Unit-1



OBJECTIVES OF COMMUNICATION

• Information

• Advice

• Order

• Suggestion

• Persuasion

• Education

• Warning

• Raising Morale

• Motivation

Raising Morale

• Refers to mental health

• Sum of courage, fortitude, resolution and confidence

• High performance and performance go hand in hand

Factors important to create a high morale are:

- Every worker gets work according to his physical and intellectual calibre

- Atmosphere is congenial

- Promotional avenues are available

- Genuine grievances are promptly removed

Motivation

• Energizes and activates a person and channelises his behaviour towards the attainment of desired goals

• Motivation and behaviour are intimately related to each other

• Motivated worker does not need much supervision

• Offering monetary incentives is the most effective form of motivation (unhealthy)

• Job satisfaction, prestige, sense of belongingness can induce a worker to work effectively

METHODS OF COMMUNICATION

• Verbal – Oral, written

• Non-Verbal – Body Language, Graphics

TYPES OF COMMUNICATION

• Downward

• Upward

• Horizontal

• Grapevine

• Consensus

1. Downward Communication

• Flows from superior to subordinate

• Orders, individual instructions, policy statement, job-sheets, circulars

• Suited to organizations where the line of authority runs downwards

OBJECTIVES

• To give specific directives about the job being entrusted to subordinates

• To explain policies and organizational procedures

• To apprise the subordinates about their performance

• To give subordinates the rationale of their job

Limitations

• Under Communication and over-communication

• Delay

• Loss of information

• Distortion

• Built-in-resistance

Essentials of Effective Downward Communication

• Managers should keep themselves well informed of the objectives, achievements of organisation

• Managers must work according to the communication plan

• There should not be over-concentration of authority at the highest level

• Information must be passed to the correct person in the hierarchy

2. Upward Communication Importance

• Providing feedback

• Outlet for pent-up emotions

• Constructive Instructions

• Easier introduction of new schemes

• Greater harmony and cohesion

Methods of Upward Communication

• Open-door policy

• Complaints and Suggestion boxes

• Social Gatherings

• Direct Correspondence

• Reports

• Counselling

Limitations of Upward Communication

• Reluctance of employees

• Employees feel it may adversely affect their own efficiency

• It is more prone to distortion than downward communication

• Workers at times become too bold

Essentials of Effective Upward Communication

• In order to enable the workers to overcome the awe of authority, managers should keep on encouraging them to come out of their shell and communicate freely

• Distortion by editing can be avoided if lines are kept as short as possible

• All such communication should be properly analyzed (grievances, suggestions, rewards)

3.HORIZONTAL COMMUNICATION

• Takes place between departments or people at the same level

• Most frequently used

Importance

• Promoting understanding and cooperation among various departments

• Averts the situation of slow down in production

• Managers at times do not encourage this, they believe that workers may get friendly with one another posing serious problems for the management

Methods of Horizontal Communication

• Through oral means

• Face-to-face

• Carry an air of informality

• Allows freedom of expression

• Means – letters, memos

4.GRAPEVINE

• Operates in the informal channel of communication

• Follows no set lines, nor any definite rule, can go in any direction

• Quite natural for people to be interested in what is happening with colleagues

• Transfer is in a mysterious manner, ears of many people

• Can be effectively communicated horizontally, vertically and diagonally

Importance

• A safety valve for the pent-up emotions

• Organisational solidarity and cohesion

• Supplement to other channels

• Quick Transmission

• Feedback

Demerits

• Distortion

• Incomplete Information

• Damaging Swiftness

5. Consensus

• Unanimous decisions

• Helps in projecting good image of the organisation

Consensus Process

• Involves consultation

• Chief executive plays a very significant role, takes up the problem, analyses it to understand its exact nature

• Then he contacts the person individually or invites them to a meeting

• Views of the members are carefully listened

• Solution most likely to be accepted is put forth

• Chief executive has to play an important role to take things in the positive direction

Advantages

• Since consultation is involved, it is easy to accept

• Helps to project an image of unity and harmony

• Employees develop confidence

• Unnecessary and undesirable conflicts and splits are avoided

Disadvantages

• Member is forced to subscribe to a view he does not hold

• Becomes an accomodation of interests

• Subordinates may get a feeling that their superiors are not capable of taking independent decisions

MEDIA OF COMMUNICATION

• EXAMPLE : Information regarding change in policy of a company

• Meeting, notice, public address system, office bulletin, posters, written letters, advertisements on radio, TV, newspapers, journals.

5 groups of media available

• Written Communication

• Oral Communication

• Visual Communication

• Audio –visual Communication

• Computer-based Communication

• Written – Letters, memos, telegrams, reports, minutes, forms and questionnaires, manuals

• Oral – face to face conversation, conversation over the telephone, radio broadcasts, interviews, GDs, meetings, conferences, seminars, announcement over public address system, speeches, etc.

• Visual Communication – gestures and facial expressions, tables and charts, graphs, diagrams, posters, slides, film strips etc.

• Audio – Visual Communication – Through TV and cinema films that combine the visual impact with narration.

• Computer-based Communication – Through email, voice mail, cellular phones, fax etc.

1. Written Communication

• MERITS: -

- Is accurate and precise

- Can be repeatedly referred to

- Is a permanent record

- Legal document

- Facilitates the assignment of responsibility

- Has a wide access

• LIMITATIONS: -

- Is time consuming

- Is costly

- Quick clarification is not possible

Essentials of Written Communication

• Clarity: - Of thought, of expression( use simple words, use single words for long phrase)

• Completeness (answer all questions, five Ws – who, what, where, when and why)

• Conciseness (Include all relevant fact, avoid repetition, organize your message well)

• Consideration (Write from the readers point of view, avoid gender bias, emphasize positive facts, impart integrity to your message)

• Courtesy (answer the letters promptly, omit irritating expressions, apologise sincerely for an omission, thank generously for a favour)

• Correctness (Give correct facts, send your message at the correct time, send your message in the correct style)

2. ORAL COMMUNICATION

• MERITS: -

- Saves time

- Saves money

- Speech is more powerful means of persausion and control

- Speaker can convey shades of variations in meaning (through variation in tone, pitch and intensity of voice)

- Speaker can get immediate feedback

- They get an opportunity for feedback and clarification

- The informal setup helps to promote friendly relations

- Is useful while communicating with groups, assemblies or meetings

• LIMITATIONS: -

- Is not possible if the communicator and receiver are far removed from each other and no device is there to connect them

- Lengthy messages are not suitable for oral transmission

- Cannot be retained for a long time

- Do not have any legal validity

- Greater chances of misunderstanding

- Responsibilty for mistakes cannot be specifically assigned

Essentials of Oral Communication

• Clear pronunciation

• Brevity (Brief without appearing abrupt and discourteous)

• Precision

• Conviction

• Logical Sequence

• Appropriate word choice

• Natural Voice

• Finding the right register (People belonging to different groups differ in the kinds of languages used by them, an efficient communicator senses distinctions and adjusts his speech according to the needs of his listeners)

3. FACE-TO-FACE COMMUNICATION

• Can be both oral as well as face to face

• Little difference prevails

• Examples: - Telephonic conversation, two presidents meeting

• MERITS : -

- Facial expressions and gestures help to communicate better

- Particularly suitable for discussions

• LIMITATIONS : -

- Difficult to practise in large-sized organisations

- Not effective in large gatherings

- Ineffective if the listener is not attentive

4. VISUAL COMMUNICATION

• Facial expressions and gestures

• Printed pictures

• Posters

• Slides

• Film Strips

➢ Visual communication alone is not enough

➢ Can be used to transmit very elementary and simple ideas

➢ Can be used effectively in combination with other media

5. AUDIO-VISUAL COMMUNICATION

• Makes use of telecasts, short films on the cinema screen and video tapes

• Combination of sight and sound

• May make use of written word for better interpretation

• Retained for a longer duration

• Has higher recall value

• Necessary to make the films short and interesting for easy understanding

6. COMPUTER-BASED COMMUNICATION

• Has dramatically changed the landscape of business communication

• Annihilating the barriers of time and space

• Compare messages being sent by email and letter

• Easy altering, rewording and deletion of messages is possible

• Takes less time

• Receiver can respond to the mail on an immediate basis

• MERITS: -

- The quickest means of communication

- Space no longer a barrier

- Video conferencing can replace personal meeting

- Better means of keeping permanent record of valuable and bulky data

- World-wide web as a publishing platform

• LIMITATIONS: -

- Uncertain legal validity

- Fear of undesirable leakage

- Virus malady

7. SILENCE

• At times silence can communicate one’s response quite effectively

• Communicates a number of responses (two strangers, meeting and employees, refusal)

• Slight pause before saying an important point

NETWORKS OF COMMUNICATION

• Communication in organisations requires the system to channelise the flow of information through certain mediums.

• The system or pattern used is called network that works along hierarchical relationship and the mediums or vehicles used are referred as medium of communication

• Communication network is the regular pattern, system or structure designed or built up along hierarchical or person to person relationship through which information flows in an organization

• Are formal and informal networks

1. Formal Communication Network

• Are systems designed by management to channelise the flow of communication along formal organization structure

• Created along officially recognized positions

• To ensure smooth, timely, orderly flow of information

Advantages

• Passes through line and authority

• Helps in developing intimate relations between boss and subordinates

• Ensures authenticity and genuineness of matter

• Keeps uniformity in dissemination of information

Disadvantages

• It increases the workload of managers as all communications are to be transmitted through them

• Widens the communication gap

• Dilutes the accuracy of message while filtering takes place at the middle level.

• Encourages the tendency of delay tactics and suppression of information

Types of Formal Communication

• Downward

• Upward

• Horizontal

2. INFORMAL COMMUNICATION NETWORK

• Takes place outside the formally prescribed and planned network or channel

• It is spontaneous and beyond organisational hierarchy

Advantages

• Speedy and spontaneous

• Multidirectional

• Social Relations

• Catharsis (Enables the employees to discharge their negative emotions and feel relieved through talking and meeting each other)

• Circumventing (Can help in bypassing the official channels which are unnecessarily cumbersome and time consuming)

• Supplementing

Disadvantages

• Misleading

• Distortions

• Disastrous for Organizations

• No responsibility

EFFECTIVE COMMUNICATION

• Use PAIBOC questions to analyze business communication problems

• P – Purpose (What is the purpose of writing or speaking?)

• A – Audience (Who is your audience?)

• I – Information (What information must your message include?)

• B – Benefit

• O – Objections (What objections can you expect your reader's to have?)

• C – Context (How will the contest effect the reader’s response?)

Essentials of Effective Communication

“Becoming a highly skilled communicator is not easy. The good news is that the skills of effective communication are learned. Though some of us are inherently better communicators than others, we all can learn”

7Cs of COMMUNICATION

• Candid

• Clear

• Complete

• Concise

• Concrete (not be vague, use of visual images)

• Correct

• Courteous

Principles of Communication

• Create Synergetic Environment

• Two way Communication

• Strengthen Communication Flow

• Proper Medias

• Encourage open Communication

• Appropriate Language

• Effective Listening

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