Communication for Business Professionals final
What are the different techniques for determining audience characteristics?
-Background research -Interviewing the audience -Asking others about the audience -Surveying the audience with forced-choice or qualitative questionnaires -Obtaining data from secondary sources
Interpretation
-defined as both evaluation or examination and the action of explaining. this dual meaning suggests that it is an active process of thinking about what one hears or reads with the goal of understanding. when one understands, a communicator can then share their understanding of a message-adopting an interpretive frame of mind requires being thoughtful about other people's circumstances and trying to understand other's point of view. also understanding the first conclusion is not the ONLY conclusion
Why is a Rhetorical approach to Business and Professional Communication useful?
-learning the five canons of rhetoric and figures of speech will allow you to write and speak well-the more you expand your skills and knowledge about professional practices and rhetorical strategies, the more likely you will successfully manage an organization
Context
-the available means of persuasion-what you read or hear should be interpreted through the context of the communication
What are the 3 strategies for crafting shorter artifacts?
1. Be direct but courteous 2. Provide evidence to explain or justify a request 3. Close with a specific request
What are the 10 key design elements for artifacts?
1. Page layout 2. White space 3. Margins 4. tabs and justification 5. Headings 6. Headers, footers, and notes 7. Columns 8. Color 9. Typography 10. Embedded objects
What are the 4 covert data gathering methods?
1. Undercover Operations 2. Surveillance 3. Electronic Monitoring 4. Background Investigations and Skip Tracing
Common Writing Errors to Eliminate
1. break up lengthy sentences 2. delete hedging sentences 3. purge slow starters 4. delete unnecessary verbiage 5. eliminate repetition 6. avoid passive voice 7. impose parallelism 8. maintain singular-plural agreement 9. verify apostrophes are correctly used 10. eliminate idiomatic expressions
3 Classes of Rhetoric
1. deliberative = chiefly future-oriented, is the type of rhetoric that we engage in when we make (political) decisions 2. forensic = pass judgments regarding actions that have occurred in the past 3. epideictic (demonstrative) = used to assign praise and blame, promote and celebrate values (present-oriented)
3 Rhetorical Appeals
1. ethos = credibility of a speaker or writer as determined by the audience. established by demonstrating good sense, competence, character, and use of credible data 2. pathos = used to assign praise and blame, promote and celebrate values (present-oriented). appeal to emotions to create a particular temperament in the audience. best when accompanied with appeals to reason (logos) 3. logos = word, story, reason, discourse, thought, etc. ; logical appeals embedded in arguments, appeals are either inductive or deductive
5 NCA Ethical Principles to maintain ethical communication
1. integrity 2. fairness 3. confidentiality 4. honesty and openness 5. respect for self and others
5 Barriers of Listening
1. lack of motivation 2. poor attitude 3. poor aptitude 4. selective attention 5. we think too fast
What are the 2 strategies for conducting a Rhetorical Analysis of a job posting?
1. patterns in word choices 2. descriptions that excite or concern you
3 Types of Short Oral Presentations
1. pitches = a short, prepared line of talk that attempts to persuade 2. oral briefings = giving precise instructions or essential information; 1-5 minutes long 3. Q&A sessions
4 Steps of the Artifact Construction Process
1. prepare and research (invention) 2. organize (arrangement) 3. write/design (style) 4. complete (memory/delivery)
What are the 3 Sections of a Cover Letter
1. salutation and opening 2. body 3. closing
3 Stages of the Interview Process
1. screening: the organization filters out applicants who are not a good fit for the company, time is limited so keep answers short 2. selection: helps organizations find the best candidates. if position is high up this could take weeks with multiple interviews. show keen interest in the job, explain how your skills will be valuable to the company, listen attentively, and ask insightful questions 3. negotiation: occurs after the company selects top candidates and is ready to make job offers. salary, parking privileges, vacation time, start-up funds
3 Elements of a Paragraph
1. topic sentence: synopsis of a paragraph 2. supporting sentences: develop the topic sentence 3. bridges: function to carry over ideas from one sentence to another and from one paragraph to another
*SHORT ANSWER* 6 Common Patterns of Arrangement
1. topical arrangement = arranges ideas around themes or clusters 2. chronological arrangement = plots points along a timeline or by sequence of events 3. spatial arrangement = describes the physical arrangement of a place, space or object and the relationships among these entities 4. causal arrangement = presents information that seeks to explain relationships between inputs and outputs 5. problem-solution arrangement = there may only be 2 points 6. pro-con arrangement = list the benefits and limitations of a particular idea *The Crazy Spatula Cause Problems Profusely*
8 Key Elements of the Transactional Model of Communication
1. verbal and nonverbal symbols = rhetoric 2. sender encodes the message 3. receiver decodes the message 4. feedback = response to message 5. channel = medium of delivery 6. interference = noise 7. context = rhetorical situation 8. share meaning = understanding
What are the four ways to control Voice in Delivery?
1. volume 2. pitch 3. rate 4. articulation
What are the 4 benefits of the Interpretive and Narrative Approaches?
1.Better understanding of the meaning of rhetorical artifacts in your professional life 2.Improved ability to deal with uncertainty and to be more persuasive 3.Greater appreciation of the concealing nature of rhetoric 4.Increased professional flexibility
What are the 3 standards applied to protect participants' privacy?
1.Confidentiality 2.Anonymity 3.Security
What are the 3 Situations for Interviewing People in Professional Communication
1.Conversations 2.Traditional Social Networking 3.Formal Interviews
What are the 4 goals of preparation and research?
1.Establish primary purpose 2.Assess your audience and the context 3.Determine the specific purpose and scope of coverage 4.Select the appropriate medium
What are the 4 types of long-form oral presentations?
1.Forums 2.Panels 3. Colloquia 4. Symposia
What are the two categories of survey research?
1.Questionnaires 2.Interviews
Font
A specific member of a single typeface style
What is the difference between active and passive voice?
Active voice: The subject of the sentence performs action expressed by the verb. ex: Our supervisor(subject) suspended(Action) Sally Passive voice: The subject receives the action ex: Sally(subject) was suspended by our supervisor
What is the color strategy of split complementary?
Choosing two analogous colors on either side of a directly complementary color
Typeface
Differentiated by distinctive characteristics
*SHORT ANSWER* Explain the two rules and tips of traditional social networking
Rule 1: The ultimate goal is to help others. Rule 2: It is far more important to understand others' needs before telling them about your needs. Tips: •Do not over promise and under deliver •Be considerate of others' needs and time •Begin every new communication with a compliment and keep the initial communication brief •Remember that building a social network takes effort and can be a frustrating process
What is the color strategy of Analogous?
Selecting colors that are touching in the color wheel
What should you do after an employment interview?
Send a thank you note
Tone
The attitude a writer or speaker expresses toward the subject and his or her audience.
What perspective should you use when revising written documents?
The perspective of the audience
Identification
a process that refers to a commitment to a specific identity. when people use a product because they think it represents their core values, they are engaging in a process of identification with that product
What is the color strategy of complementary?
Using colors from opposite ends of the wheel
What is the color strategy of Monochromatic?
Using variations of the same color
What is the goal of observation (ethnography) research?
Watch activities as they unfold naturally
Dummy Document
a simple mock-up of a document that includes blocks of lore ipsum text and shaded boxes with textual cues for the recommended placement of visual objects. if you oversee design and production, use the actual pictures and text; however, create a thumbnail sketch before writing. this will help you visualize the final product
Rule of Thirds
a simplified version of the golden ratio. essentially any frame is dividable into thirds, both horizontally and vertically
Referent Power
a type of power based upon connections and loyalty, which will allow you to exert influence over others
Workplace Violence
any act or threat of physical violence, harassment, intimidation, or other threatening disruptive behavior that occurs at the work site
Institutional Environments
characterized by the elaboration of rules and requirements to which individuals and professions must conform in order to receive legitimacy and support
Business and Professional Communication
communication that encompasses written, oral, visual, and digital communications that promote a product, service, or organization; takes place within workplace contexts; or occurs among members of professional fields
Compound Sentence
consists of two or more independent clauses (or simple sentence) connected by a comma or semicolon and a coordinating conjunction (and) or conjunctive adverb (therefore) "My manager invited me to attend the executive retreat, and I am nervous about going."
Compound-Complex
consists of two or more independent clauses and at least one dependent clause "Hiring is essential to our long-term growth strategy [independent clause]; with the right people [dependent clause], we will improve the quality of our products and services [independent clause].
Complex Sentence
contains one independent clause and one or more dependent clauses, often separated by a comma, that express a subordinate thought, contains clauses that could not stand on their own "Although my manager invited me to attend the executive retreat [dependent clause], I am nervous about going."
Simple Sentence
contains only one (independent) clause, can be as short as one word, however normally include a subject and predicate
Golden Ratio
creation of split rectangle whose side lengths are one-to-phi, approximately 1:1.618
4 Methods of Delivery
delivery by manuscript = little time for practice, executives and politicians, speakers with severe public speaking anxiety delivery by simple outline or notes = keyword outline (extemporaneously) delivery by memory = (oratory) hard for lengthy speeches, good for toasts, eulogies, and introductions delivery without practice = impromptu, job interviews
Direct v. Indirect Quotes
direct quote = an exact copy of someone's text or comments indirect quote = the paraphrased version of an original text
Lorem Ipsum
filler text used in typesetting since the 16th century
3 Points of View
first person: "I" second person: "you, they" third person: " he, she, we"
When should boldface be used?
for headings and to emphasize words or important material.
Leadership
influencing others to create change
What does Rhetorical Analysis involve?
looking for hidden meanings in messages and symbols
Primary Research vs Secondary Research
primary = gathering of first-hand data secondary = gathering information and supporting materials that already exist
Communicative competence
remaining focused on improving your writing, speaking and listening skills in this and other courses.
Voluntary consent
requires that people not be coerced into participating in research
Professional
someone who has a specific area of knowledge expertise and engages in a specific set of socially or legally regulated practices
Synchronous vs Asynchronous Communication
synchronous = information sharing and collaboration that occurs in real time, or "same time-different place" mode; instant messaging, text messaging asynchronous = information sharing and collaboration that occurs over time, or "different time-different place" mode; reports, memos, letters
Active Listening
the conscious and purposeful recognition, selection, and processing of important and relevant verbal, nonverbal, and emotional cues associated with a message
Informed consent
the idea that prospective research participants must be fully informed about procedures and risks involved in research
Kairos
the opportune moment
Impression Management
the process by which people control the impression others form of them
Workplace Bullying
the repeated and prolonged hostile mistreatment of one or more people at work
Rhetoric
the use of symbols to communicate
When should italics be used?
to emphasize material or to slow readers
Method
to follow a communication phenomenon or artifact as we use it socially
Professions
vocations founded on specialized educational training
What are some suggestions for how to respond when receiving feedback?
•Avoid becoming arrogant or defensive when receiving feedback. •Prepare yourself to hear things that you disagree with. •Listen to the entire statement. •Do not discourage feedback. •Recognize that feedback usually sounds harsher than intended. •When receiving feedback, take deep and slow breaths to help your body relax. •Use active listening strategies. •Ask questions to clarify points. •Request specific directions to improve performance. •Acknowledge the valid points and agree with what you know to be true.
What are the different types of interviews and focus groups?
•Informal •Structured and Semi-Structured •Closed or Fixed-Response