Improve communication with stakeholders using NLP

What is NLP?

Neuro refers to how the mind and body interact

Linguistic refers to the insights into a persons thinking that can be obtained by careful attention to their use of language

Programming refers, not to the activity of programming but to the study of the thinking and behaviour patterns or programmes which people use in their daily lives

The founders were Richard Bandler and John Grinder in the 1970s who were looking to develop a model of excellence. They studied the work of expert therapists to understand what made them excellent and whether a model could be designed to transfer competencies to others

Overtime NLP has developed a model of how language is processed by the brain and claim that both affect each other over time. Some of what our brains do (how we represent the world to ourselves) is expressed in the language we use.

Primary modalities

It would be a mistake to assume that everyone thinks in the same way. NLP teaches about different types of modalities which explain the differences you may come across in how people think and how to adapt your approach to suit them to get more from your interactions with them. People at the top of their profession tend to be able to adapt the modality they use for the most appropriate situation

Modality is another word for sense and illustrates how we navigate through the world

There are 6 modalities

Sight (Visual)
Sound (Auditory)
Sensing (Kinaesthetic)
Smell (Olfactory)
Taste (Gustatory)
Logic (Auditory digital)

We all use these senses but will tend to have a preference for one over the other. This is very much reflected when learning something new.

Some may prefer to imagine (visual), others need to hear how to do it (auditory), others need to get a feeling for it (kinaesthetic) and others may need to make sense of it (logical digital). It is more unusual for someone primary modality to be related to smell or taste so I do not cover these ones in any more detail.

Many professions already incorporate NLP as good standard practice so why shouldnt this also apply to business analysis

For example training companies will ensure their course uses pictures for those who are more visual, speaking out loud for those more auditory, materials printed out for those more kinesthetic and exercises for those who are more auditory digital

For example a car sales man will show a potential car buyer around the car to give them a visual picture, get them to sit in the car to get a feel for it, start the engine to hear it and explain details to enable them to make more sense of it

A persons primary modality can be recognised by looking out for the language they use, certain behaviours or characteristics. This may change over time and in different contexts so it is important not to pigeon hole someone but to notice which one they are favouring at a moment in time

Once a business analyst can recognise the primary modalities being used with their stakeholders they can then adapt their communication approach to match theirs for better rapport building and responses. We are so dependent on getting requirements from our stakeholders that the more effective we are at doing this the more success we will have.

Method 1

One method is eye movements. See diagram below. Ask someone a question that necessitates them searching in their mind for an answer and you will often see a movement in their eyes. The direction will apparently tell you what is going on in their heads.

The diagram points out the meaning of eye movements as seen when looking at the person opposite you.

Method 2

Another method is a persons characteristics. Beware though that these are generalisations so there will be exceptions.

Visual modality characteristics

Very dynamic and often exaggerated gestures
Frequently look upwards
Well organised and attend to detail
Well groomed
See in pictures
Easily bored
Attention captured by visual stimuli

The impact of visual modality characteristics for you as a business analyst is the following:

They are organized, neat and well-groomed because they want to look good and hence they will expect the same thing from you
They are more imaginative and may have difficulty putting their ideas in words.
They will speak faster than the general populated because they have pictures in their mind and if it is a moving picture, there is a lot to tell in so little time!
They will prefer in-person interactions to see the other person and his/her reactions.
They will want to see or be shown concepts, ideas or how something is done.
They will want to see the big picture
They may not remember what people have said and become confused if you give them too many verbal instructions. However, if you can draw a map or picture for them, then they can see what you are saying.
They will remember faces more easily than names.
They will be distracted by visual activity and less so by noise.
They will use visualization for memory and decision making, therefore often getting insights about something.

Auditory modality characteristics

Moderate in their gestures
Frequently look side to side
Frequently talk to themselves
Attentive to speech
Remember verbal sequences easily
Learn by listening
Attracted to music and sound

The impact of auditory modality characteristics for you as a business analyst is the following:

They will be more aware of subtle change in the tone of your voice and be more responsive to certain tones of voice.
They will perceive and represent sequences and are able to remember directions or instructions more easily.
They will learn by listening and asking
They will enjoy discussions and prefer to communicate through spoken language rather than the written word.
They will talk through problems and like to have someone available to serve as a sounding board for their ideas.
They will need to be heard.
They will be easily distracted by noise.

Kinaesthetic modality characteristics

Slow movers, posture often slumped
Frequently look down and to the left
Speech is slow and deliberate
Easily frustrated by the speed at which a visual person operates
Rely on gut feeling
Rely on sense of touch
Touching or doing things captures their attention

The impact of Kinaesthetic modality characteristics for you as a business analyst is the following:

They will speak slower than the general population as they need time to get in touch with how they feel about the topic.
They will be more sensitive to their bodies and their feelings and respond to physical rewards and touching.
They will learn by doing, moving or touching.
They will dress and groom themselves more for comfort than how they look.
They will make decisions based on their feelings.
They will stand closer to other people than those with a visual preference – to feel the other persons energy, whereas the person with a visual preference will stand back to see more of the other person (body language, etc.).

Auditory Digital modality characteristics:

Have a need to make sense of the world, to figure things out, to understand.
Talk to themselves and carry on conversations with you in their mind. Often they will say they remember discussing something with you, when you actually did not have the conversation. They did, however, in their mind!
Learn by working things out in their mind.
Not to be spontaneous, as they like to think things through.
Have logic play a key role in the decision process as do facts and figures.
Memorize by steps, procedures, sequences.

The impact of auditory modality characteristics for you as a business analyst is the following:

They will need to understand why something is important and instructions have to make sense and be logical
They not only enjoy but need printed details and flow charts
When you are presenting details to them they will often take notes and will want to drill down into more details
They will expect and probably have a degree technical know how

Method 3

The language a stakeholder uses may also reflect the primary modality that they are using at the time. The table below lists some of the key words you may hear

Visual	Auditory	Kinesthetic	Audio Digital
What does that look like	I hear you	Doesnt feel right	That makes sense
I want to see the big picture	Sounds good	We need to handle this	There is no logic

Adapting communication style

As a result of learning about primary modalities I adapted my communication style depending upon my stakeholders.

On a one to one basis I will quite often match my language to theirs to build rapport so they feel that we have something in common and use approaches to suit the situation.

For visual modalities you may wish to make use of diagrams, show concepts and the big picture

For auditory modalities you may wish to make use of discussions and allow questions

For kinaesthetic modalities you may wish to send out details about a topic in advance to give them time to work out how they feel about it

For audio digital modalities you may wish to make use of printed out details and flow charts

These are all different approaches and it is important to recognise that there is a need to adopt communication approach to recognise all of the different ways your stakeholder may think. When you look at the characteristic differences between the different modalities its easier to identify why conflict could occur in a meeting and how outcomes can vary depending upon the communication approach used.

Thoughts? Questions? Please share in the comments.