Start a Business, Mastering Professional Communication Techniques
Strong communication is key to business success. This course teaches you how to express ideas clearly, write professionally, and build strong relationships with clients, partners, and teams. You’ll learn how to present your business confidently, handle meetings and emails effectively, and communicate in a way that builds trust and drives results skills every new business owner needs from day one.
What is this course about?
This course is about helping new business owners develop strong, professional communication skills. You’ll learn how to speak and write clearly, present your ideas with confidence, and build positive relationships in a business setting. These skills are essential for making a good impression, managing your brand, and growing your business effectively.
Communicate clearly, grow your business confidently
Strong communication lays the foundation for business success. This course will help you improve how you speak, write, and present your ideas in a professional setting. Whether you’re pitching to clients, leading a team, or writing emails, you’ll gain the confidence and skills to communicate effectively and support your business growth from the start.
What you'll gain from this course:
- Clear and confident verbal communication skills
- Professional business writing techniques
- Effective presentation and pitching skills
- Strategies for managing meetings and negotiations
- Building strong relationships with clients and partners
- Enhanced ability to handle challenging conversations
Overview
Understanding appropriate behavior in a business environment, interpreting body language within a business context, effectively interacting with individuals in a business setting, and evaluating one’s own professional conduct in a business environment are fundamental skills for navigating the corporate world.
Description
This unit standard provides a broad introduction to a work environment. It is the starting point for a learner in financial services or other business environments. The focus is knowledge, skills, values and attitudes about the learner’s work context and experience of the world of work. The qualifying learner can know how to behave in a business environment. Interpreting body language in a business context. Interacting with people in a business setting. Assessing own professional behaviour in a business setting.
- The dress code of an organisation is described, and an indication is given of what is regarded as acceptable and unacceptable dress in a particular work environment
- The behaviour of three peers in a business workplace is observed and assessed against the recognised parameters of appropriate behaviour in a specific professional environment
- Positive listening skills are demonstrated, and an indication is given of the potential consequences of displaying negative listening skills
- Regulations regarding smoking in the workplace are explained with reference to both legal requirements and established policy
- A Company Code of Good Conduct is understood and explained, and an indication is given of the consequences of non-compliance
- The concept of a work ethic is explained with reference to the responsibility and accountability of the individual
- Non-verbal communication signals are interpreted, and an indication is given of how body language can reinforce or contradict a verbal message
- The role of posture and eye contact in communication is explained with examples from a business context
- The use of a handshake as a greeting in a business setting is demonstrated, and the meanings of different handshakes used in South Africa are compared with examples of when it is appropriate to use each handshake
- The concept of personal space is explained, and an indication is given of the consequences if one ignores commonly accepted business behaviour
- Behaviour that could be considered as sexual harassment in the workplace is described, and an indication is given of how to deal with instances of sexual harassment
- The importance of first impressions in a business environment is explained, and an indication is given of how first impressions can determine subsequent behaviour
- Visitors are greeted in keeping with established organisational culture
- People are introduced to each other in a business-like manner
- Ways of closing an interaction with a visitor or customer are demonstrated for three different scenarios
- The importance of delivering on promises or making alternative arrangements is explained with reference to good customer service
- Ways of behaving professionally when provoked or in difficult circumstances are demonstrated for three different scenarios 7. The importance of confidentiality in interpersonal relationships is explained with reference to company policy
- Personal behaviour is analysed in three different situations in a business environment
- Personal behaviour is measured against own performance agreement or company standards
- Self-development needs are identified, and a plan is drawn up to address those needs
- Non-accredited: Short course only
- Duration: 1h 30m
- Delivery: Classroom/Online/Blended
- Access Period: 12 Months
