What exactly is “Critical Thinking Communication”? If you Google it, you will find a lot of articles about “Critical Thinking in Communication” or “Critical Thinking and Communication”. My intention behind this site is to shine attention on the skill itself of “Critical Thinking Communication” being a specific and purposeful craft…. dare I even say a “job title” or “job role”.

My professional background has been rooted in the services/agency/consultancy space for over 25+ years. I’ve been with 11 different organizations and have mostly lived in the “P” management realm across all companies. Product Marketing Manager, Project Manager, Program Manager, and Product Manager.

• As a Product Marketing Manager, it was my job to talk up and communicate the features and benefits of products to convince users to buy and adopt.
• As a Project Manager, it was my job to see a project from kickoff to delivery within a timeline and under a certain budget.
• As a Program Manager, I laid the foundation for how n number of projects would operate and hit business KPIs within an account portfolio supported by x headcount.
• As a Product Manager, I created roadmaps and worked with scrum teams to deliver digital experiences to deliver value to businesses while also improving end-customer relationships.

Through all of those roles, there was always a feeling of being a ‘misfit’. While I could accomplish the work and the tasks set before me as part of my job description – the specific outputs that each of those roles above required didn’t feel natural to me. Even though I was in project management for many many years, I still struggle with RACI charts (what’s the difference between ‘Responsible’ and ‘Accountable’ again?) Just looking at a RAID log makes me gag a little.

Don’t get me wrong though — I knew (and make sure my team knew) exactly who did what/when/why and I made sure all involved stakeholders were aware of risks and mitigating activities. Turns out my underlying problem is in the “expectations of the shoulds” related to the role I’m involved with.

• Product and FAB sheets should be formatted into 3 specific sections…
• RACI charts should look like this
• RAID logs should look like that
• Workback schedules should state the following items…
• Staffing plans should show capacity v. allocation v. billable v. non-billable
• Product Managers should prepare, plan, define, refine, test, learn..etc

**imagine the shrill whistling of a tea kettle boiling here**

If you have ever worked with me on a project, most the stuff I created and used to manage probably didn’t look or read like “the shoulds” that you could Google templates against. Even though I might not have followed a template, I can say that my version was just as effective in communicating the needful.

… and that’s where I draw the line for what Critical Thinking Communication is all about. There are roles that are very well-known in the digital industry (like the ones I listed above), and those roles come with ALL the SHOULDS. Where Critical Thinking Communication is different: Do what is necessary to ensure Context, Clarity, and Consensus are achieved.

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The latest AI Overview from Google as of Jan 21, 2025 states:

Critical thinking communication is the process of using critical thinking skills to communicate information clearly and concisely. It can help people understand situations, make decisions, and navigate challenges. [1, 2, 3]

Critical thinking [2, 4, 5, 6]

• A disciplined process of analyzing, evaluating, and applying information
• Involves drawing conclusions based on limited information
• Can help people connect and organize ideas
• Can help people resolve differences in approach and mindset

Communication [1, 7]

• Involves conveying clear and concise messages
• Can help people understand situations, make decisions, and navigate challenges
• Can help people build trust and maintain relationships

Critical thinking communication [1]

• Involves using critical thinking skills to communicate information clearly and concisely

Steps for critical thinking [3]

1. Identify the problem
2. Gather information
3. Make predictions
4. Make decisions
5. Implement the decision, evaluate performance, and learn

Generative AI is experimental.

[1] https://www.crises-control.com/blogs/critical-communication-for-organisations/

[2] https://louisville.edu/ideastoaction/about/criticalthinking/what

[3] https://guides.franklin.edu/thinking/5-step

[4] https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/how-critical-thinking-makes-us-better-collaborators-sorrel-harriet-bbghe

[5] https://runway.airforce.gov.au/resources/link-article/5-critical-thinking-skills-use-work-and-how-improve-them

[6] https://www.margotnote.com/blog/2020/06/01/critical-thinking

[7] https://shccares.com/blog/nursing-resources/a-nurses-guide-to-effective-communication-skills/

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Since there is no specific literature on this role/discipline yet, I’m going to run with the Google experimental AI definition for now since it’s the basis of what makes me love this craft so much:

There are no formulas, no templates, no concrete and discrete deliverables required—only successful knowledge and information transfer—which is why it is so fun and challenging at the same time.

None of the work we do is ever in silos — there are always other people involved somewhere along the way.

Critical Thinking Communication is about ensuring all people involved are aware of the context of the need, the needed outcome, and the order in which needed members participate. The concept is to enable all individuals to perform their specific duties well so that the original purpose of the project/program/product initiative can be fulfilled through seamless transitions and handshakes from one person to another. It is not about creating deliverables defined in a job description – it is about connecting dots, clearing up misunderstandings, clarifying scope, removing barriers, setting expectations, aligning nomenclature, recognizing layers and sequences in the overall project AND product lifecycle… it is about working as one team, coming together against a united purpose to keep moving forward.