Reddit mentions of Fierce Conversations: Achieving Success at Work and in Life One Conversation at a Time

I think it's possible to communicate without rapport (e.g., documentation, plans, emails). That said, in a team environment, this will only get you so far. Rapport is often what determines how/if people listen to you and how they're geared to respond. I think you're quite right to call it out as its own competency.

IME, the most effective PMs (at least in terms of building relationships) have been:

• Warm (friendly, agreeable, empathetic, and openly enthusiastic about others' strengths and successes)
  
• Trustworthy and sincere
  
• A little vulnerable
  
• Inquisitive, but also perceptive
  
• Knowledgeable
  
• Direct and honest, especially about hard topics
  
• Admirable in their own rights
  
  Some people are naturals at all of it, due to biology and/or nurture. If you're not, you can try to learn new behaviors. It's a non-trivial effort, of course: in some cases, it might mean changing deeply ingrained communication patterns. As a first step, becoming conscious of the ways you're not being the list above can help you focus on what you want to change.
  
  Here are a few related reads that I've learned from:
  
  

1. Fierce Conversations (book)
   
2. The Dynamics of Warmth and Competence Judgments
   
3. 7 things really amazing communicators do
   
4. How to build rapport with clients
   
5. Active listening in practice
   
   Hope this helps!