Supervisors generally are in a unique position, serving as the link between management and the workforce. Successful execution of organizational strategy hinges on the effectiveness of the supervisor's ability to lead workers to enthusiastically engage in their assigned tasks. The supervisor must be able to effectively communicate in order to achieve this. The supervisors must also be able to communicate with peers and management if they are to add value to the operation. Upper management would be well served to offer supervisors a working as well as enhanced knowledge of effective communication skills.
The most common means of communication among people is speech and language. Language expresses inner thoughts and emotions, makes sense of complex and abstract thought, enabling interaction. Language is made up of words that have meaning; therefore, care should be taken in their selection. It is generally better to use familiar words in place of unfamiliar ones, concrete words in place of abstract ones, short words in place of long ones, and single words in place of several. For most people, effective communication means a proficient use of language. For communication to occur, both sender and receiver must have a common language with similar understanding of the meaning of the words.