Chapter 1 - Communicating Successfully in an Organization

Communication, Business, and You

Communication occurs almost constantly in organizations and is a necessary part of virtually every business activity
Individual employees act as links in the communication chain, transmitting messages to and from the outside world and
up and down the organization.

Communication increases productivity and effectiveness -- both yours and your company’s.

The manager’s essential function is to collect and disseminate information.

The Internal Communication Network

Each organization has its own communication needs and its own methods for exchanging that information.

Formal communication channels are defined by the official chain of command and govern the flow of information up,
down, and across the organization.

Messages may become distorted as they travel up and down the organization; the bigger the company, the bigger
the problem.

Downward information flow:  from upper to lower levels of the hierarchy; permits management to direct activities
of employees.

Upward information flow:  from lower to upper levels; enables management to monitor performance and obtain ideas.

Employees are inclined to suppress bad news.

“Going through channels” can be awkward for employees; some companies create alternative transmission lines
from lower to higher levels.

Horizontal information flow:  from department to department, peer to peer; enables employees to do their jobs
efficiently.  Amount of horizontal flow depends on degree of cross-functional interaction required by the organization.

Informal communication channels (or “grapevine”) supplement formal channels:

Contain mix of business and personal messages
Contain mix of facts, assumptions, and opinions
Enable organization to function more efficiently

Successful managers use the grapevine to keep in touch.

Fluid nature of grapevine contrasts with relatively rigid structure of formal channels.

The External Communication Network

Organizations depend on communication with customers, suppliers, competitors, investors, government officials,
and community representatives.

Two types of external communication:  formal and informal.

Marketing is a type of formal communication aimed at selling goods and services.

Public relations is a type of formal communication that deals more broadly with establishing the organization’s reputation.

The reaction to a crisis can profoundly affect a company’s future.

One of the main functions of public relations people is to anticipate problems and outline steps for dealing with them.

Individual employees make informal contacts with outsiders:  receptionists present a distinct image to customers,
lower-level employees pick up bits of information helpful to the organization, and top managers encounter colleagues,
competitors, suppliers, and so forth with whom they regularly exchange information.

Characteristics of Effective Organizational Communication

Corporate culture determines the degree to which management (1) encourages honesty and debate and (2) shares
information with employees.

Three distinct management styles are associated with various communication climates:

Theory X: Workers are viewed as lacking motivation, requiring control through fear; closed communication climate.

Theory Y: Workers are viewed as motivated and responsible, deserving encouragement and support; open
communication climate.

Theory Z: Workers are viewed as part of a family or team; open communication climate.

Intercultural communication is crucial both abroad and at home.

Understanding, using, and adapting to technology is crucial to successful business communication.

Audience-centered approach is the best way to communicate effectively, openly, and ethically.

Many organizations are awash in a sea of paper. The solution:

Reduce the number of messages
Speed up preparation of messages
Train writers and speakers

The Basic Forms of Communication

Nonverbal communication is less structured and more spontaneous than verbal communication.

Nonverbal communication is important because it (1) has more impact than verbal communi-cation, (2) is
considered a more accurate and reliable indicator of meaning than words, and (3) conveys information quickly
and efficiently.

Six varieties of nonverbal behavior:

Facial expressions and eye behavior
Gestures and postures
Vocal characteristics
Personal appearance
Touching behavior
Use of time and space

Men and women use and interpret nonverbal communication differently.

Verbal communication is the spoken use of words arranged according to rules of grammar.

Although business people tend to rely more heavily on oral than written communication, some things need to be put
in writing.

Using multiple channels (both written and spoken) gives your message maximum impact.

People spend more time receiving information than transmitting it.

The listening/reading process requires the ability to register, interpret, evaluate, sort, and store information.

The Process of Communication

Communication process:

1. Sender has idea
2. The sender transforms the idea into a message (encoding)
3. The sender transmits the message
4. The receiver gets the message
5. The receiver interprets the message (decoding)
6. The receiver reacts and sends feedback to the sender

How to Improve Communication

Five qualities of good communicators:

Perception
Precision
Credibility
Control
Congeniality

To minimize noise:

 Choose the communication channel and medium most likely to attract attention
 Tailor messages for the reader’s convenience
 Remove environmental distractions
 Reduce the number of links in the communication chain

Feedback is vital but can be disruptive in some situations, so:

 Think about how and when you want to obtain feedback
 Choose the channel and medium accordingly
 Encourage honest feedback
 Ask questions to draw out the audience’s reaction
 Listen with an open mind
 Avoid defensive reactions
 Revise message and try again if audience doesn’t understand

Technology in Written Communication

Word-processing software is the most common tool for creating printed documents.

Desktop publishing (DTP) software computerizes the process of assembling finished pages.

Technology helps you create electronic documents such as e-mail, documents that are created, transmitted, and
read entirely on computer.

Computer networks can be set up within an office, across the country, or around the world.

The Internet offers tools such as:

Electronic mail (e-mail)
Telnet
File-Transfer Protocol (FTP)
Search engines
World Wide Web

E-mail offers advantages:  Increased speed
    Decreased cost
    Portability
    Convenience
    Communication recordkeeping
    Up-to-date news services
    Egalitarianism
    More open communication
    Distribution lists
    Automated mail

E-mail problems include:    Electronic junk mail
Lack of privacy
Lack of permanence
Lack of paper trail

Terms to know when using the World Wide Web:

Browser
Home page
URL
Link
Hypertext
Web site

Intranets use the same technology as the Internet and the World Wide Web, but the information provided and
the access allowed are restricted to the boundaries of a company-wide network.

Technology adds complexity, costs a lot, and is only as good as the person using it.

Understanding the Composition Process

The composition process occurs in 10 stages, which vary in order and duration, and there are three categories in
the composition process:

 Planning
   1. Define purpose
   2. Analyze audience
   3. Establish main idea
   4. Select channel and medium
 Composing
   5. Organize message
   6. Formulate message
 Revising
   7. Edit message
   8. Rewrite message
   9. Produce message
   10. Proof message

Because composition is often a team effort, with different people handling different stages, collaborative writing is
an important influence on the composition process.

Computers make collaborative writing easier.

Planning business messages occurs in four stages:

1. Defining your purpose
2. Analyzing your audience
3. Establishing your main idea
4. Selecting the appropriate channel and medium

Stage 1: Defining Your Purpose

The purpose guides many decisions about a message, including:

Whether sending the message is worthwhile
Whether the message addresses the audience’s needs
What to include and exclude
What channel and medium to use

Common general purposes of business messages: to inform, persuade, or collaborate.

Specific purpose:  what audience should think or do after considering the message.

To test the purpose, ask these questions:

Is the purpose realistic?
Is this the right time?
Is the right person delivering the message?
Is the purpose acceptable to the organization?

Stage 2: Analyzing Your Audience

Develop your audience’s profile so that you can tailor your message to fit your audience:

Determine audience size and composition
Identify the primary audience
Estimate the audience’s probably reaction
Gauge the audience’s level of understanding
Define your relationship with the audience

The audience has three types of needs:  informational, motivational, practical.

Emphasize ideas of greatest interest to the audience

To make a message as appealing as possible (to satisfy motivational needs):

Appeal to reason
Appeal to emotions

To make a message as convenient as possible (to satisfy practical needs):

Be aware that business audiences are pressed for time and face many interruptions
Be brief
Make the message easy to follow

Stage 3: Establishing the Main Idea

Main idea:  central point that sums up the message; theme; “hook,” as in advertising

Difference between topic and main idea:

• Topic is the broad subject of the message
• Main idea makes a statement about the subject and motivates the audience to accept your point of view

The main idea must be geared to constraints on length; it takes time to explain complex ideas, establish credibility,
and overcome resistance.

Stick to three or four major points to support the main idea.

Stage 4: Selecting the Appropriate Channel and Medium

Oral communication permits immediate feedback and is therefore good for dealing with questions, making
group decisions, presenting controversial information.

Forms of oral communication include unplanned conversations, telephone calls, interviews, small group meetings,
seminars, workshops, training programs, formal speeches, and presentations.

Size of audience determines amount of interaction and level of formality.

Written communication gives the writer a chance to plan and control the message and is therefore good when
information is complex, documentation is required, audience is large and dispersed, feedback is unnecessary.

The most common forms of written business messages are letters, memos, reports, and proposals:

•  Memos and letters are relatively brief documents:  memos are internal and letters are external
• Reports and proposals -- factual, objective documents for internal or external audiences are generally
    longer and more formal than letters and memos

Electronic communication affords the communicator speed, overcomes time-zone barriers, and reaches a widely
dispersed audience personally.

Electronic communication includes voice mail, teleconferencing, videotape, fax, e-mail, and computer conferencing.

Types of outlines:

 Traditional alphanumeric format
 Schematic organization chart (hierarchy of ideas, based on organization chart format)

Steps in the outlining process:

1. Define main idea:  what the audience should do or think after absorbing the message and why they should do it or think it
2. State four or fewer major points
3. Identify supporting points, translating general concepts into tangible facts and figures

Purpose determines organization:

For informational messages, follow natural order suggested by your subject (activities to be performed, functional units, spatial or chronological relationships, parts of the whole)

 For persuasive or collaborative messages, use logical order based on reasons

The amount of evidence to use depends on your topic and audience:
  Provide more details for complex, unfamiliar subjects and skeptical audiences
  Use fewer details for routine, familiar subjects and receptive audiences

Two basic sequences:

Direct (deductive) approach:  main idea presented first
Indirect (inductive) approach:  evidence precedes statement of main idea

The choice of organizational approach depends on the audience’s probable reaction:

Use direct approach for receptive audiences
Use indirect approach for resistant audiences

Four organizational plans for shorter messages:

• Direct requests use a straightforward approach because the audience will be willing to comply: (1) Begin with the request or main idea, (2) provide necessary details, and (3) close with a statement of the desired action

• Routine, good-news, and goodwill messages emphasize the positive because the audience will be neutral or pleased by information: (1) Begin with main idea or good news, (2) provide necessary details, and (3) close with reference to good news or positive comment

• Bad-news messages cushion the blow when the audience will be displeased: (1) Begin with a neutral buffer, (2) justify the negative point with evidence, (3) state the bad news in positive terms, and (4) close cordially

• Persuasive messages provide motivational incentives when the audience is unwilling to comply or uninterested in the message:

(1) Begin with an attention-getter
(2) build interest by describing the general idea
(3) explain benefits to create desire
(4) request action

Stage 6: Formulating Your Message

Difference between style and tone:

Style:  the way words are used to create effects
Tone:  the overall effect; the result of style
  Organization and style are just as important for e-mail messages as for other business messages:

   • Think carefully about your audience
   • Use short, focused paragraphs that are organized in a logical fashion
   • Do your best to attract your reader’s attention
 

Fog Index:  readability formula based on sentence length and word length

Other aspects of readability:

Sentence structure
Order and flow of ideas
Paragraph construction
Transitions
Appearance of text

Plain English is a way of writing so that your audience can understand your meaning clearly and easily.

The focus on plain-English laws has resulted in clearer contracts, credit application forms, and insurance policies.

Two types of words:

Functional words (conjunctions, prepositions, articles, pronouns)
Content words (nouns, verbs, adjectives, adverbs)

Functional words:

Express relationships
Have one fixed meaning

Content words:

Carry meaning of sentence
Are subject to many interpretations
Vary in degree of abstraction

Denotative meaning is the literal, dictionary meaning; connotative meaning consists of the associations and feelings evoked by the word.

Sentence:  chain of words that expresses a complete thought; includes a subject (noun or noun equivalent) and predicate (verb or verb phrase).

Three types of sentences:

• Simple:  has single subject and single predicate (Profits have increased); may have object and modifiers

• Compound:  expresses two or more independent but related thoughts of equal importance, joined by and,
but, or or (Wage rates have declined, and turnover has been high).

• Complex:  expresses one main thought (independent clause) and one or more subordinate thoughts
(dependent clauses) (Although the sales force is strong, the business depends heavily on advertising to reach consumers)

Paragraph:  a series of sentences related to a single thought.

Paragraphs are indicated:

In oral communication with pauses and inflections
In written communication with typographical devices

Three basic elements of paragraph:

Topic sentence
Related sentences
Transitional elements

Topic sentence:  summary of main idea; usually comes first.

Because related sentences explain the main idea, they must:

All pertain to the main idea
Be more specific than the topic sentence

Transitional elements link sentences and paragraphs, and they establish the relationships among ideas.

Transitional elements may take several forms:

Connecting words and phrases (and, however, in addition)

Repetition of words or phrases from previous paragraph or sentence (The system should. . In reviewing the
system . . . )

Use of a pronoun that refers to the antecedent (Ms. Arthur. . . She has...)

Use of frequently paired words (minimum, maximum)

Of five ways to develop a paragraph, the one used should reflect the topic, audience, and purpose of the message:

Illustration:  examples that demonstrate the general idea
Comparison or contrast:  similarities or differences among thoughts
Cause and effect:  reasons for something
Classification:  division of idea into subcategories
Problem and solution:  what’s wrong and how to fix it

Stage 9: Producing Your Message

Stage 10: Proofing Your Message