BUSINESS COMMUNICATIONS: Ch 1

Culture

the complex system of values, traits, morals and customs shared by a society •Molds the way we think, behave, and communicate •Five dimensions of culture: 1.Context 2.Individualism 3.Time orientation 4.Power distance 5.Communication style

Context

the stimuli, environment, or ambience surrounding an event

Empathy

Trying to see the world through another's eyes •One way of promoting a greater understanding is to work towards a common goal

Successful Written Communication With Intercultural Audiences 'IMPROVEMENT' (cont)

Use short sentences and short paragraphs •Sentences with fewer than 20 words and paragraphs with fewer than 8 lines Avoid ambiguous writing •Avoid contractions, idioms, slang, acronyms, abbreviations, jargon*, and sports references Cite numbers carefully •Metric system, spell out numbers, convert dollars, etc

Successful Oral Communication With Intercultural Audiences 'REDUCE MISUNDESTANDING'

Use simple English -Speak in short sentences and use familiar, short words •Speak slowly and enunciate clearly •Encourage accurate feedback Ask probing questions -Check frequently for comprehension

Territory

We all maintain zones of privacy in which we feel comfortable

Time

When someone arrives late to a meeting, it sends the message that the meeting has low priority or that the person is self-centered with little self-discipline

Tolerance

learning about beliefs and practices different from our own and appreciating them

Power distance index

measure how people in different societies cope with inequality -•How they relate to more or less powerful people

high power distance cultures

subordinates expect formal hierarchies and embrace relatively authoritarian, paternalistic power relationships

low-power distance cultures

subordinates may consider themselves as equals of supervisors --Relationships tend to be more democratic, egalitarian and informal

Ethocentrism

the belief that one's own group or culture is superior to all other groups or cultures •Causes us to judge other by our own values

Successful Written Communication With Intercultural Audiences 'IMPROVEMENT'

Consider local styles and conventions •Learn how documents are formatted and letters are addressed and developed Observe titles and rank Hire a translator •Use if your document is important, will be distributed to many people or when you must be persuasive

Building Solid Listening Skills

Hold your fire •Force yourself to listen to the entire argument or message before responding Take selective notes •Select the most important points so the notetaking process will not interfere with concentrating on focusing on the message Provide feedback •Get involved with the communication process

Eye appeal of business documents

Sloppy emails send the message that you are in a hurry or that you do not care about the receiver The physical appearance of a business document transmits immediate and important nonverbal messages

Building Solid Listening Skills (cont)

Listen for main points Capitalize on lag time •Review the speaker's points, anticipate what will come next, evaluate evidence Listen between the lines •Listen for feelings as well as facts Judge ideas, not appearances •Avoid being distracted by the speaker's looks, voice or mannerisms

Overcoming Barriers to Effective Listening (cont)

Nonverbal distractions •Unusual hairstyle or clothing or body twitches Thought Speed •Because we can process thoughts at least three times faster than we can say them, we can become bored and allow our minds to wander •Faking attention Grandstanding •We may fail to listen carefully when we are waiting for the next pause so that we can have our turn to speak

Successful Oral Communication With Intercultural Audiences 'REDUCE MISUNDERSTANDING' (cont)

Observe eye messages Accept blame -Accept responsibility for not making your message clear •Listen without interrupting Smile when appropriate •A smile is considered the single most understood and useful form of communicating •Follow up in writing

Overcoming Barriers to Effective Listening

Physical barriers •You cannot listen if you cannot hear what is being said Psychological barriers •If ideas run counter to our preconceived thoughts, we tend to tune out speakers and fail to receive their messages Language problems Emotion laden, or charged, words can adversely affect lis

Building Solid Listening Skills

Stop talking •Learn to concentrate on what the speaker is saying Control your surroundings •Chooses a quiet time and place for listening Establish a receptive mind set •Expect to learn something by listening Keep an open mind •Hear what is really being said, not what you want to hear

stereotype

an oversimplified perception of a behavioral pattern or characteristic applied uncritically to groups •When applied to individual business communicators, stereotypes can create misconceptions and misunderstandings

Individualism and Collectivism

•An attitude of independence and freedom characterizes individualism •Believe in individual action and personal responsibility, and desire much freedom in their personal lives •Members of high context cultures are more collectivist •Emphasize memberships in organizations, groups and teams; encourage acceptance of group values, duties and decisions Self-assertion and individual decision making are discouraged

Personal appearance

•Based on what they see, viewers make quick judgements about your status, credibility, personality, and potential •As a business person, you want to think about what your appearance says about you

TRENDS •Flattened management hierarchy

•Business have been trimming layers of management to save money which means you will be making decisions and communicating them to customers, fellow employees and executives

High context

•Communicators in high context cultures assume the listener does not need much background information •The meaning of the message may be implied from the social or physical setting, the relationship of the communicators, or nonverbal cues •Communication cues are primarily transmitted by posture, voice inflection, gestures and facial expressions

Low context

•Communicators in low context cultures depend little on the context of a situation and shared experience to convey their meaning •Assume messages must be explicit and listeners rely exclusively on the spoken or written word •Low context cultures tend to be logical, analytical, and action oriented

Soft skills

•Essential career attributes that include the ability to communicate clearly, get along with coworkers, solve problems, and take initiative

Facial Expression

•Experts estimate that the human face can display over 250,000 expressions •Raising or lowering the eyebrows, squinting the eyes, swallowing nervously are some of the voluntary or involuntary facial expressions that can add or replace verbal messages

TRENDS Anytime, anywhere availability and nonterritorial offices

•Including the self-employed, teleworkers now represent almost 30% of the US working population •24/7 availability has blurred the lines between work and leisure

Posture and Gestures

•Leaning towards a speaker suggests attentiveness and interest; pulling away denotes fear, distrust, anxiety or disgust •Gestures can communicate entire thoughts but the meanings of some movements differ in other cultures •Erect posture sends a message of confidence, competence, diligence and strength

TRENDS •Self-directed work groups and virtual teams

•Many businesses have created cross functional teams to empower employees and boost their involvement in decision making

TRENDS •Renewed emphasis on ethics

•Many organizations have written ethical mission statements, installed hotlines, and appointed compliance officers to ensure strict adherence to their high standards and the law

Why Communication Skills Matter More Than Ever

•People in today's workplace communicate more, not less •Digital media require "much more than the traditional literacy then yesterday", and workers' skills are always on display •Pew Research found that 90% of Americans polled consider communication the #1 skill for a successful life •More than half of the respondents in an employer survey criticized applicants for their lack of communication, interpersonal, and writing skills

Why Communication Skills Matter More Than Ever (cont)

•Recruiters will also closely examine your online persona to learn about your communication skills and professionalism •One recruiter states "Communication is KEY. You can have all the financial tools, but if you can't communicate your point clearly, none of it will matter."

What if Words and Nonverbal Cues Clash?

•Researches believe the bulk of any message we receive is nonverbal •Cues broadcast by body language might be helpful in understanding the feelings and attitudes of the sender •Be careful attaching specific meanings to gesture or actions because behavior and its interpretation strongly depend on context and one's cultural backgroun

TRENDS Social media and changing communication technologies

•Social media sites help business people collect information, serve customers, and sell products and services

Eye contact

•The best predictor of a speaker's true feelings •Sustained eye contact suggests trust and admiration; brief eye contact signals fear or stress •Good eye contact enables the sender to see if the receiver is paying attention, showing respect, responding favorably or feeling distress •For the receiver, good eye contact reveals the speaker's sincerity, confidence and truthfulness

Space

•The more formal the arrangement, the more and closed the communication style •Chairs arranged in a circle conveys a desire for an open exchange of ideas

majority-minority crossover

•The point at which they will represent the majority of the US population (Data suggests the share of the population over age 65 will jump from the current 13% to almost 20% in 2030.)

TRENDS •Heightened global competition

•You need to understand other cultures and develop intercultural skills including flexibility, patience, and tolerance