1 1 Chapter 1 Understanding Business Communication To

1. 2 Chapter 1 Objectives w Explain why effective communication is important in organizations and how it can help you succeed in business. w Discuss four changes in the workplace that are intensifying the need to communicate effectively. w Describe how organizations share information internally and externally. w List and define the six phases of the communication process. To accompany Excellence in Business Communication, 5 e , Thill and Bovée © 2002 Prentice-Hall

1. 3 Chapter 1 Objectives continued w Identify four types of communication barriers. w Discuss four guidelines for overcoming communication barriers. w Differentiate between an ethical dilemma and an ethical lapse. To accompany Excellence in Business Communication, 5 e , Thill and Bovée © 2002 Prentice-Hall

1. 4 Effective Communication is the process of sending and receiving messages. It is effective only when people w understand each other w stimulate others to take action w encourage others to think in new ways To accompany Excellence in Business Communication, 5 e , Thill and Bovée © 2002 Prentice-Hall

1. 5 Organizational Benefits w w w w w Increase productivity Anticipate problems Make decisions Coordinate workflow Supervise others Develop relationships Promote products Shape impressions you make Understand needs of stakeholders To accompany Excellence in Business Communication, 5 e , Thill and Bovée © 2002 Prentice-Hall

1. 6 Why Good Communication? w Increases chances for career success Good communication skills are the number one predictor of promotion and success in the work world. w Helps you adapt to today’s changing workplace w To accompany Excellence in Business Communication, 5 e , Thill and Bovée © 2002 Prentice-Hall

Adapting to the Changing Workplace Technology Advances Globalization Age of Information Team-based groups To accompany Excellence in Business Communication, 5 e , Thill and Bovée © 2002 Prentice-Hall 1. 7

1. 8 So what? w To improve communication skills, you need to: w Practice w Gain experience w Make the most of the opportunities presented in this course To accompany Excellence in Business Communication, 5 e , Thill and Bovée © 2002 Prentice-Hall

1. 9 Communicating in Organizations w When you join an organization, you become a link in its information chain: you have information that others need, and they have information that you need. w Internal communication is the exchange of information and ideas within an organization. w Effective internal communicators use both formal and informal channels. w Formal internal communication channels are defined by the official chain of command To accompany Excellence in Business Communication, 5 e , Thill and Bovée © 2002 Prentice-Hall

Formal Internal Communication Network Downward Upward Supervisor Staff Horizontal Department To accompany Excellence in

Quick Quiz Upward or Downward Communication? Weekly accident report from line supervisor to personnel manager Memo from department supervisor to staff members telling them of upcoming departmental meeting Meeting between marketing team and production team 1. Upward 2. Downward 3. Horizontal To accompany Excellence in Business Communication, 5 e , Thill and Bovée © 2002 Prentice-Hall 1. 11

Informal Internal Communications w Informal internal communication channels: Reflect the organizations actual communication practices w Have no set hierarchical path w Are often called the grapevine w The grapevine is: w Used by savvy managers to spread and receive informal messages w Minimized by sophisticated companies by making certain that the official word gets out w To accompany Excellence in Business Communication, 5 e , Thill and Bovée © 2002 Prentice-Hall 1. 12

1. 13 External Communication w External communication is the exchange of information and ideas with outsiders. w External communication can be in the form of a letter, a Web page, a phone call, a fax, an e-mail, a videotape, a face-to-face meeting, etc. To accompany Excellence in Business Communication, 5 e , Thill and Bovée © 2002 Prentice-Hall

1. 14 External Communication Customers Venders Investors Company Distributors Competitors Journalists Community Representatives To accompany Excellence in Business Communication, 5 e , Thill and Bovée © 2002 Prentice-Hall

1. 15 Outside Communication Formal w w Press statements, investor letters, advertisements, price changes, and litigation updates Usually prepared by marketing or public relations team Informal w Employees create an impression of the organization and gain information when they interact or network with the outside world. To accompany Excellence in Business Communication, 5 e , Thill and Bovée © 2002 Prentice-Hall

1. 16 Communication Process Sender has an idea Receiver gives feedback Sender encodes idea Receiver decodes message Sender transmits Receiver gets message To accompany Excellence in Business Communication, 5 e , Thill and Bovée © 2002 Prentice-Hall

1. 17 The Communication Process w The six phases of the communication process are repeated until both parties finish expressing themselves. w Communication succeeds only when the receiver understands the message the sender intended. To accompany Excellence in Business Communication, 5 e , Thill and Bovée © 2002 Prentice-Hall

Recognizing Communication Barriers w A communication barrier (or noise) is any 1. 18 interference in the communication process that distorts or obscures the sender’s meaning. w Perceptual Differences w Restrictive Environments w Distractions w Deceptive Tactics To accompany Excellence in Business Communication, 5 e , Thill and Bovée © 2002 Prentice-Hall

Traits of Good Communicators Perceptive Precise Congenial In Control Credible To accompany Excellence in

Guidelines to Becoming a Good Communicator 1. Adopt an audience-centered approach. 2. Foster open communication. 3. Create clean, efficient messages. 4. Be ethical in your communications. To accompany Excellence in Business Communication, 5 e , Thill and Bovée © 2002 Prentice-Hall 1. 20

1. 21 Audience-Centered Approach w Always make your message meaningful to your audience. w Learn all you can about your audience. w Use common sense and imagination to project yourself into the audience’s position. To accompany Excellence in Business Communication, 5 e , Thill and Bovée © 2002 Prentice-Hall

Climate of Open Communication w Make sure information flows freely down, up, and across the organization. w Encourage candor and honesty. w Reduce the number of levels in the organizational hierarchy or the number of steps in the communication chain. w Facilitate feedback from others. To accompany Excellence in Business Communication, 5 e , Thill and Bovée © 2002 Prentice-Hall 1. 22

1. 23 Lean, Efficient Messages w Deleting unnecessary information w Making necessary information easily available w Trying to give information meaning (rather than just passing it on) w Setting priorities for dealing with overall message flow To accompany Excellence in Business Communication, 5 e , Thill and Bovée © 2002 Prentice-Hall

1. 24 Ethical Communication w Ethics are the principles of conduct that govern a person or group. w Ethical Communication includes all relevant information, is true in every sense, and is not deceptive in any way. w Commit to ethical communication. To accompany Excellence in Business Communication, 5 e , Thill and Bovée © 2002 Prentice-Hall

1. 25 Ethical Communications w An ethical dilemma involves choosing among alternatives that are not clear-cut: w Two conflicting alternatives that are both ethical and valid w Two alternatives that lie somewhere in the vast gray area between right and wrong w An ethical lapse involves making a clearly unethical or illegal choice. To accompany Excellence in Business Communication, 5 e , Thill and Bovée © 2002 Prentice-Hall

1. 26 Ethical Communications w How to test whether a message is ethical: w Is it legal? Does it comply with the law? w When the law does not apply, consider the moral w w w implications of the message. Is it balanced? Is it fair to all concerned? Figure out who it will benefit or harm. Find out how much benefit or harm it will do. Is it a message you can live with? Does it make you feel good about yourself? Ask how you would feel if a newspaper published it. Ask how you would feel if your family knew about it. To accompany Excellence in Business Communication, 5 e , Thill and Bovée © 2002 Prentice-Hall