Danny Langdon, a specialist in instructional design and performance improvement systems, addresses a difficult area for organizations. He writes, "We lack a basic, complete work language that provides us with a clear definition of work and a common method of communication." 

So, we sets about providing what he calls, the Language of Work. Once you learn this new language, Langdon asserts, you can then communicate better with others, and you can observe the positive impact it has on your team relationships. 

This book is not an easy read, but it is precise, and precision is what Langdon aims to achieve. He takes the imprecision out of language, and "engineers" our communication. At first glance, his process feels cumbersome, because you have to think conceptually to get where Langdon wants you to go. And to make sure you go where Langdon wants you to go, he defines a lot of wordsvery precisely. 

For example, when he considers individual employees, he calls them the process. The inputs would be the work or job requests, which have conditions attached to them. The Process (the employee) produces outputs, which have consequences. Langdon would maintain that one of the reasons why people complain about their work tasks (inputs) is that they don't know what the positive consequences are associated with their work (outputs). He says, "By attending to inputs, process, conditions, and feedback, you can change negative consequences to positive consequences." 

I wonder if one needs such an elaborate model to get to the positive consequences Langdon is attempting to achieve in this book. One way to look at it, is to simply tell managers that they have to let their staff know the benefits or advantages or value their work achieves. Stephen Covey would phrase it: "Begin with the end in mind." 

Perhaps some people need to engineer their language to see where they are going. Langdon's diagrams are quite elaborate, and probably overwhelming for most people who are simply looking for a better way to communicate to increase motivation among staff and team members. But certainly for the person who thinks in a highly structured way, Langdon's book is fascinating. 

And one of the real jewels in the book is his list of 15 Standards of the Informed Manager on p. 181, and 12 Standards of the Informed Worker. Either of these lists could become a list of values for job performance in any organization attempting to improve its productivity. 

Janelle Barlow, President  

TMI USA 

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