Ch. 11-Communication in Organizations

Here are some of the criteria that individuals may use when deciding whether to filter a Message or pass it on:

-Past experience. Was the Sender rewarded or criticized for passing along news of this kind in the past? -Knowledge, perception of the speaker. Has the Receiver's direct superior made it clear that "no news is good news"? -Emotional state, involvement with the topic, level of attention. Does the Sender's fear of failure or criticism prevent him from conveying the Message? Is the topic within his realm of expertise, increasing his confidence in his ability to decode it, or is he out of his comfort zone when it comes to evaluating the Message's significance? Are personal concerns impacting his ability to judge the Message's value?

jargon

A specific set of acronyms or words unique to a specific group or profession.

Written Communication

In contrast to verbal communications, written business communications are printed messages. Examples: include memos, proposals, e-mails, letters, training manuals, and operating policies. They may be printed on paper, handwritten, or appear on the screen. Normally, a verbal communication takes place in real time. This, by contrast, can be constructed over a longer period of time. This is often asynchronous (occurring at different times).

grapevine

The informal gossip network within a given organization.

decodes

The receiver *blank* the message by assigning meaning to the words. James may translate the manager's message as, "I need to stay late and finish this report tonight. I need to let my sister know that I can't attend her birthday dinner tonight."

encodes

The sender *blank* the message, translating the idea into words. The manager may communicate this thought by saying, "James, I can't believe we are not done with this report already. Our relationship with the client is on the line. Please make sure that this gets done. "

medium

The way that a Sender's Message is conveyed; *blank* of this encoded message may be spoken words, written words, or signs

Barriers to Effective Communication

These include filtering, selective perception, information overload, emotional disconnects, lack of source familiarity or credibility, workplace gossip, semantics, gender differences, differences in meaning between Sender and Receiver, and biased language.

Noise

anything that interferes with or distorts the message being transformed. This can be external in the environment (such as distractions) or it can be within the receiver. For example, the receiver may be extremely nervous and unable to pay attention to the message. In our example, James may have interpreted his deadline as being shorter than the manager intended because of his lack of experience with the manager's communication style, past conflicts about timeliness, or a desire to make a good impression. This can even occur within the sender: The sender may be unwilling to take the time to convey an accurate message, or the words that are chosen can be ambiguous and prone to misinterpretation.

Active listening

as giving full attention to what other people are saying, taking time to understand the points being made, asking questions as appropriate, and not interrupting at inappropriate times. creates a real-time relationship between the Sender and the Receiver by acknowledging the content and receipt of a Message.

Sharing emotions and feelings

bonds teams and unites people in times of celebration and crisis.

Information overload

can be defined as "occurring when the information processing demands on an individual's time to perform interactions and internal calculations exceed the supply or capacity of time available for such processing." Experts note that *this* is "A symptom of the high-tech age, which is too much information for one human being to absorb in an expanding world of people and technology. The sources of *this* include TV, newspapers, and magazines as well as wanted and unwanted regular mail, e-mail, and faxes. It has been exacerbated enormously because of the formidable number of results obtained from Web search engines."

Lack of source familiarity or credibility

can derail communications, especially when humor is involved. Sarcasm and irony are subtle and have a high potential to be misunderstood. Lack of familiarity with the source of a joke can lead to misinterpreting humor, especially in less rich information channels like e-mail.

Biased language

can offend or stereotype others on the basis of their personal or group affiliation.

External communications

deliver specific business messages to individuals outside an organization. They may announce changes in staff or strategy, earnings, and more. The goal is to create a specific Message that the Receiver will understand and share with others. Examples: press releases, ads, Web pages, and customer communications

crucial conversations

discussions in which not only are the stakes high but opinions vary and emotions run strong. One of the most consistent recommendations from communications experts is to work toward using "and" instead of "but" as you communicate under these circumstances. In addition, be aware of your communication style and practice flexibility; it is under stressful situations that communication styles can become the most rigid.

Emotional disconnects

happen when the Sender or the Receiver is upset, whether about the subject at hand or about some unrelated incident that may have happened earlier. Effective communication requires a Sender and a Receiver who are open to speaking and listening to one another, despite possible differences in opinion or personality. One or both parties may have to put their emotions aside to achieve the goal of communicating clearly. A Receiver who is emotionally upset tends to ignore or distort what the Sender is saying. A Sender who is emotionally upset may be unable to present ideas or feelings effectively.

Storytelling

has been shown to be an effective form of verbal communication; it serves an important organizational function by helping to construct common meanings for individuals within the organization. Stories can help clarify key values and help demonstrate cultural norms and expectations within an organization, and story frequency, strength, and tone are related to higher organizational commitment.

Semantics

is the study of meaning in communication. Words can mean different things to different people, or they might not mean anything to other people. For example, companies often have their own acronyms and buzzwords (called business jargon) that are clear to them but impenetrable to outsiders.

Transmitting information

is vital to an organization's ability to function

Verbal communications in business

may take place over the phone, in person, or via video conferencing. With this, the medium of the Message is oral.

Differences in meaning

often exist between the Sender and Receiver. "Mean what you say, and say what you mean." While this advice may seem straightforward, different words mean different things to different people. Age, education, and cultural background are all factors that influence how a person interprets words. The less we consider our audience, the greater our chances of miscommunication will be. When communication occurs in a cross-cultural context, extra caution is needed given that different words will be interpreted differently across cultures and different cultures have different norms regarding nonverbal communication. Eliminating jargon is one way of ensuring that our words will convey real-world concepts to others.

Public relations

professionals create external communications about a client's product, services, or practices for specific Receivers. These Receivers, it is hoped, will share the Message with others. In time, as the Message is passed along, it should appear to be independent of the Sender, creating the illusion of an independently generated consumer trend, public opinion, and so on.

Selective perception

refers to filtering information to suit our own needs. This process is often unconscious. Is a necessary tool that provides efficiency in a complex culture, but it can also lead to mistakes in communication.

Sender

such as a manager, coworker, or customer, originates the message with a thought. For example, the manager's thought could be "We need to complete this report this week. We took more time than we promised to the client "

Communication

supports each of a manager's P-O-L-C functions as the ability to effectively communicate is a necessary condition for successfully planning, organizing, leading, and controlling; is vital to coordinating actions and articulating goals. Effective *blank* helps people grasp issues, build rapport with coworkers, and achieve consensus.

Filtering

the distortion or withholding of information to manage a person's reactions. Some examples include a manager who keeps her division's poor sales figures from her boss, the vice president, fearing that the bad news will make him angry. The old saying, "Don't shoot the messenger!" illustrates the tendency of message Receivers to vent their negative response to unwanted Messages on the Sender. A gatekeeper (the vice president's assistant, perhaps) who doesn't pass along a complete Message is also *this*. The vice president may delete the e-mail announcing the quarter's sales figures before reading it, blocking the Message before it arrives. This prevents members of an organization from getting a complete picture of reality.

receiver

the person who receives the message.

Coordinating effort

within the organization helps people work toward the same goals

Communication fulfills three main functions within an organization:

(1) transmitting information, (2) coordinating effort, and (3) sharing emotions and feelings. All these functions are vital to a successful organization.

Communication can be categorized into three basic types:

(1) verbal communication, in which you listen to a person to understand their meaning; (2) written communication, in which you read their meaning; and (3) nonverbal communication, in which you observe a person and infer meaning. Each has its own advantages and disadvantages.