We’ve all experienced it: You walk into a meeting and are greeted by an overtly friendly colleague who dominates the conversation. No one can get a word in edgewise, and you leave the meeting feeling your time was wasted and your opinion was neither heard nor valued.

On the flip side is the colleague who shines during conversations. Each uttered word is impactful and impeccably delivered. When they speak, they engage the entire room, ask for and receive input, and build on ideas discussed to get to the best outcomes. You are reminded of the E. F. Hutton commercials where the narrator states at the end, “When E.F. Hutton talks, people listen.”

What is interesting to remember is that leaders spend a significant portion of their time engaged in interactions, in which they coach, influence, meet with customers, and lead teams. According to DDI’s new research report, Driving Workplace Performance through High-Quality Conversations: What leaders must do every day to be effective, the quality of these interactions has significant impact on the performance and productivity of both the individual and their organization.

Because most of us have been on the receiving end of a poor conversation, we can recognize the characteristics of good and bad ones. Consider the amount of time wasted and lost productivity in poorly managed meetings.

If organizations gauged the financial impact of poor conversations, they would quickly conclude that improving the quality of workplace interactions must be a priority for both the organization and individual leaders. Ultimately, the ability to effectively manage and carry out impactful conversations is at the heart of successful leadership.

Interaction essentials

When leaders have and apply the skills they need for effective conversations with their team members, peers, and other key stakeholders, they are able to build relationships and get work done. We refer to these critical skills as the “Interaction Essentials” because they are the foundational behaviors that make leaders effective. These skills include:

• conducting team meetings

• providing coaching

• seeking input from stakeholders on key decisions

• interacting with customers

• leading major changes

• influencing the direction of a new initiative

• delegating tasks and assignments

• conducting performance discussions.

Undermining effective interaction

In a world where interactions are crucial, leaders need to do a better job of listening and building on the ideas of others. Here are some tendencies that undermine effective interactions.

Operating on flawed or unresolved assumptions. For executives around the world, 90 percent are ineffective in checking their understanding of a situation before addressing an issue. Eighty-eight (88) percent do not clarify assumptions and risk making decisions that won’t reap the desired benefits.

Relying on their own ideas. Of the executives assessed, 90 percent are not effective in inviting ideas from others and may miss an opportunity to gain the buy-in and commitment of the other party (only 7 percent of executives are highly effective in gaining others’ commitment).

Not listening and responding to cues. DDI research found that 89 percent of executives are ineffective in demonstrating interpersonal diplomacy. Only 24 percent are highly effective at responding to cues for maintaining others’ self-esteem and 38 percent are highly effective in demonstrating empathy for those with whom they are engaged in conversation.

No clarity around next steps. Eighty-nine percent of executives and 90 percent of frontline leaders are highly ineffective in conveying their performance expectations and facilitating clear agreement on next steps.

Building trust in interactions. Disclosing one’s own thoughts and feelings is a powerful way to build trust in a relationship. Unfortunately, 95 percent of executives assessed are highly ineffective in openly disclosing and sharing their thoughts and feelings with others.

Moving forward

So, what can you do to enhance the quality of conversations in the workplace and in turn drive greater performance?

First, provide development activities that build on the core interaction skills. It is not magic! But, it takes time, focus and practice.

Next, start with excellent leadership promotion and selection decisions. Let’s face it, there are numerous leadership “derailers” that are difficult to train for.

Finally, be sure to promote self-awareness—understand the impact of personality patterns/derailing tendencies on interactions. There is a direct relationship between leadership insight and performance.