Business Communication

Business Communication

Communication
Communication is the exchange of ideas, opinions and information through written or spoken words, symbols or actions.

Lifeblood of an Organization

Communication is the lifeblood of an organization. If we could somehow remove communication flows from an organization, we would not have an organization.

It is needed for:

• Exchanging information
• Exchanging options
• Making plans and proposals
• Reaching agreement
• Executing decisions
• Sending and fulfilling orders
• Conducting sales

When communication stops, organized activity ceases to exist. Individual uncoordinated activity returns in an organization. So, Communication in an organization is as vital as blood for life.

Business Communication:

Business communication is somewhat different and unique from other types of communication since the purpose of business is to make money. Thus, to develop profitability, the communicator should develop good communication skills.

Business Communication is goal oriented. The rules, regulations and policies of a company have to be communicated to people within and outside the organization. Business Communication is regulated by certain rules and norms. In early times, business communication was limited to paper work, telephone calls etc. But now with advent of technology, we have cell phones, video conferencing, emails, satellite communication to support business communication. Effective business communication helps in building goodwill of an organization.

Business communication is used to promote a product, service, or organization; relay information within the business; or deal with legal and similar issues. It is also a means of relaying between a supply chain, for example the consumer and manufacturer.

In business, the term communications encompasses various channels of communication, including the Internet, Print (Publications), Radio, Television, Ambient media, Outdoor, and Word of mouth.

Business Communication can also refer to internal communication. A communications director will typically manage internal communication and craft messages sent to employees. It is vital that internal communications are managed properly because a poorly crafted or managed message could foster distrust or hostility from employees.

There are several methods of business communication, including:

• Web-based communication - for better and improved communication, anytime anywhere.
• video conferencing which allow people in different locations to hold interactive meetings;
• e-mails, which provide an instantaneous medium of written communication worldwide;
• Reports - important in documenting the activities of any department;
• Presentations - very popular method of communication in all types of organizations, usually involving audiovisual material, like copies of reports, or material prepared in Microsoft PowerPoint or Adobe Flash;
• Telephoned meetings, which allow for long distance speech;
• Forum boards, which allow people to instantly post information at a centralized location; and
• Face-to-face meetings, which are personal and should be succeeded by a written follow-up.

Components of Communication Process

Communication is a process of exchanging verbal and non-verbal messages. It is a continuous process. Pre-requisite of communication is a message. This message must be conveyed through some medium to the recipient. It is essential that the recipient must understand this message in same terms as intended by the sender. He must respond within a time frame. Thus, communication is a two way process and is incomplete without a feedback from the recipient to the sender on how well the message is understood by him.

Communication Process

The main components of communication process are as follows:

1. Context - Communication is affected by the context in which it takes place. This context may be physical, social, chronological or cultural. Every communication proceeds with context. The sender chooses the message to communicate within a context.
2. Sender / Encoder - Sender / Encoder is a person who sends the message. A sender makes use of symbols (words or graphic or visual aids) to convey the message and produce the required response. For instance - a training manager conducting training for new batch of employees. Sender may be an individual or a group or an organization. The views, background, approach, skills, competencies, and knowledge of the sender have a great impact on the message. The verbal and non verbal symbols chosen are essential in ascertaining interpretation of the message by the recipient in the same terms as intended by the sender.
3. Message - Message is a key idea that the sender wants to communicate. It is a sign that elicits the response of recipient. Communication process begins with deciding about the message to be conveyed. It must be ensured that the main objective of the message is clear.
4. Medium - Medium is a means used to exchange / transmit the message. The sender must choose an appropriate medium for transmitting the message else the message might not be conveyed to the desired recipients. The choice of appropriate medium of communication is essential for making the message effective and correctly interpreted by the recipient. This choice of communication medium varies depending upon the features of communication. For instance - Written medium is chosen when a message has to be conveyed to a small group of people, while an oral medium is chosen when spontaneous feedback is required from the recipient as misunderstandings are cleared then and there.
5. Recipient / Decoder - Recipient / Decoder is a person for whom the message is intended / aimed / targeted. The degree to which the decoder understands the message is dependent upon various factors such as knowledge of recipient, their responsiveness to the message, and the reliance of encoder on decoder.
6. Feedback - Feedback is the main component of communication process as it permits the sender to analyze the efficacy of the message. It helps the sender in confirming the correct interpretation of message by the decoder. Feedback may be verbal (through words) or non-verbal (in form of smiles, sighs, etc.). It may take written form also in form of memos, reports, etc.

Types of Business Communication

There are two types of business communication in an organization:

1. Internal Communication
2. External Communication

1.      Internal Communication

Communication within an organization is called “Internal Communication”.

It includes all communication within an organization. It may be informal or a formal function or department providing communication in various forms to employees.

Effective internal communication is a vital mean of addressing organizational concerns. Good communication may help to increase job satisfaction, safety, productivity, and profits and decrease grievances and turnover.

Under Internal Business Communication types there come;

a) Upward Communication
b) Downward Communication
c) Horizontal/Literal communication

a) Upward Communication

Upward communication is the flow of information from subordinates to superiors, or from employees to management. Without upward communication, management works in a vacuum, not knowing if messages have been received properly, or if other problems exist in the organization.

By definition, communication is a two-way affair. Yet for effective two-way organizational communication to occur, it must begin from the bottom.

Upward Communication is a mean for staff to:

o    Exchange information

o    Offer ideas

o    Express enthusiasm

o    Achieve job satisfaction

o    Provide feedback

b) Downward Communication

Information flowing from the top of the organizational management hierarchy and telling people in the organization what is important (mission) and what is valued (policies).

Downward communication generally provides enabling information – which allows a subordinate to do something.

e.g.: Instructions on how to do a task.

Downward communication comes after upward communications have been successfully established. This type of communication is needed in an organization to:

o    Transmit vital information

o    Give instructions

o    Encourage 2-way discussion

o    Announce decisions

o    Seek cooperation

o    Provide motivation

o    Boost morale

o    Increase efficiency

o    Obtain feedback

Both Downward & Upward Communications are collectively called “Vertical Communication”

c) Horizontal/Literal communication

Horizontal communication normally involves coordinating information, and allows people with the same or similar rank in an organization to cooperate or collaborate. Communication among employees at the same level is crucial for the accomplishment of work.Horizontal Communication is essential for:

o    Solving problems

o    Accomplishing tasks

o    Improving teamwork

o    Building goodwill

o    Boosting efficiency

2.      External Communication

Communication with people outside the company is called “external communication”. Supervisors communicate with sources outside the organization, such as vendors and customers.
It leads to better;

o    Sales volume

o    Public credibility

o    Operational efficiency

o    Company profits

It should improve

o    Overall performance

o    Public goodwill

o    Corporate image

Ultimately, it helps to achieve

o    Organizational goals

o    Customer satisfaction

Communication Flows in an Organization

In an organization, communication flows in 5 main directions:

1. Downward
2. Upward
3. Lateral
4. Diagonal
5. External

1. Downward Flow of Communication: Communication that flows from a higher level in an organization to a lower level is a downward communication. In other words, communication from superiors to subordinates in a chain of command is a downward communication. This communication flow is used by the managers to transmit work-related information to the employees at lower levels. Employees require this information for performing their jobs and for meeting the expectations of their managers. Downward communication is used by the managers for the following purposes: 

·         Providing feedback on employees performance

·         Giving job instructions

·         Providing a complete understanding of the employees job as well as to communicate them how their job is related to other jobs in the organization.

·         Communicating the organizations mission and vision to the employees.

·         Highlighting the areas of attention.

Organizational publications, circulars, letter to employees, group meetings etc are all examples of downward communication. In order to have effective and error-free downward communication, managers must:

• Specify communication objective
• Ensure that the message is accurate, specific and unambiguous.

Utilize the best communication technique to convey the message to the receiver in right form

2. Upward Flow of Communication: Communication that flows to a higher level in an organization is called upward communication. It provides feedback on how well the organization is functioning. The subordinates use upward communication to convey their problems and performances to their superiors.

The subordinates also use upward communication to tell how well they have understood the downward communication. It can also be used by the employees to share their views and ideas and to participate in the decision-making process.

Upward communication leads to a more committed and loyal workforce in an organization because the employees are given a chance to raise and speak dissatisfaction issues to the higher levels. The managers get to know about the employees’ feelings towards their jobs, peers, supervisor and organization in general. Managers can thus accordingly take actions for improving things.

3. Lateral / Horizontal Communication: Communication that takes place at same levels of hierarchy in an organization is called lateral communication, i.e., communication between peers, between managers at same levels or between any horizontally equivalent organizational member. The advantages of horizontal communication are as follows:

·         It is time saving.

• It facilitates co-ordination of the task.
• It facilitates co-operation among team members.
• It provides emotional and social assistance to the organizational members.
• It helps in solving various organizational problems.
• It is a means of information sharing
• It can also be used for resolving conflicts of a department with other department or conflicts within a department.

4. Diagonal Communication: Communication that takes place between a manager and employees of other workgroups is called diagonal communication. It generally does not appear on organizational chart. For instance - To design training module a training manager interacts with Operations personnel to enquire about the way they perform their task.
5. External Communication: Communication that takes place between a manager and external groups such as - suppliers, vendors, banks, financial institutes etc. For instance - To raise capital the Managing director would interact with the Bank Manager.

Communication Barriers: Reasons for Communication Breakdown

Communication is a process beginning with a sender who encodes the message and passes it through some channel to the receiver who decodes the message. Communication is fruitful if and only if the receiver interprets the messages sent by the sender with same meaning. If any kind of disturbance blocks any step of communication, the message will be destroyed. Due to such disturbances, managers in an organization face severe problems. Thus the managers must locate such barriers and take steps to get rid of them.

There are several barriers that affect the flow of communication in an organization. These barriers interrupt the flow of communication from the sender to the receiver, thus making communication ineffective. It is essential for managers to overcome these barriers. The main barriers of communication are summarized below:

1. Perceptual and Language Differences: Perception is generally how each individual interprets the world around him. All generally want to receive messages, which are significant to them. But any message, which is against their values, is not accepted. Different individuals may take a same event differently. For example: A person is on leave for a month due to personal reasons (family member being critical). The HR Manager might be in confusion whether to retain that employee or not, the immediate manager might think of replacement because his teams productivity is being hampered, the family members might take him as an emotional support.

The linguistic differences also lead to communication breakdown. Same word may mean different to different individuals. For example: consider a word “value”.

1. What is the value of this Laptop?
2. I value our relation?
3. What is the value of learning technical skills?

“Value” means different in different sentences. Communication breakdown occurs if there is wrong perception by the receiver.

2. Information Overload: Managers are surrounded with a pool of information. It is essential to control this information flow else the information is likely to be misinterpreted or forgotten or overlooked. As a result communication is less effective.
3. Inattention: At times we just not listen, but only hear. For example a traveler may pay attention to one “NO PARKING” sign, but if such sign is put all over the city, he no longer listens to it. Thus, repetitive messages should be ignored for effective communication. Similarly if a superior is engrossed in his paper work and his subordinate explains him his problem, the superior may not get what he is saying and it leads to disappointment of subordinate.
4. Time Pressures: Often in organization the targets have to be achieved within a specified time period, the failure of which has adverse consequences. In a haste to meet deadlines, the formal channels of communication are shortened, or messages are partially given, i.e., not completely transferred. Thus sufficient time should be given for effective communication.
5. Distraction/Noise: Communication is also affected a lot by noise to distractions. Physical distractions are also there such as, poor lightning, uncomfortable sitting, unhygienic room also affects communication in a meeting. Similarly use of loud speakers interferes with communication.
6. Emotions: Emotional state at a particular point of time also affects communication. If the receiver feels that communicator is angry he interprets that the information being sent is very bad. While he takes it differently if the communicator is happy and jovial (in that case the message is interpreted to be good and interesting).
7. Complexity in Organizational Structure: Greater the hierarchy in an organization (i.e. more the number of managerial levels), more is the chances of communication getting destroyed. Only the people at the top level can see the overall picture while the people at low level just have knowledge about their own area and a little knowledge about other areas.
8. Poor retention: Human memory cannot function beyond a limit. One cant always retain what is being told specially if he is not interested or not attentive. This leads to communication breakdown.

 

Communication Barriers

Communication Barriers are the various obstacles and hurdles, which arise in between of an effective communication leading to misunderstandings and misinterpretations by the receiver. In the above example noise was the communication barrier.

Role of communication barriers in ineffective communication

Let us now understand in details what the barriers to an effective communication are and how they lead to an ineffective communication.

• Noise - Noise plays an important barrier to effective communication. Imagine you want to pass on some information to a person standing next to a blaring mike. Do you think, the sender will ever be able to interpret it correctly? Do you think the receiver in this case is to blame? In this case, because of the blaring mike, the information will never reach the person in its desired form. Any presentation or speech delivered in a noisy classroom or auditorium is pointless, as the information would never fall on the ears of the listeners. Try sharing some information with your friend in an overcrowded bus or a noisy market, correct information will never reach the recipient and he would never be able to interpret it correctly or respond accordingly. Here noise is an external communication barrier and it results in the distortion of the message.
• Unorganized Thought - Unorganized and haphazard thoughts also are instrumental in poor communication and a very important barrier to effective communication.

Mike to Monalisa -“Please come at 2 pm, okay not 2 come at 2.30 pm instead, fine let us freeze it for 3 pm”

Monalisa is bound to get confused as Mike himself is not clear about the timings. The sender must pass on crystal clear information to the receiver. The sender must first be himself very clear what he wants to communicate and then only begin the conversation. Abstract ideas, haphazard thoughts lead to ineffective communication. First know what you have to communicate and then only speak.

• Wrong interpretations - Wrong interpretations again play a very important role in miscommunication. An information can be wrongly interpreted by the receiver leading to a complete mess. “Tom went for a bash yesterday night”. The word bash can be decoded as beating as well as a party. The sender might convey his message to the recipient in order to provide some necessary information but the receiver might misinterpret it. It is the responsibility of the receiver to give proper feedback to the speaker and clear all the doubts before ending the conversation. Don’t keep things within yourself; ask if you are not clear with anything.
• Not Understanding the receiver - The boss once wanted to address his young team. He quoted examples from the year 1950 - the year when his team members were not even born. Don’t you think, all the young chaps will lose interest after sometime? That’s the importance of understanding the recipient. Don’t just prepare a speech, learn more about the culture, habits, thought process of your listeners. The sender must understand the receiver first and then pass on the information. If a sender is sad and you want to give him some exciting news, he will neither respond nor understand and hence the effect will for sure get nullified. Not understanding the receiver again is a barrier to effective communication.
• Ignoring the content - One should lay emphasis on the content of his speech. The content has to be clear, crisp and above all interesting. Don’t just speak; take some time to find out what you are speaking. Find out whether the content is relevant or not? During presentations, the speaker must use interesting words, funny one liner to capture the attention of the listeners.Don’t make your speech monotonous otherwise the listeners after sometime will definitely fall asleep. One should be smart enough to understand when to crack a slight joke in mid of a conversation. It really works. Don’t just speak for the heck of it, understand what you are speaking and try to make it more interesting, crisp and above all relevant.
• Avoiding the Listener - Imagine yourself attending a seminar where the speaker is simply reading from his notes and for once has not made any eye contact with you. You will never be able to relate with the speaker and hence never bother to find out what he wants to convey. Don’t just go on. Create a friendly atmosphere and then start communicating. Don’t just come to the point, one can ask questions from the listeners like what’s new?, Lovely weather or even use compliments like wonderful crowd, enthusiastic group. Don’t avoid your listeners, make an eye contact with them to effectively communicate.
• Not confirming with the recipient - Always cross check with the listeners, whether they have received the correct information or not. For instance, if you are sharing some important contact no, do make it a habit to verify the number with the receiver whether the receiver has noted it correctly or not. Use words like “Did you get it? “Am I Audible?” in between the conversation. Try to find out whether the listener is getting your message or not. Take pauses in between, simply don’t rush. Make a habit to spell out words. If you want to pass on your email id to your team, it is better to spell out each word of the email account. Another effective way is to break each word into alphabets, like ant can be communicated as a as in alpha, n as in Netherlands, t as in tango. The error rate will definitely go down and the communication will be more effective.
• Not understanding the mood of the recipient - Try to understand the interest or the mood of the second party and read the mind of the other person. Don’t just start speaking, understand the mood of the other person first and then share the information. If you think, the receiver is in the pink of his moods, don’t give him sad news, he will never bother to listen. Wait for the correct time and then communicate if you want your communication to create an impact.
• Low pitch and tone - Sometimes even the pitch and tone can play a communication barrier. Your content might be accurate, crisp and even related, but if your pitch is low your information will never reach the listeners bang on. The tone has to be crystal clear and loud for passing on correct information. Remember to give the correct pause after each sentence and don’t forget the punctuation marks. Remember you are communicating not only for the first benchers but the people on the last bench are also a part of the communication. Be loud and clear but don’t shout.
• Impatient Listener - The listener also has to be patient enough to absorb the complete information and then respond accordingly. Always jot down your points and start off with your queries once the sender is through with the communication. Don’t just jump in between the conversation as it leads to unnecessary confusions, misunderstandings and conflict and the communication never reaches any conclusion.
• Different cultural level - In any organization, an individual can never think on the same line as his boss does. There is always a difference in their thought process. The work pressure, lack of transparency between the team members is also the barriers that lead to an ineffective communication. These barriers are called internal barriers.

Thus to conclude, any obstacle which comes in between an effective communication are called communication barriers. They result in distortion of the message and the goal is never accomplished. External barriers arise from the external environment and external factors where as internal barriers are present within the individual like tensions, work pressure, high expectations, peer rivalry etc. It is of prime importance to get rid of the above barriers for an effective communication and the proper flow of information between the sender and the receiver.

Overcoming Communication Barriers

There are a lot of communication barriers faced these days by all. The receiver does not understand the message intended by the sender in the same terms and sense and thus communication breakdown occurs. It is essential to deal and cope up with these communication barriers so as to ensure smooth and effective communication.

 As, in the previous section we have discussed the major barriers of communication. Let’s talk about how to overcome these barriers of communication.

1. Eliminating differences in perception: The organization should ensure that it is recruiting right individuals on the job. It’s the responsibility of the interviewer to ensure that the interviewee has command over the written and spoken language. There should be proper Induction program so that the policies of the company are clear to all the employees. There should be proper trainings conducted for required employees (for eg: Voice and Accent training).
2. Use of Simple Language: Use of simple and clear words should be emphasized. Use of ambiguous words and jargons should be avoided.
3. Reduction and elimination of noise levels: Noise is the main communication barrier that must be overcome on priority basis. It is essential to identify the source of noise and then eliminate that source.
4. Active Listening: Listen attentively and carefully. There is a difference between “listening” and “hearing”. Active listening means hearing with proper understanding of the message that is heard. By asking questions the speaker can ensure whether his/her message is understood or not by the receiver in the same terms as intended by the speaker.
5. Emotional State: During communication one should make effective use of body language. He/she should not show their emotions while communication as the receiver might misinterpret the message being delivered. For example, if the conveyer of the message is in a bad mood then the receiver might think that the information being delivered is not good.
6. Simple Organizational Structure: The organizational structure should not be complex. The number of hierarchical levels should be optimum. There should be a ideal span of control within the organization. Simpler the organizational structure, more effective will be the communication.
7. Avoid Information Overload: The managers should know how to prioritize their work. They should not overload themselves with the work. They should spend quality time with their subordinates and should listen to their problems and feedbacks actively.
8. Give Constructive Feedback: Avoid giving negative feedback. The contents of the feedback might be negative, but it should be delivered constructively. Constructive feedback will lead to effective communication between the superior and subordinate.
9. Proper Media Selection: The managers should properly select the medium of communication. Simple messages should be conveyed orally, like: face-to-face interaction or meetings. Use of written means of communication should be encouraged for delivering complex messages. For significant messages reminders can be given by using written means of communication such as: Memos, Notices etc.
10. Flexibility in meeting the targets: For effective communication in an organization the managers should ensure that the individuals are meeting their targets timely without skipping the formal channels of communication. There should not be much pressure on employees to meet their targets.

Guidelines for Effective Communication

Effective communication is a part and parcel of any successful organization. A communication should be free from barriers so as to be effective. Communication is a two way process where the message sent by the sender should be interpreted in the same terms by the recipient. The characteristics of effective communication are as follows:

1. Clarity of Purpose: The message to be delivered must be clear in the mind of sender. The person to whom it is targeted and the aim of the message should be clear in the mind of the sender.
2. Completeness: The message delivered should not be incomplete. It should be supported by facts and observations. It should be well planned and organized. The receiver should make no assumptions.
3. Conciseness: The message should be concise. It should not include any unnecessary details. It should be short and complete.
4. Feedback: Whether the message sent by the sender is understood in same terms by the receiver or not can be judged by the feedback received. The feedback should be timely and in personal. It should be specific rather than general.
5. Empathy: Empathy with the listeners is essential for effective verbal communication. The speaker should step into the shoes of the listener and be sensitive to their needs and emotions. This way he can understand things from their perspective and make communication more effective.
6. Modify the message according to the audience: The information requirement by different people in the organization differs according to their needs. What is relevant to the middle level management might not be relevant to the top level of management. Use of jargons should be minimized because it might lead to misunderstanding and misinterpretations. The message should be modified according to the needs and requirements of the targeted audience.
7. Multiple Channels of communication: For effective communication multiple channels should be used as it increases the chances of clarity of message. Using different channels reinforces the message and there are less chances of deformation of message.
8. Make effective use of Grapevine (informal channel of communication): The employees and managers should not always discourage grapevine. They should make effective use of grapevine. The managers can use grapevine to deliver formal messages and for identification of issues which are significant for the employees. The managers can get to know the problems faced by the employees and can work upon it.

 

Seven C’s of Effective Communication

There are 7 C’s of effective communication that are applicable to both written as well as oral communication. These are as follows:

1. Completeness - The communication must be complete. It should convey all facts required by the audience. The sender of the message must take into consideration the receiver’s mind set and convey the message accordingly. A complete communication has following features:
• Complete communication develops and enhances reputation of an organization.
• Moreover, they are cost saving as no crucial information is missing and no additional cost is incurred in conveying extra message if the communication is complete.
• A complete communication always gives additional information wherever required. It leaves no questions in the mind of receiver.
• Complete communication helps in better decision-making by the audience/ readers/ receivers of message as they get all desired and crucial information.
• It persuades the audience.

2. Conciseness - Conciseness means wordiness, i.e, communicating what you want to convey in least possible words without forgoing the other C’s of communication. Conciseness is a necessity for effective communication. Concise communication has following features:
• It is both time-saving as well as cost-saving.
• It underlines and highlights the main message as it avoids using excessive and needless words.
• Concise communication provides short and essential message in limited words to the audience.
• Concise message is more appealing and comprehensible to the audience.
• Concise message is non-repetitive in nature.
3. Consideration - Consideration implies “stepping into the shoes of others”. Effective communication must take the audience into consideration, i.e, the audience’s view points, background, mind-set, education level, etc. Make an attempt to envisage your audience, their requirements, emotions as well as problems. Ensure that the self-respect of the audience is maintained and their emotions are not at harm. Modify your words in message to suit the audience’s needs while making your message complete. Features of considerate communication are as follows:
• Emphasize on “you” approach.
• Empathize with the audience and exhibit interest in the audience. This will stimulate a positive reaction from the audience.
• Show optimism towards your audience. Emphasize on “what is possible” rather than “what is impossible”. Lay stress on positive words such as jovial, committed, thanks, warm, healthy, help, etc.
4. Clarity - Clarity implies emphasizing on a specific message or goal at a time, rather than trying to achieve too much at once. Clarity in communication has following features:
• It makes understanding easier.
• Complete clarity of thoughts and ideas enhances the meaning of message.
• Clear message makes use of exact, appropriate and concrete words.
5. Concreteness - Concrete communication implies being particular and clear rather than fuzzy and general. Concreteness strengthens the confidence. Concrete message has following features:
• It is supported with specific facts and figures.
• It makes use of words that are clear and that build the reputation.
• Concrete messages are not misinterpreted.
6. Courtesy - Courtesy in message implies the message should show the sender’s expression as well as should respect the receiver. The sender of the message should be sincerely polite, judicious, reflective and enthusiastic. Courteous message has following features:
• Courtesy implies taking into consideration both viewpoints as well as feelings of the receiver of the message.
• Courteous message is positive and focused at the audience.
• It makes use of terms showing respect for the receiver of message.
• It is not at all biased.
7. Correctness - Correctness in communication implies that there are no grammatical errors in communication. Correct communication has following features:
• The message is exact, correct and well-timed.
• If the communication is correct, it boosts up the confidence level.
• Correct message has greater impact on the audience/ readers.
• It checks for the precision and accurateness of facts and figures used in the message.
• It makes use of appropriate and correct language in the message.

Awareness of these 7 C’s of communication makes you an effective communicator.

 

Oral Communication: Meaning, Advantages and Limitations

Oral communication implies communication through mouth. It includes individuals conversing with each other, be it direct conversation or telephonic conversation. Speeches, presentations, discussions are all forms of oral communication. Oral communication is generally recommended when the communication matter is of temporary kind or where a direct interaction is required. Face to face communication (meetings, lectures, conferences, interviews, etc.) is significant so as to build a rapport and trust.

Advantages of Oral Communication

• There is high level of understanding and transparency in oral communication as it is interpersonal.
• There is no element of rigidity in oral communication. There is flexibility for allowing changes in the decisions previously taken.
• The feedback is spontaneous in case of oral communication. Thus, decisions can be made quickly without any delay.
• Oral communication is not only time saving, but it also saves upon money and efforts.
• Oral communication is best in case of problem resolution. The conflicts, disputes and many issues/differences can be put to an end by talking them over.
• Oral communication is an essential for teamwork and group energy.
• Oral communication promotes a receptive and encouraging morale among organizational employees.
• Oral communication can be best used to transfer private and confidential information/matter.

Disadvantages/Limitations of Oral Communication

• Relying only on oral communication may not be sufficient as business communication is formal and very organized.
• Oral communication is less authentic than written communication as they are informal and not as organized as written communication.
• Oral communication is time-saving as far as daily interactions are concerned, but in case of meetings, long speeches consume lot of time and are unproductive at times.
• Oral communications are not easy to maintain and thus they are unsteady.
• There may be misunderstandings as the information is not complete and may lack essentials.
• It requires attentiveness and great receptivity on part of the receivers/audience.
• Oral communication (such as speeches) is not frequently used as legal records except in investigation work.

Written Communication: Meaning, Advantages and Disadvantages

Written communication has great significance in today’s business world. It is an innovative activity of the mind. Effective written communication is essential for preparing worthy promotional materials for business development. Speech came before writing. But writing is more unique and formal than speech. Effective writing involves careful choice of words, their organization in correct order in sentences formation as well as cohesive composition of sentences. Also, writing is more valid and reliable than speech. But while speech is spontaneous, writing causes delay and takes time as feedback is not immediate.

Advantages of Written Communication

• Written communication helps in laying down apparent principles, policies and rules for running of an organization.
• It is a permanent means of communication. Thus, it is useful where record maintenance is required.
• It assists in proper delegation of responsibilities. While in case of oral communication, it is impossible to fix and delegate responsibilities on the grounds of speech as the speaker can take it back or he may refuse to acknowledge.
• Written communication is more precise and explicit.
• Effective written communication develops and enhances an organization’s image.
• It provides ready records and references.
• Legal defenses can depend upon written communication as it provides valid records.

Disadvantages of Written Communication

• Written communication does not save upon the costs. It costs huge in terms of stationery and the manpower employed in writing/typing and delivering letters.
• Also, if the receivers of the written message are separated by distance and if they need to clear their doubts, the response is not spontaneous.
• Written communication is time-consuming as the feedback is not immediate. The encoding and sending of message takes time.
• Effective written communication requires great skills and competencies in language and vocabulary use. Poor writing skills and quality have a negative impact on organization’s reputation.
• Too much paper work and e-mails burden is involved.

Grapevine Communication

Grapevine is an informal channel of business communication. It is called so because it stretches throughout the organization in all directions irrespective of the authority levels. Man as we know is a social animal. Despite existence of formal channels in an organization, the informal channels tend to develop when he interacts with other people in organization. It exists more at lower levels of organization.

Grapevine generally develops due to various reasons. One of them is that when an organization is facing recession, the employees sense uncertainty. Also, at times employees do not have self-confidence due to which they form unions. Sometimes the managers show preferential treatment and favour some employees giving a segregated feeling to other employees. Thus, when employees sense a need to exchange their views, they go for grapevine network as they cannot use the formal channel of communication in that case. Generally during breaks in cafeteria,the subordinates talk about their superior’s attitude and behaviour and exchange views with their peers. They discuss rumours about promotion and transfer of other employees. Thus, grapevine spreads like fire and it is not easy to trace the cause of such communication at times.

Examples of Grapevine Network of Communication

1. Suppose the profit amount of a company is known. Rumour is spread that this much profit is there and on that basis bonus is declared.
2. CEO may be in relation to the Production Manager. They may have friendly relations with each other.

Advantages of Grapevine Communication

1. Grapevine channels carry information rapidly. As soon as an employee gets to know some confidential information, he becomes inquisitive and passes the details then to his closest friend who in turn passes it to other. Thus, it spreads hastily.
2. The managers get to know the reactions of their subordinates on their policies. Thus, the feedback obtained is quick compared to formal channel of communication.
3. The grapevine creates a sense of unity among the employees who share and discuss their views with each other. Thus, grapevine helps in developing group cohesiveness.
4. The grapevine serves as an emotional supportive value.
5. The grapevine is a supplement in those cases where formal communication does not work.

Disadvantages of Grapevine Communication

1. The grapevine carries partial information at times as it is more based on rumours. Thus, it does not clearly depict the complete state of affairs.
2. The grapevine is not trustworthy always as it does not follow official path of communication and is spread more by gossips and unconfirmed report.
3. The productivity of employees may be hampered as they spend more time talking rather than working.
4. The grapevine leads to making hostility against the executives.
5. The grapevine may hamper the goodwill of the organization as it may carry false negative information about the high level people of the organization.

A smart manager should take care of all the disadvantages of the grapevine and try to minimize them. At the same time, he should make best possible use of advantages of grapevine.

Importance of Communication in an Organization

Effective Communication is significant for managers in the organizations so as to perform the basic functions of management, i.e., Planning, Organizing, Leading and Controlling. Communication helps managers to perform their jobs and responsibilities. Communication serves as a foundation for planning. All the essential information must be communicated to the managers who in-turn must communicate the plans so as to implement them. Organizing also requires effective communication with others about their job task. Similarly leaders as managers must communicate effectively with their subordinates so as to achieve the team goals. Controlling is not possible without written and oral communication.

Managers devote a great part of their time in communication. They generally devote approximately 6 hours per day in communicating. They spend great time on face to face or telephonic communication with their superiors, subordinates, colleagues, customers or suppliers. Managers also use Written Communication in form of letters, reports or memos wherever oral communication is not feasible.

Thus, we can say, “effective communication is a building block of successful organizations”. In other words, communication acts as organizational blood.

The importance of communication in an organization can be summarized as follows:

1. Communication promotes motivation by informing and clarifying the employees about the task to be done, the manner they are performing the task, and how to improve their performance if it is not up to the mark.
2. Communication is a source of information to the organizational members for decision-making process as it helps identifying and assessing alternative course of actions.
3. Communication also plays a crucial role in altering individual’s attitudes, i.e., a well informed individual will have better attitude than a less-informed individual. Organizational magazines, journals, meetings and various other forms of oral and written communication help in moulding employee’s attitudes.
4. Communication also helps in socializing. In todays life the only presence of another individual fosters communication. It is also said that one cannot survive without communication.
5. As discussed earlier, communication also assists in controlling process. It helps controlling organizational member’s behavior in various ways. There are various levels of hierarchy and certain principles and guidelines that employees must follow in an organization. They must comply with organizational policies, perform their job role efficiently and communicate any work problem and grievance to their superiors. Thus, communication helps in controlling function of management.

An effective and efficient communication system requires managerial proficiency in delivering and receiving messages. A manager must discover various barriers to communication, analyze the reasons for their occurrence and take preventive steps to avoid those barriers. Thus, the primary responsibility of a manager is to develop and maintain an effective communication system in the organization.

 

What is Report Writing?

A report can be defined as a testimonial or account of some happening. It is purely based on observation and analysis. A report gives an explanation of any circumstance. In today’s corporate world, reports play a crucial role. They are a strong base for planning and control in an organization, i.e., reports give information which can be utilized by the management team in an organization for making plans and for solving complex issues in the organization.

A report discusses a particular problem in detail. It brings significant and reliable information to the limelight of top management in an organization. Hence, on the basis of such information, the management can make strong decisions. Reports are required for judging the performances of various departments in an organization.

An effective report can be written going through the following steps-

1. Determine the objective of the report, i.e., identify the problem.
2. Collect the required material (facts) for the report.
3. Study and examine the facts gathered.
4. Plan the facts for the report.
5. Prepare an outline for the report, i.e., draft the report.
6. Edit the drafted report.
7. Distribute the draft report to the advisory team and ask for feedback and recommendations.

The essentials of good/effective report writing are as follows-

1. Know your objective, i.e., be focused.
2. Analyze the niche audience, i.e., make an analysis of the target audience, the purpose for which audience requires the report, kind of data audience is looking for in the report, the implications of report reading, etc.
3. Decide the length of report.
4. Disclose correct and true information in a report.
5. Discuss all sides of the problem reasonably and impartially. Include all relevant facts in a report.
6. Concentrate on the report structure and matter. Pre-decide the report writing style. Use vivid structure of sentences.
7. The report should be neatly presented and should be carefully documented.
8. Highlight and recap the main message in a report.
9. Encourage feedback on the report from the critics. The feedback, if negative, might be useful if properly supported with reasons by the critics. The report can be modified based on such feedback.
10. Use graphs, pie-charts, etc to show the numerical data records over years.
11. Decide on the margins on a report. Ideally, the top and the side margins should be the same (minimum 1 inch broad), but the lower/bottom margins can be one and a half times as broad as others.
12. Attempt to generate reader’s interest by making appropriate paragraphs, giving bold headings for each paragraph, using bullets wherever required, etc.