Employ Me Today

by: Lisa Jordan

One of the primary roles of a workforce development provider is building strong relationships with employers. Fundamental to this role is language; you must be able to communicate with your employers using terminology they understand and appreciate.

Language does not just represent concepts and ideas; it represents an attitude and predisposition to doing things. Notice that when you shift to an accepted form of communication, meaning, as well as the general tone of a conversation, changes. In the same vein, non-profit and business language can be worlds apart in what they suggest and mean. To effectively work with employers, you must exert the effort to get into their mindset. You can do this by using widely accepted business language.

The following are tips to consider when using business language:

Stay Away From Non-Profit Jargon.

Providers from the non-profit sector often have a set of jargon specific to their field. Terms like ‘stakeholder relations’, ‘multi-systemic impact’ and ‘trickle-down effect’ are phrases that are commonplace. For an employer, however, these terms may be too technical and rather academic. If you use jargons when communicating with your employer, you might come across as elitist and exclusionary --- even if you don’t mean to.

As much as you can, use an easy conversational style that gets your point across. Employers are generally practical people; they don’t typically deal with theories and abstract principles as part of their daily grind. If you can speak in such a way that a lay person can picture what you mean, then go for that approach.

Remember, a term acceptable to you as a service provider may have a different meaning to an employer. For example, the phrase ‘mutually beneficial partnership’ has been found to be acceptable by those in the non-profit industry. However, for those in the business community, it implies unequal balance or having to give up too much to participate in the program. A better word to use is just ‘partnership.’ The term connotes good for both parties, and communicates a win-win situation.

If you must use jargons, why not learn some of the business world’s own? Maybe you can better get your points if you use terms your employers would appreciate. Terms like ‘return on investment’ and ‘customer relations’ can be used to package workforce development programs.

Avoid Acronyms

Almost every sector, whether profit or non-profit, use acronyms. But, once you’re in the habit of using acronyms, it’s easy to forget that outside of one’s group, these acronyms may not be understood. Worse, they may have a totally different meaning!

For example, CDC for non-profit organizations stands for Community Development Corporation. But, employers don’t know this. Likely the first thing they’d think about is the Center for Disease Control!

To be safe, just say the term in full and then state that henceforth, when you use such acronym, that term is what you’re referring to. It’s better to anticipate misunderstandings rather than have an entire conversation not realizing you’re not being understood!

Use Concrete Terms Rather Than the Abstract

Here is a major difference in how a non-profit and profit organization communicate. Non-profits tend to find non-measurable results as an acceptable goal for a project. For example, it’s not unusual for a non-profit program to have ‘increasing workforce diversity’ or ‘advocating social change’ as general goals. An employer would most likely find these terms too vague. Speak in concrete terms that focus on what you can do in the here and now. Stick to the measurable deliverables.

Practice, Practice, Practice

The good news is, the more that you practice communicating, the better you will become and the easier it will be for you. Communication is crucial when working to become effective in your role. This makes it imperative that you be at the top of your game at all times. Spend some time practicing with colleagues and work to establish a large volume of employer meetings to improve your communication skills over time.



About The Author
Lisa Jordan is a disability and workforce development expert. Lisa uses her keen ability to identify challenges and develop solutions so that workforce development professionals can increase their comfort level, productivity and effectiveness when working with a diverse clientele. Download Lisa’s Special Report on 5 Easy Disability Tips to Immediately Increase Agency Accessibility by visiting http://www.human-solutions.net