes your job easier because people will want to collaborate with you.

4. Manage nonverbal signals for stronger communication

According to body language researcher Albert Mehrabian, 55% of communication is nonverbal and 38% is vocal, while only 7% consists of spoken words.

This means it’s incredibly important to manage your nonverbal signals. If you’re constantly glancing at the clock with your feet pointed toward the door, your audience will think you aren’t interested in the conversation. For better communication, your nonverbal signals and spoken words must be in sync. At Slack, we use emoji to communicate and move work forward

5. Practice active listening when people respond to you

Active listening isn’t just hearing what someone says. It involves showing your engagement with the discussion by asking questions and caring about what they say. By being an active listener, you demonstrate your interest in the other person’s message and build a stronger relationship with them. It also helps you remember details from the conversation.

You know those people who never forget a name? They’re probably active listeners. One tactic is repeating the person’s name back to them during an introduction. In business communication, this technique extends to repeating key points in meetings or confirming instructions to ensure clarity. Nodding, making eye contact and leaning forward also show you’re engaged.

6. Ask for feedback to improve communication

One of the most effective and efficient ways to improve business communication is to ask for feedback. After all, most of us learn and grow through change.

Start by creating a process for giving feedback. This could be a brief, post-meeting survey or an in-person discussion. Also, implement an open-door policy so employees feel like they can approach you with any of their problems.

7. Probe for understanding to confirm you’re being heard

Asking questions shows the speaker how engaged you are in the conversation. It also gives you more information and a natural opportunity to practice active listening.

8. Handle conflicts respectfully

You won’t always agree with your team members, bosses and subordinates. However, maintaining professionalism when communicating in business during conflicts is essential. Even if you won’t see eye to eye on everything, you do need to communicate in a respectful way if you want to keep your working relationship going. As a general rule, never say anything in anger—you’ll always regret it.

The impact of business communication on organizational success

Effective business communication directly impacts business productivity, teamwork, and company culture. When information flows clearly, employees stay aligned, projects move forward smoothly, and decision-making improves.

• Boosts Productivity: Clear instructions reduce errors, streamline workflows, and prevent delays.
• Strengthens Workplace Relationships: Open communication fosters trust and collaboration among teams.
• Enhances Company Culture: A transparent and engaging environment keeps employees motivated and aligned with business goals.

Effective communication is essential for achieving business goals and long-term success.

Use the right business communication tools

Effective business communication starts with picking the right tool for the job. Sometimes email is best, other times Slack, one-on-one chats, team discussions, or group meetings work better. Each option has its own pros and cons, so it’s important to think about what you need before deciding which one to use. Choosing the right way to communicate can make your message clearer and your work smoother.

• Slack: Slack is the AI-powered platform for work, bringing all of your conversations, apps, and customers together in one platform. It’s great for all kinds of work conversations because it lets you chat one-on-one or in channels, whether you’re communicating across departments or with customers and partners. Slack integrates with more than 2,000 apps like Loom, Dropbox, Zoom, and Trello, so you can communicate without needing to switch apps.
• Email: People use email communication for simple updates and questions. If you want a group discussion or need to address a complex topic, email can quickly spiral out of control. For more complex matters, you should use a different tool.
• One-on-one conversations: One-on-one conversations are great for constructive criticism and individual training. But they aren’t ideal if you need to address things to a team or provide a simple update. Use one-on-one conversations for sensitive or complex exchanges.
• Team discussions: Team discussions are typically brief, on-the-fly chats. Use these for real-time group collaboration when there’s a specific goal in mind, or for stand-ups and scrums. Avoid using these for updates on projects that don’t overlap or where a large portion of attendees are unaffected.
• Group meetings: These are great if you need to train or update the entire group at once. Use these sparingly. If you’re conveying something that can be sent in a short message, do that! When you do need a group meeting, schedule it ahead of time and have a clear agenda with expected outcomes.

Timing is everything in business communication

If you need to discuss a project update or find an important document, you have to find the right moment. One of the top strategies for succesful communication is to pay attention to your colleagues’ crunch times and deadlines. When someone else is facing a looming deadline or a problem at work, they’ll have a difficult time hearing anything you’re trying to tell them.

Determine the time of day and platform where members of your team are most open to communication. For example, if they check and answer messages after 4 p.m., prepare your conversation and have it available for them within their preferred time frame.

Become a better business communicator

Whether you want to move up the ladder or get your project across the finish line smoothly, effective business communication is crucial. By using these simple techniques, you’ll not only be a more authentic, engaged speaker, you’ll be more effective at your job and working with colleagues.