Parks and recreation agencies require effective communication to ensure the smooth running of their programming, special events, and everyday operations. Countless interpersonal interactions occur throughout the day, yet communication remains one of the greatest challenges within many organizations.
New methods and technological advances make interactions among supervisory staff, administrators, and front-line workers easier and more efficient. However, some agencies still fail to communicate their needs and goals effectively.
This article explores how to improve communication between park maintenance teams and administrators. Also, get tips and insights on how to promote a culture of open communication throughout your agency.
Understanding Communication Gaps
Communication gaps among park maintenance workers, administrators, and other agency staff can cause a variety of challenges that impact your agency. Responses to urgent issues may get delayed. Staff can also feel frustration due to a lack of understanding. Hard work could go unnoticed, and recognition not always given.
Despite the adverse effects of knowledge gaps, many parks and recreation agencies still experience them.
Being aware of different perspectives related to roles helps create an understanding that can help bridge the divide between departments.
For example, administrators often have to focus on the big picture. They juggle requests from the public, other staff, and stakeholders. They must also be aware of budgets, policies and procedures, and other red tape to accomplish goals. Their focus may not be on the day-to-day details but the big picture and ways to propel the agency. Park maintenance and operations are only a portion of the things that need administrators' attention.
At the same time, maintenance staff focus on their operations. They are doers and problem solvers. They see what needs to be done and spend their time resolving issues. They may not be aware of what goes on behind the scenes and why some decisions get made.
When communication isn’t open and transparent, critical information might not be exchanged, and misunderstandings or frustrations may develop, especially among different departments. While everyone doesn’t need to know every detail about what is going on in the agency, it goes a long way to give the appropriate information to the staff it affects. Sharing information encourages staff engagement, collaboration, and a culture of mutual respect.
Bridging the Communication Gap
One of the first ways to close communication gaps is to understand how information is passed along. If your maintenance team receives work requests via texts, emails, phone calls, work orders, and the occasional sticky note, it can be difficult to organize and prioritize what needs to be done.
Establishing Clear Communication Channels
We’re working in a time when technology makes it easy to stay constantly connected. All these ways to communicate, however, can be confusing and redundant. Setting up clear, efficient communication channels establishes better interactions between parks and recreation departments.
e staff a standard method of communicating their needs and progress. A centralized platform for communication makes it easier for clear communication. Also, standard templates for inspections and reporting progress give staff a uniform way to report information.
Taking advantage of technology like computerized maintenance management software allows your team a central location to create work requests and see their progress.
For example, a special event staff needs tables and other items delivered from the shop to the community center for an upcoming party. The special event staff texts one of the maintenance staff about what’s needed. Unfortunately, the maintenance staff had the day off and completely forgot about the text by the next day. It wasn’t until about an hour before the event that the special event staff realized nothing got delivered. The maintenance team had to drop what they were doing to get the times to the event, throwing off their whole work schedule.
Now, imagine if the event staff used CMMS software to create a work request. The appropriate maintenance staff would get the work request and could quickly create a delivery task and assign it to available staff. The responsible staff would report their progress, and once everything gets delivered, everyone would know about it via the platform.
Simple changes like this can save time and frustrations, while ensuring work gets done when it’s needed.
Promoting a Culture of Open Communication
Poor communication adds stress to the workplace, lowers morale, delays projects, and decreases team performance. A culture of open communication isn’t a luxury, it is a necessity.
Establishing a culture in your organization is a process that needs time and cultivation. Trust starts to grow as both administrators and maintenance staff follow through on commitments and develop authentic communication.
Culture change starts when everyone commits to communicating openly and honestly. Many staff prefer to be “in the know” so they can feel valued and not ignored. Conversely, some staff rather be “in the dark” so they can make excuses for why things aren’t working out.
By providing regular updates, holding meetings where input is valued, and setting clear expectations, staff feel their work contributes more to the success of the parks and recreation agency.
Inviting staff to share their ideas, questions, and feedback creates a culture of collaboration. Input can be through formal meetings, team huddles, or informal interactions. Being open to constructive feedback, reflecting on what’s said, and taking action when appropriate shows you value your team’s input.
Even simple chats about an individual’s weekend plans, family life, and personal goals can make a huge difference in shifting a team’s culture. If you show interest in a person, they are more likely to share an interest in the agency’s goals. Make authentic conversations a routine, not something that seems forced when something needs to get done.
Training & Development
You can’t assume good communication is an ingrained skill of all your staff. Parks and recreation professionals come from a variety of experiences and backgrounds. Some staff are younger and not even out of high school yet, while others have advanced college degrees–and you probably have everything in between.
Staff may communicate well with those having similar experiences but may not understand the perspectives and norms of other departments. The different personalities working in various departments may not mesh well until there is a better understanding of where everyone is coming from.
Team-building activities and cross-training are excellent ways for staff to bond and learn about each other’s work. The understanding that develops among staff can help them be more mindful of their communication and delivery.
Staff can also benefit from development classes and workshops on topics such as leadership, conflict resolution, active listening, and individual communication styles.
Informal mentoring programs can help younger staff or ones who struggle with communication learn from the examples of more seasoned staff.
Collect Feedback for Growth
Every event, maintenance issue, project, and outgoing employee offers insight into how your park and recreation agency can improve communication. Take advantage of it!
Take the time for meetings, informal interactions, or even anonymous surveys to learn how events or maintenance projects went. Talk with staff who are leaving the agency. Discover what was successful and what can be improved.
Parks and recreation agencies are complex. It takes a diverse team to make everything successful. Understanding how the different roles and personalities contribute to successes–or challenges–of your agency allows insights to make changes or additional training opportunities.
The Takeaway
Just like growing the perfect turf, better park agency communication is a process that takes time, care, and some seeds of knowledge. By establishing clear communication channels, enriching your team, and developing a culture of open communication, your agency will be more focused and productive.