Good communication is abut more than getting your message across.
Have you ever walked away from a conversation thinking you’d reached an understanding, only to discover later that the other person took away a completely different message?
Or found yourself frustrated because someone seems to hear only what they want to hear? Perhaps you’ve asked a perfectly reasonable question, only to have the other person become defensive.
Frustrating, right?
2026 communication skills courses are finished. Contact us if you’d like to bring the course in-house or to register your interest for next year. 2027 dates coming soon.
Effective communication isn’t simply about speaking clearly or choosing the right words. It’s about understanding how messages can be misinterpreted, recognising the assumptions we bring to conversations, and developing the skills to make sure we’re genuinely understanding each other.
Our Advanced Communication Skills workshop goes beyond the usual communication basics. You’ll learn practical techniques to become a better listener, ask more effective questions, recognise what isn’t being said, and communicate with greater clarity and confidence.
You’ll also discover how small changes to the way you phrase a question, respond to someone or write an email can make a significant difference to the outcome.
This is a hands-on workshop, packed with practical tools and techniques you can put to work immediately, whether you’re managing people, working with colleagues, dealing with customers or simply wanting to become a more effective communicator.
Who this training is for
Our advanced communication skills training is for everyone.
Whether you’re on the front line, part of a project team, or managing others, you’ll benefit from learning how to:
- Make sure your message lands clearly
- Receive messages without bias or assumptions
- Help colleagues, customers and other stakeholders feel heard and understood.
This training is not for you if ...
You’re looking for a basic introduction to communication skills, such as speaking confidently, making conversation or delivering presentations.
You’re looking for in-depth training in managing difficult conversations, giving feedback or resolving workplace conflict. While this course provides valuable foundations, these skills are explored in greater depth in our other workshops (see below).
Course delivery and practical info
Delivery options
Training can be delivered as:
- In‑person workshops (in-house)
- Virtual workshops (public offerings)
Practical info
Next date: No more courses in 2026.
2027 dates coming soon. Contact us about bringing this course in-house.
Time: 9am to 2pm (public courses)
Cost: $517.50 incl GST
You need: computer, webcam, headphones (if attending in an office) and good wifi connection.
Our approach
At Epic People, our courses are grounded in:
- Real workplace experience — not theory alone
- Adult learning principles that respect managers’ experience
- Practical tools managers can apply straight away, rather than abstract theoretical concepts
- A supportive environment that builds confidence and capability
What you'll learn in our communication skills course
Why communication goes wrong
Discover why the message someone receives isn’t always the message you intended. Explore the different sources of communication ‘noise’, including assumptions, distractions and cognitive biases, and learn how to prevent these from getting in the way of genuine understanding.
Listening to understand
There’s a big difference between hearing someone and really listening to them. Explore the habits that get in the way of effective listening and build a practical toolbox of active listening techniques. Learn how to encourage people to open up, check your understanding and help others feel genuinely heard.
The art of asking better questions
The quality of your questions can change the direction of a conversation. Learn how to use different questioning techniques to uncover information, explore problems, challenge thinking and reach agreement. You’ll also practise reframing questions to reduce defensiveness and keep conversations constructive.
Understanding non-verbal communication
Words are only part of the message. Explore how tone of voice, facial expressions, gestures and body language influence communication. Learn to recognise when someone’s words and non-verbal signals don’t seem to match, and how to use your own non-verbal communication more effectively.
Writing clearly and getting your message across
Make your written communication easier to read, understand and act on. Learn practical techniques for writing effective emails, using plain English, cutting out unnecessary words and making sure your reader understands what you need from them.
Why choose Epic People as your communication skills training provider?
After 30+ years working in Human Resources and training across a variety of industries, we’ve seen first hand how communication skills can make or break teams. Whether it’s one on one discussions between a manager, or communication between peers, misunderstandings are common and easily avoided. We also believe in getting the fundamentals right. This course isn’t aspirational, it’s practical and follows our commitment to ensuring people walk out of our workshops with the confidence to apply real, tangible skills, not just a headful of ideas.
Our workshops are always highly practical. We walk through processes step by step, discovering tools, techniques, conversation starters, and process models that make it easier to create an environment of independence, and growth.
Build on your communication skills
Good communication underpins so many other workplace skills. Whether you’re interviewing job candidates, coaching employees, managing performance or trying to understand why someone behaves the way they do, the ability to listen, ask effective questions and recognise your own assumptions makes a real difference.
Our Advanced Communication Skills workshop provides a strong foundation for developing these skills further.
If you’re looking to build your capability in a particular area, these courses are a natural next step.
Successful recruitment and selection of new team members relies heavily on excellent communication skills. Clearing away biases, asking the right questions the right way, and active listening are essential skills to help you hire the right person first time.
To truly empower your staff, you need to ask more than you tell. Having a range of questioning techniques at your disposal, active listening, and setting aside biases are all essential communication skills for building a coaching culture.
Whether underperformance is because of ability, willingness or something else, taking a curious approach is often the best way forward. Applying a range of communication skills facilitates a curious approach to understanding the causes of poor performance.
Social intelligence training builds awareness of how behaviour and interpersonal dynamics impact performance conversations, feedback, trust and engagement. Combine this with advanced communication skills to build an environment of trust and psycholotical safety.
Advanced Communication Skills training course FAQ's
Here are some common questions about our communication skills training.
What does advanced communication skills training cover?
Epic People’s Advanced Communication Skills workshop develops practical skills for communicating more effectively at work. The course covers communication barriers and cognitive biases, active listening, effective questioning techniques, non-verbal communication, and writing clear, effective emails and other workplace communications. Participants learn how to reduce misunderstandings, ask better questions and make sure their messages are understood.
Why are communication skills important in the workplace?
In the workplace, miscommunication wastes time, causes errors, and lowers morale. Workplace communication training helps teams reduce misunderstandings, improve collaboration, and create stronger working relationships by ensuring everyone feels heard.
Who should attend an advanced communication skills course?
Our Advanced Communication Skills workshop is suitable for employees at all levels, not just managers and team leaders. It’s particularly useful for people who regularly work with customers, collaborate with colleagues, solve problems, influence others or have conversations that require careful listening and questioning. No previous communication skills training is required.
How can communication skills training improve listening and questioning skills?
Effective listening involves more than paying attention. Our workshop teaches active listening techniques, including reflecting, summarising and checking understanding. Participants also learn different questioning techniques to gather information, explore problems and encourage deeper thinking. These skills are especially valuable for coaching, performance conversations, customer interactions and collaborative problem-solving.
Can communication skills training help reduce misunderstandings and workplace conflict?
Yes. Misunderstandings often arise because people interpret messages through their own experiences, assumptions and biases. This workshop helps participants recognise these barriers and use practical techniques to clarify meaning, check understanding and respond constructively. Participants also practise asking questions in ways that reduce defensiveness and encourage more productive conversations.
Does this course include written communication and email skills?
Yes. The workshop includes practical techniques for writing clearer, more effective workplace communications. Participants learn how to structure emails so that important information and action points aren’t overlooked, as well as how to use plain English to make messages easier to read and understand. These techniques can also be applied to reports, letters and other business writing.
Is advanced communication skills training suitable for New Zealand workplaces?
Yes. Epic People’s communication skills training has been developed in New Zealand, drawing on more than 30 years of practical HR and workplace training experience. The course uses realistic workplace situations and practical techniques that employees and managers can apply in their everyday interactions. It’s suitable for New Zealand organisations across a wide range of industries.
Can we arrange communication skills training for our whole team?
Yes. Epic People offers in-house communication skills workshops for New Zealand organisations, as well as scheduled live online training. In-house workshops can be customised to reflect your organisation’s culture, values and workplace challenges, making the learning particularly relevant to your people.
Is this course included in the Epic People Team Leader Development Programme?
Yes. The communication skills covered in this workshop are already included in our Team Leader Development Programme, so participants who have completed that programme generally won’t need to attend this course separately. However, it can be a useful refresher, particularly if you completed the programme some time ago or would like to revisit specific communication techniques.
Ready to improve communication in your workplace?
Epic workplaces communicate effectively
Let’s talk about how we can help your organisation thrive through improved communication skills.
