Posted by Updated November 2025
Chatter That Counts: Sapolsky’s Case for Communication as Business’s Biological Glue
Our ancestors did not survive by acting alone, but through cooperation that forged alliances. The explosive evolution of language and teamwork is why we are here today. The same principals apply to survival in business.
In Sapolskyian fashion: eons ago, our ancestors didn’t conquer the savanna by grunting solo—they survived through a symphony of signals, from primate grooming chats that sealed alliances to the explosive evolution of language that let us plot hunts, share lore, and shame slackers into shape.
In Behave: The Biology of Humans at Our Best and Worst, Robert Sapolsky unpacks how communication isn’t some corporate buzzword but a neural non-negotiable, wiring our oxytocin-dosed brains for the reciprocity and empathy that turn fragile individuals into formidable flocks—without it, cooperation crumbles, and so do we.Fast-forward to the boardroom jungle of 2025, where market predators lurk and innovation droughts loom: disengaged teams echo isolated baboons, silos festering like untreated wounds.
Sapolsky would quip that effective business practices hinge on this primal pipeline—clear, vulnerability-laced dialogue that fosters trust, aligns visions, and amplifies collective smarts, much like language supercharged our species’ odds against extinction. At Venture Up, we harness this evolutionary hack through workshops that sharpen your team’s tongue and ears, proving that in the ruthless arena of commerce, the firms that communicate like kin don’t just engage employees—they out-evolve the competition.
Getting caught up in logistical snags can often be attributed to poor communication. Such teams who cross wires can benefit by leaving the office and taking on a new set problem solving activities to regain perspective. Excellent team communication improves productivity and morale. Here are other ways managers can get teams in sync.
Open Office
While privacy reduces noise and helps productivity in some cases, too many partitions and closed doors cuts team members off from each other. Keeping your door open and setting work stations up in an open area sends a message that teamwork is encouraged.
Clear Values
Make sure your values are clear and visible in break rooms and open work areas. Posters, cartoons, team drawings can be displayed weekly or monthly, interchanging throughout the year. People notice something new, so keep changing the displays to get the staff’s attention and keep teams on track. Any display posted year-round will have all the impact of an elevator inspection certificate.
Good managers set an example by practicing what they preach. If accountability is a value, make sure you take ownership when the heat is on you. You may find your honesty actually cools things off. Staff will likely feel more relaxed when it’s their turn to take responsibility when things go awry.
Software Solutions
Choose a platform with clear goals in mind. You might be looking for instant messaging to reduce the amount of time employees spend reading emails, or for task lists that everyone can access to check and update the status of a project. Necessity is the mother of invention, and as such there are a wealth of programs tailored to different office and field environments. Choosing the platform should also be a team decision and involve feedback from the staff involved. Survey feedback lets you know what your staff is thinking. Assume nothing.
Breaks
Encourage breaks and outline them in your employee policies. Your break area should be more than just a kitchenette where people leave passive-aggressive notes about doing dishes and eating other people’s food. Make board games available, and consider having an office-wide (or department-wide) break time so your staff can interact over coffee. The break room could also have an “Artist of the Week” poster, with all staff being involved. Any topic is o.k., but artists must title their work. Throughout the week other team members may post hand-written comments a bulletin board next to the artwork.
Training
The right training is worthwhile investment. If you want to retain employees and nurture expertise, training has the added benefit of requiring communication through mentorship and promotes a “learning culture” within the organization. People love sharing knowledge and interacting, and if training can be purposeful and fun, you serve the needs for developing skills and nourishing team relationships.
Constructive Feedback
Nobody likes finding a stack of papers on their desk marked up with angry red pen. If you need to criticize work, do so privately and in person. First, highlight the merits and explain where things fell short of your expectations. When a job is well done, a genuine compliment goes far. Employees need to be recognized and appreciated. Companies with high retention rates know this well.
Clear Goals
When it comes to setting goals, be vague at your own peril. Don’t just announce that something needs to be done. Break the project into steps, making it clear who will be responsible for each task. The directives should be reinforced in writing.
Team Building
Encourage team members to come up with interactive activities, such as filling out sports brackets, voting on the best in-house artist, or a team word game at break time). Plan or hire professionals to deliver engaging, original, hands-on activities.
The ticket to hiring the right company is to find most creative team, with a hefty client list and flawless recommendations. Beware of books on training games. While they may be a good reference for young staff, you can be certain a few of the older staff have already done the game you choose to play.
Venture Up (est. 1983) is the original team building company, helping organizations build trust and collaboration through real-world experience.
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