Hearing Connects Us
Hearing connects us to people, whether in person or on the phone. Let's start with your clients, and your relationship with them. They expect you and your staff to hear them first time, accurately. Get it wrong, and they assume incompetence or ignorance and look elsewhere.
There’s staff interaction – during meetings, for example. Teams require good communication, which of course relies on hearing. And it's often those seemingly “throw away comments” that make the difference.
There's networking; being there in the right place at the right time, responding decisively as opportunities arise, or overhearing information critical to your business success. Remember, if the moment's gone, it's gone forever. You need to be there, hearing at the ready.
Finally, there’s the bottom-line. Ineffective hearing costs your business money: wrong instructions carried out; a contract lost; incorrect orders; an opportunity missed.
"An American study found in 2000 that the cost to society of hearing impairment totals an average of US$300,000 over the lifetime of a hearing-impaired person. The researchers estimated that 67 per cent, or $200,000 per individual, of these costs are due to lost work productivity."
Source: www.hear-it.org
Hearing Helps Us Take Control
Hearing is our primary method of communication. Yet it's the only sense we have where other people detect deficiencies in our hearing before we do.
If we run the business, we simply can't have this: we need to be in control. We need to know we're hearing as accurately as possible.
And with our staff too, we need to be confident their hearing's up to the task and know that they have the correct equipment and support in place if they have difficulties. If not, unfair pressure is put on colleagues which then leads to unnecessary friction which affects everything from the effectiveness of the business or organisation, to the relationships of team members, to the health and wellbeing of staff (due to workplace anxiety and stress).
Equal Hearing Opportunities At Work
When we employ someone we know is deaf or hard of hearing, providing the right equipment and putting procedures and support in place not only ensures equal opportunities, but enables us to fully make use of the skills, experience and knowledge they have to offer.
The UK Government even offers businesses support with extra costs that might be involved in providing this support through their Access to Work scheme. We even have helpful laws regarding Benefit in Kind exemptions for providing certain assistive equipment (including hearing aids) for people with hearing loss.
Hearing Loss At Work Common
So our problem as businesses comes with people who either pretend their hearing's perfect, or who simply don't know they're missing something. Since 1 in 6 people over 18 do not have perfect hearing, chances are it's going to affect your business at some point. And remember, this isn't an age thing. Think of all that social noise damage.
Yet it's very hard to say to someone, “I think you have a hearing problem and it's affecting your job.” People take it personally - we haven't quite reached the stage in society where we can openly talk about hearing like we can with eyesight. It's normal to expect staff to have good eyesight who work for us. So what about hearing? How do we ensure it's not the weak link in the chain?
Getting the Best Out of Hearing At Work
The best way is to implement a “Hearing At Work” policy, especially if your business relies on accurate hearing or listening – and yours probably does. Arrange for staff to have routine hearing checks every two years. Not only does it prevent problems before they occur, but it ensures your business is harnessing the potential of your most valuable asset: your staff.
And if you have difficulties hearing at work, or a colleague or member of staff does, ask us about arranging a Hearing At Work workplace assessment. We'll provide you with a tailored report giving you advice and action points that are both practical and effective that will benefit both employees and employers.
Nowadays there's more opportunity than ever to ensure you are getting the best out of hearing in the workplace. Let Broom Reid & Harris take your hearing further.