Planning ahead
The template in the communication planning grid (Figure 1, above) is a framework to help you do this. You can see that the sequences of steps used when planning are listed down the left hand side and they are not in the order you should use to communicate (right hand side). This is deliberate: it encourages you when planning to focus initially on your audience, clarify the topic for communication and establish the specific actions required before getting into the nitty gritty of the subject itself.
It’s always tempting to put guidance like this into an ever expanding ‘to do’ file, hoping to find the time to invest in an activity that is not immediately urgent but will ultimately save time, energy and costs in the longer term. Working through this module and its activities will help you to recognise the power of effective communication and give you a basis for improving your skills.
Figure 1: Communication planning grid
Follow this series of steps in numbered order
| 1. My audience |
Who will I be talking to? |
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| 7. Welcome/opening |
How will I open the communication? |
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| 2. Subject/topic |
What is the subject or topic I want to discuss? |
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| 4. Agenda |
How do I structure the issue (three, well-defined parts); summarise all three at the end as a recap. |
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Agenda part 1 |
Agenda part 2 |
Agenda part 3 |
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| 5. Content |
Content part 1 |
Content part 2 |
Content part 3 |
| 6. Summary |
Summary part 1 |
Summary part 2 |
Summary part 3 |
| 3. Specific objective or action required |
What do I want people to do? |
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Pause to reflect
Think about a communication you have coming up and complete the following steps, using the planning framework in Figure 1, above:
- Who is your audience (e.g. a patient, the pharmacy team, etc)?
- What subject or topic do you want to cover?
- What is the specific objective, outcome or action you want to achieve?
Create a three-part agenda for the meeting (this should fit nicely around your ‘why’, ‘what’ and ‘how’ questions).
Think a bit more about the content of each part of your agenda, bearing your audience in mind. Identify a maximum of three key points for each.
Come up with one or two sentences that summarise each part of your agenda, to help you complete your communication.