Communication Styles in Academic Versus Industry Environments

By Lina Sorg

When preparing to enter the workforce, all students must learn to effectively communicate in the style of their prospective area of employment. For many students in applied mathematics, computational science, or related fields, this means adapting their communication techniques to reflect either academic- or industry-based environments. During the PIC Math (Preparation for Industrial Careers in Mathematical Sciences) Spring Faculty Workshop, which took place virtually last month, Genetha Gray of Salesforce spoke about the differences in communication styles between academia and industry.

Gray began her career in applied biology and worked at Sandia National Laboratories for 12 years before ultimately finding herself in the field of people analytics. “I’m a Ph.D. mathematician in human resources,” she said. “That’s kind of rare.” In her position as Lead People Research Scientist, Gray examines data about Salesforce employees and helps the company make data-driven decisions. Though she does herself not have a strictly academic background, she has observed noticeable distinctions in the communication styles of academic versus industry mathematicians.

Gray introduced the topic of communication by breaking it into three types: verbal, nonverbal, and written. Verbal communication includes oral presentations, reviews, meetings, and casual chats; nonverbal communication encompasses facial expressions, gestures, eye contact, and posture; and written communication comprises reports and papers, memos, emails, and instant messages.

Visual cues and listening techniques span all three aforementioned groups. Listening is of course an obvious component of verbal communication, but one must also interpret gestures in nonverbal communication and glean the subtext of written materials — both of which constitute a form of listening. And while charts and graphs are the most obvious examples of visual cues in written communication, emojis and gifs can likewise convey important information during informal exchanges.

Gray noted that the biggest discrepancy between communication in industry and academia is the audience. “Who you’re communicating with is the huge difference here,” she said. “The number one rule of speaking is to know your audience.” For instance, people in academia often communicate with someone who is more of an expert than they are — i.e., when students reiterate their knowledge back to a professor or researchers present their work at a specialized conference.

In contrast, industry communicators are usually experts in their field — regardless of their level of experience. “How do I present this to people who are incredibly smart in their own fields, which are very far away from what I know?” Gray asked. Industry presenters need the audience to be confident in the material without having to provide every detail. In some cases, the work in question does not even belong to the presenter; they just possess thorough knowledge of the subject. Unlike in academia—where the audience attends a talk or presentation to consume the material—an industry audience is often not the final consumer or decision-maker. Instead, they customarily take the presented material to the executive level. “You have to be clear so that a game of telephone doesn’t happen,” Gray said.

Academic presentations are meant to get people thinking about how they can incorporate the techniques or results into a larger research set, so they typically allow opportunities for clarification and discussion. But industry presentations are briefer, more regimented, and meant to drive action and determine next steps. Therefore, the communicator must convey the purpose clearly, quickly, and efficiently. An industrial audience generally does not probe the presenter with questions if they have confidence in the outcome.

Gray then shared the following list of questions to consider for verbal and written communication, and encouraged professors to prompt their students to consider these queries in the context of both their own preferences and their presentation styles:

• Verbal: What is most important to you?
• Verbal: What turns you off immediately?
• Verbal: What do you like?
• Verbal: What is problematic about informal communication?
• Written: What do you hate?
• Written: What do you love?
• Written: What types of communication are most and least important to you?

These questions establish a sense of neurodiversity in a team. In the same way that everyone brings different skillsets to a group, people also have their own styles of communicating and processing information. For example, some people like emailing while others prefer instant messaging. Some do better when they have time to look over and process materials in advance, while others are comfortable offering spontaneous feedback.

Communication is also a huge component of the interview process itself, and Gray urged professors to help their students prepare accordingly. In industry, initial contact is often with a recruiter who does not know anything about the applicant’s area of expertise. “The kind of communication you have to have with a person like that is a lot different,” Gray said. “You have to be personable. Being able to just chat with someone who is completely out of your field but also invested in you getting a job is a totally different kind of communication skill.” In contrast, academic applicants normally talk to a chair or professor who has prior knowledge about their work.

After applying for an industry position, one must usually complete a test with problems that represent the type of work the job would entail. Applicants then present their results. While most candidates pass the test, Gray noted that only about 25 percent pass the presentation portion. “You need to make sure that you can tell the story, show what you did, and make it clear that you can talk to people,” she said. Industry hiring committees are particularly interested in determining whether potential hires can confidently present and succinctly describe a project to leadership.

Next, Gray addressed the difference between a CV and a resume. Applicants for academic positions should submit a CV, which includes a list of all publications and can be multiple pages long. Industry employers, however, ordinarily expect a one-page resume that focuses on projects, with an emphasis on the outcomes and value. This should demonstrate the candidate’s unique knowledge base and the way in which it will fill a void in the company.

Gray closed her presentation with suggestions to help professors prepare their students for various means of communication. For instance, roleplaying scenarios in the classroom allow students to practice presenting their research to different types of people and audiences — a CEO making a decision, a supervisor considering a promotion, etc. She also encouraged professors to bring in guest speakers or mentors that expose students to different types of audiences. Finally, Gray touted the value of mock interviews with industry partners who provide sample questions and offer feedback. “It’s really an important skill to be able to talk to lots of different kinds of people,” she said. The only way to truly become comfortable is to practice, and many college career centers will set up mock interviews. 

In addition, practicing elevator pitches can also prepare students for eventually leaving the school environment, where many of their associates have the same level of expertise. They should think about how they would explain their research to someone with no prior knowledge in order to help acquaintances remember who they are and what they do during casual conversation. “Students should be really confident in their skills,” Gray said. “They have this great base, now they need to build on top of that and bring other things.”

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PIC Math is a program of the Mathematical Association of America and SIAM, with support from the National Science Foundation and the National Security Agency.

Lina Sorg is the managing editor of SIAM News.