Associated Studies: Communication

Workplace scenario 1	A day with Henry	We follow Henry, a service technician, through his day at a workshop and see his interactions with customers and workmates.

Active listening	I am listening	Listening is the first step in good communication. When we listen well, we’ll be able to understand and respond to the message appropriately by using other communication skills such as speaking or writing.
	I am with you	When we are listening, we’re not simply observing the communication process happening in front of us. We have to be active participants in the process.

Art of speaking	You know what I mean?	Speaking is the way we communicate our ideas and feelings verbally, but the act of speaking is a lot more than just voicing the words. Whether it’s a face-to-face or phone communication, speaking involves the art of searching for the right words to describe our thoughts and emphasizing those words with our nonverbal actions.
	May I ask a question?	Questioning is an important speaking skill. We speak to deliver a message but sometimes we may want to: gather information learn something from someone find out their ideas or opinions confirm details. To be able to do these, we need to know how ask the right questions.
	On the phone	When we are on the phone we’re limited in how we’re presenting messages and checking our listener, so it is a good idea to spend some time planning and writing down a short note about what we want to say, before we pick up the phone.

People skills	The other half	People skills are about how we deal with other people. We never work in complete isolation. Everything we do requires us to interact with a workmate, a supervisor, a supplier or a customer. Good communication skills help create a positive environment where people feel comfortable and willing to interact with us.
	Good team player	Being part of a team can make working an enjoyable experience. We can achieve more when we work together.
	How may I help you?	Good customer service is vital in today's competitive business environment. Customers can be in the same organization with us or internal customers, or outside our organization or external customers.

Effective reading	Practice makes perfect	Before we start reading, we need to know our reading purpose or what we intend to do with the information.

Writing at work	Yours sincerely	There are three steps to effective business correspondence writing. The first step is to think. The second step is to draft. The third step is to finalize.
	Job sheet	A service invoice or work order is a key document which we use to communicate with both our customers and workmates. It's a legal contract between us as the service provider, and our customer.
	Inspection report	When we inspect a vehicle, we need to check that all components and systems are operational, secured, and safe in accordance with the vehicle manufacturer recommendations. An inspection report is a useful guide when conducting a vehicle inspection.
	Equipment defect report	Whenever we come across any defective equipment, we should tag the defective items and put them in a secured area so noone else can use them by mistake, complete an equipment defect report, and notify our supervisor.
	Accident report	To make sure that the information is accurate an accident report should be completed as soon as practically possible while we still remember the facts of the accident.

Researching	How to go about it	When we first come across a problematic situation we have to define what the real problem is. Then we look for information or clues which can help us solve the problem. Finally, we put the pieces together to work out what the answer or the best solution should be.
	Where to look	Information comes in various formats including, print, audiovisual, and computer-based.

Workplace scenario 2	Another day with Henry	We follow Henry, a service technician, through is day at a workshop and see different outcomes of his interactions with customers and workmates.

Topic area	Topic group	Topic