How do I handle meetings where someone has a thick accent I cannot understand?

I've recently been assigned to manage a different team at my work space, and have been put in charge of running the update meetings for that team. I haven't yet gotten to know the team members very well, but I have run into one problem so far.

Some of the team members will speak very quickly, and with a very thick accent that I cannot fully parse unless I ask them to re-state what they've said several times.

Since our work is part-time remote, we often have these conferences over the phone - which makes it even more difficult to understand them due to the occasional phone static.

I do not want to be rude to the employee that I am now supervising, but it can be quite difficult for me as I try to take notes on what they are doing during the day and what they need from me. How can I improve communication between the two of us?

I had the experience of being in meeting with someone whose accent I could hardly understand. The individual also tended to speed up while talking and seemed to repeat things, which only added to confusion. Off the top, a few things that could help:

• Check your understanding: After each input, summarize what you took to be the key idea and check for confirmation. This ensures clarity while focusing the discussion on the idea being expressed rather than how it was expressed. One tactic is to ask for an example or elaboration:
  • "So, for instance, how would it work?"
  • "Tell me more about what you mean here."

This way you are not asking to repeat what the person said, but their response can shed more light to help you grasp the point.

• Follow up: After the meeting, share your notes with the individual and ask if they reflect their key points/ideas, and ask them to correct anything that may be off.

• Use technology: As an add-on here, if possible, see if you can use real-time transcription to capture online meeting discussions, and/or record meetings and re-listen later (if you feel it might help, and time permitting). Granted, a text version may have limited use if the software is no better than you at grasping the accent, but it could be worth a try.

This could help make the best of the situation while not putting the individual on the defensive and keeping the communication open and honest. Make sure they do not perceive that they are the problem, since this issue really has two parts -- their accent, but also your difficulty deciphering it, which others might find less challenging. Good luck!