Unit 1 Communication - An Introduction

Learning Outcome

After reading this unit, you will be able to:

• Explain the meaning and definition of communication

• Pinpoint the Importance of communication

• Elucidate on the nature of communication

• Identify the principles of communication

• Clarify the Process of communication

Time Required to Complete the unit

1. 1st Reading: It will need 3 Hrs for reading a unit

2. 2nd Reading with understanding: It will need 4 Hrs for reading and understanding a
unit
3. Self Assessment: It will need 3 Hrs for reading and understanding a unit
4. Assignment: It will need 2 Hrs for completing an assignment
5. Revision and Further Reading: It is a continuous process

Content Map

1.1 Introduction

1.2 Meaning and definition of communication

1.3 Importance of Communication

1.3.1 Role of Communication in Business

1.3.2 Objectives of Communication

1.4 Nature of Communication

Managerial Skill Development 1

1.5 Principles of Communication

1.6 Process of Communication

1.6.1 Communication Process: Models and Theories

1.7 Communication Network

1.8 Cross Cultural Communication

1.8.1 Cultural Differences in Nonverbal Behaviour

1.8.2 Tips for Communicating with People Cross-Culturally

1.9 Summary

1.10 Self Assessment Test

1.11 Further Reading

2 Managerial Skill Development

1.1 Introduction
The term 'communication' originates from the Latin word communicare, which
means to share or impart. When used as per its function, it means a common ground of
understanding. Communication is the process of exchanging of facts, ideas and opinions and
a means that individuals or organisations use for sharing meaning and understanding with
one another. In other words, it is the transmission and interaction of facts, ideas, opinions,
feelings or attitudes. Communication is an interdisciplinary concept as theoretically it is
approached from various disciplines such as mathematics, accounting, psychology, ecology,
linguistics, systems analysis, etymology, cybernetics, auditing etc. Communication enables
us to do important things: to grow, to learn, to be aware of ourselves and to adjust to our
environment.

1.2 Meaning and definition of communication

Communication is a process, which involves organising, selecting and transmitting
symbols in an appropriate way to ensure the listener perceives and recreates in his own
mind the intended meaning of the communicator. Communication involves the initiation of
meaning in the listener, the transmission of information and thousands of probable stimuli.

Human beings have a compulsive urge to communicate with each other. Mutual
understanding is not only based on communication but also is the core of human relations.
There can be no mutual understanding without communication; mutual understanding is the
core of human relations. Communication is like birth, death, breath and wanting to be loved-
a part of life itself. Man is a communicating animal; he alone has the power to express in
words. Sight, sound, touch, smell and taste are the modes of exchange of messages. The
story of man's progress is the story of his progress in communication skills. The degree to
which a civilisation or culture progresses is reflected in the state of its communication
process.

Communication is a two-fold process between two parties- the sender and the
receiver. It involves an exchange and progression of thoughts, ideas, knowledge and
information towards a mutually accepted goal or direction. Here are some definitions by
experts:

American Society of Training Directors: Communication is the interchange of thought or

information to bring about mutual understanding and
confidence or global human relation.

Behind Brown: Communication is the transmission and interchange of facts,

ideas, feelings or course of action.
Managerial Skill Development 3
Alien Louis A.: Communication is the sum of all the things one person does
when he wants to create understanding in the mind of
another. It involves a systematic and continuous process of
telling, listening and understanding.

Ordway Tead: Communicating is a composite of information given and

received, of a learning experience in which certain attitudes,
knowledge and skills change, carving with them alterations of
behaviour, of listening effort by all involved, of a sympathetic
fresh examination of issues by the communicator himself, of a
sensitive interacting points of view, leading to a higher level of
shared understanding and common intention.

Theo Haiemann: Communication is the process of passing information and

understanding from one person to another. It is the process of
imparting ideas and making oneself understood by others.

M.T. Myers and G.E. Myers: Communication refers to a special kind of patterning:
patterning, which is expressed in symbolic form. For
communication to take place between or among people, two
requirements must be met:

• A symbolic system must be shared by the people involved

(we need to speak the same language or jargon or dialects)
and
• The associations between the symbols and their referents
must be shared.

Some interesting comments about communication

Davis: "Process of passing information and understanding from one person to

another... The only way that management can be achieved in an organisation is through the
process of communication".

Chester Barnard: In exhaustive theory of organisation, communication would occupy

a central place because the structure, extensiveness and scope of organisations are almost
entirely determined by communication techniques.

4 Managerial Skill Development

 Study Notes

Assessment

1. What is communication?

2. How did Ordway Tead describe communication?

Discussion

Discuss the various definitions of communication .

1.3 Importance of Communication

It is an established fact that the present era is often called the ‘Age of
Communication and Information.’ The importance of communication has been greatly
emphasized by all management experts. Communication, like birth, death, growth and
decay, is a part of individual life as well as organisational existence. Its importance is self-
explanatory and is a common experience of all as well.

In recent times, communication has turned into business; rarely would you find
managers, subordinates, salesmen, technicians, foremen, lawyers, auditors, consultants,
teachers, doctors or anyone else who is not concerned with the difficulties associated with
communication.
Managerial Skill Development 5
 It has been rightly observed that ‘the number one management problem today is
miscommunication. Group activities in context with common goals cannot be accomplished
without communication. The entire organisation control, coordination and motivation
cannot be accomplished in case of lapses in communication. A common practice among
many organisations is moving messages vertically, horizontally and diagonally between
various officially designated positions. The modern industrial scenario relies heavily on
communication for its augmentation and survival. George R. Terry states: "Communication
serves as the lubricant, posturing for the smooth operations of the management process".

The reasons for the growing significance of communication can be judged from the
following paragraphs:

• Coordination: Modern complex organisations are large, consisting of numerous

employees working towards accomplishing common goals. The organisational structure
illustrates many levels of organisation hierarchy- both horizontally and vertically. More
often than not, this leads to issues related to coordination. Effectual systems of
communication encourage better coordination. Coordination is viewed as a necessity
among groups; channels are vital for efficient functioning of the organisation as a whole..
Communication encourages better coordination.

• Smooth Working: Smooth and uninterrupted working of an enterprise, largely depends

on good communication network. Communication takes on a greater role in this
direction. Accurate decision-making and efficiency of the organisation is anchored in
information supply. If messages have obstacles in the course of their flow, it is
impossible to bring about a smooth functioning and uninterrupted working of the
organisation. According to Herbert G. Micks, “Communication is basic to an
organisation’s existence from the birth of the organisation through its continuing life”.

• Effective Decision-Making: It is essential to have a record of past and present data for
immediate and effective decision-making. Communication is the primary base by means
of which information is supplied to further help in making decisions. Problem-defining,
alternative courses of action, selecting the best option available, can be possible with the
provision of relevant and adequate information conveyed to the decision-maker. In
event of inadequate or no information, it would be relatively impossible even for the top
management to take important decisions. Conversely, it is unlikely to achieve goals and
objectives unless the top management has a smooth interaction with all levels of the
organisation.

6 Managerial Skill Development

• Managerial Efficiency: As quoted in George Terry's remark earlier, communication
encourages managerial efficiency. Efficiency lays in the manner individuals and groups
are assigned their respective targets.. Managerial functions like planning, control, co-
ordination, motivation cannot be discharged without communication. As management is
an art of ensuring targets are achieved in collaboration with other people,
communication educates personnel working in the organisation about the desires of the
management. Management communicates goals, policies and targets by issuing verbal
and written orders and instructions. The yardstick for measuring managerial efficiency is
communication.

• Co-operation: Co-operation among workers is possible only when there is an exchange

of information between individuals and groups and between the management and the
employees. This not only promotes the industrial peace but also maximizes production.
The two-way communication network enhances co-operation between people. The flow
of communication can be smooth and receptive with co-operation, confidence and
message flow vertically, horizontally and across the organisation. In short,
communication promotes co-operation and understanding among employees.

• Effective Leadership: Leadership implies the presence of a leader and followers. There is
always a continuous process of communication between them. Communication is the
basis for direction, motivation as well as establishment of effective leadership. The
followers have to follow the leader and through conveying of ideas, opinions, feelings
and be in constant communication with them. Thus, transmission and reception ensures
a two-way traffic, the sine qua non for effective leadership. A manager with good
communication skills can become a successful leader of his subordinates. E.g. In 1981,
Narayana Murthy, with an investment of Rs. 10, 000 ($250 at the time) from his wife,
founded Infosys with six other software professionals. Under his leadership, Infosys was
listed on NASDAQ in 1999. Today, Infosys is acknowledged by customers, employees,
investors and the public as a highly respected, dynamic and innovative company. The
Economist ranked Narayana Murthy among the ten most admired global business
leaders in 2005.

• Job Satisfaction: Communication is essential for achieving job satisfaction. Management

conveys messages, which promote mutual understanding. Reception and recognition
provide job satisfaction to employees. Two-way communication creates confidence,
which leads to job satisfaction among employees. Openness, straightforward expression
of opinions is necessary in this direction.

Managerial Skill Development 7

• Increase Productivity: Communication helps the management in achieving maximum
productivity with minimum cost and eliminating waste. These are the main objectives of
the management. It is remarked that an archenemy of communication is the very illusion
of it. This illusion can be avoided only with an effective system of communication. It is
through communication that the workers can be well informed about the process of
production, new methods of production and the activities of the workers in a similar
organisation. Thus, a good system of communication helps the management to achieve
maximum productivity with minimum cost, elimination of waste, reduction of cost etc.
Inter-firm comparison is not possible without effective communication.

• Morale Building: Morale and good relations in the organisation are essential for
achieving goals of the organisation and promoting its benevolence goodwill in the public.
An effective system, of communication builds good morale and improves human
relations. Participatory communication is the best technique of morale building and
motivation. S. Khandwala remarked, "Most of the conflicts in business are not basic but
are caused by misunderstood motives and ignorance of facts. Proper communication
between the interested parties reduces the points of friction and minimises those that
inevitably arise".

• Achieving Managerial Roles: Henry Mintzberg has described a manager’s job by

assigning three roles, namely inter-personal roles, informational roles and decisional
roles. Communication plays a vital role in these three types of role. In case of inter-
personal role, a manager has to constantly interact with subordinates. In informational
role, a manager has to collect information from various people and supply the necessary
information to others both inside and outside the organisation. A manager in a
decisional role or written media of communication discharges interpersonal,
informational and decisional roles as well.

The importance of communication may be concluded with the remark of Chester I.

Barnard: The first executive function is to develop and maintain a system of communication.

1.3.1 ROLE OF COMMUNICATION IN BUSINESS

Communication plays a very important role in an organisation. In fact, it is said to be
the lifeline of the organisation. Everything in the universe, human or otherwise,
communicates; though the means of communication may be very different. Communication
is very crucial and unavoidable, as we have certain views and opinions, which we want to
convey to another person, group or even to the outside world.

8 Managerial Skill Development

 Communication in an organisation is inevitable. Departments communicate on a
periodic basis in respect to daily activities and the organisation's relationship with the
external world. This is done via written and unwritten means, either planned or impromptu.
It could be hierarchical, that is, from top to bottom or vice versa. It could be formal,
informal, vertical, horizontal or diagonal. Irrespective of the means, modes or types of
communication, occurrence of communication is essential and of prime importance.

Communication within an organisation could be grapevine or rumour. In totality,

communication in an organisation is very complex and needs to be correctly managed
handled and monitored to avert chaos, crisis or conflict.

The basic functions and roles of the management cannot be conducted without
communication. Planning organising, coordinating, budgeting, monitoring, controlling,
staffing, delegation; including marketing, production, financing, staffing (human resource
managing), research and development, purchasing, selling, etc cannot be coordinated,
harnessed and their goals achieved devoid of communication.

Communication plays a key role in meetings, annual general meeting ordinary

meeting, urgent meeting, etc. The effectiveness of an organisation also depends on the
success of its meetings where goals to be achieved, targets to be met and activities to be
carried out are ironed out and discussed. If the ideas are not comprehended at meetings,
the workers are bound to then one need to be sure that the workers will mess up
everything. Thus, the chairman of the meeting must be an effective speaker or
communication capable of ensuring that everyone got what has been discussed correctly.

This will help eradicate rumours and grapevine and eventually achieve set standards,
goals and/or objectives. In conclusion, everyone in an organisation needs to have good
communication skill, not the boss only, but also the subordinates. It is what all of us
(workers) need to jointly strive to achieve the set goals. Remove communication in an
organisation, we are going to have dead entity, good for nothing and worth been shut down.
Communication is the backbone for organisation's success.

1.3.2 OBJECTIVES OF COMMUNICATION

The basic objective of human communication is trying to elicit a reaction from the
person we are trying to communicate with. From a business or commercial angle, if we
observe any small or large business around us we will be able to notice that the amount of
success the business has achieved mainly relies on its power of communication.
Communication defines the level of success that the company has attained. Following are a
few of the main objectives of business communication.
Managerial Skill Development 9
1. Information: The core objective of a business is to convey information and making
individuals more up to date, E.g.- all the advertisement campaigns that we notice around
us are an attempt to inform and convey the information across to others, and in case of
companies, this information is generally regarding the product or services at offer.
However, the method of communication may be verbal, written, visual or any other.

All companies thrive on information pertinent to their business activity. They must
have excellent knowledge regarding the market, their competitors, the government policies,
the type of credit they can gain from; the existing economic situation etc. Pertinent
information is the main aspect for successful business.

However, in the recent times, because of the arrival of the World Wide Web, there
has been a swift outburst in the quantity of information that is accessible to a company and
it is turning out to be gradually more difficult for a company to come across information that
is genuine, comprehensive, up-to-date and new. Furthermore, it has become very important
for any company to get hold of that information. Moreover, this demand for correct
information has initiated a new faction of people called the infomederies, who do not
handle any type of goods but provide information.

A company not only acquires information but furthermore provides information as

well, for e.g.- The company has to provide factual information about profitability, quality of
products, facilities provided to the workers or services rendered towards the community.

2. Motivation: Communication in business is moreover essential to boost the workers'

motivation. Thus if the communication is carried out correctly and is successful in
encouraging the workers and workers are sufficiently encouraged, the work gets
completed easily, proficiently and the workers will carry out their functions by
themselves without supervision.

Communication should be utilised to construct a proper working atmosphere. In

order to create a strong competitive atmosphere between the workers and furthermore can
be acknowledged and rewarded for their accomplishments.

Employees who work at a lower level in the chain of command of the organisation
should be motivated to give ideas and inputs on the methods to improve the functioning of
an organisation, this type of communication brings about a feeling of involvement and
connection and creates more loyalty towards the company.

3. Raising Morale: Another extremely significant objective of business communication

(internal) is maintaining a sense of high morale amongst the workers, so that they
perform their tasks with dynamism and resilience as a team. This is a key aspect that can
10 Managerial Skill Development
 create a great impact on the success of a company.

However as morale is a psychological aspect, the condition of high morale is not a

lasting feature. An organisation could have a sense of high morale between the workers for
a particular phase but could discover that the employees have lost their morale in the
following phase. Therefore, to keep the sense of high morale amongst the employees, an
organisation has to constantly put in their efforts in that course. It can be managed by
maintaining an open door policy, keeping tabs on the gossip and not permitting destructive
rumours to spread among employees.

4. Order and instructions: An order is an oral or written rule influencing the start, end or
adjusting an activity. This form of communication is internal and is executed within a
company. Order may be in written or verbal form. Written orders are given when the
type of job is extremely vital or the person who would carry out the task is far off. Care
must be taken at the time of handing out written orders; a copy of the order should
always be maintained so that it is easy during the follow up.

Oral orders come into play at the time of urgency in the work and when the person is
in close proximity. However, it is extremely vital to follow up in both the cases.

5. Education and training: These days, communication can be additionally used in business
to enhance the scope of knowledge. The goal of education is attained by business
communication on three levels (a) Management (b) employees (c) general public

a. Education for future managers: At this juncture, junior personnel in the organisation
are taught to deal with vital assignments comprising of responsibility, so that they
can achieve something more than their superiors in the long run.

b. Education for newbie’s: When new personnel join an organisation they are
introduced by enlightening them in relation to the culture of the company, code of
discipline, work ethos etc. This is generally carried out by way of a training method to
accustom the new recruits with the working style of the organisation.

c. Educating the public: This is carried out by advertising, informative seminars,

newspapers, journals to notify the public regarding the product, the working style of
the company and different schemes presented by the company.

Managerial Skill Development 11

 Study Notes

Assessment

1. Why is communication important in an organization?

2. What is the role of communication in business?

Discussion

Discuss the objectives of communication.

1.4 Nature of Communication

The Nature of communication can be explained using following characteristics of
communication:

• Two-way process: Communication can occur only when there are at least two
individuals. As shown in fig 1.1, one person has to convey some message and another
has to receive it. However, the receiver need not necessarily be an individual.
Information may be conveyed to a group of persons collectively. For example, in a
classroom, the teacher conveys information to a group of students. If the receiver needs
any clarification, he can ask the sender of message immediately, for example, face to
face or telephonic conversation. Communication may carried by means of letters,
circulars etc. If communication is conducted via post or email, the receiver may respond
by a letter or as per the mode desired by him or the respective sender.

12 Managerial Skill Development

 Sender Message Receiver
Feedback improves communication

Fig. 1.1: Two-way communication

• Knowledge of language: For successful communication, it is essential that the receiver

have thorough understanding of the message. To heighten the possibility of effectual
communication, senders must speak in a language the receiver is familiar with. For
example, if the receiver cannot understand English and the subsequent sender conveys
his ideas in English, the communication will inevitably be a failure.

• Meeting of minds necessary: The receiver must comprehend the intended meaning of
the message the sender wants him to understand. A consensus is essential, which is
nothing but recognizing the meaning of identity of minds. If weekly target declared by a
supervisor is misconstrued by a worker as monthly target, there is dearth of agreement.
Inattention, poor vocabulary, faulty pronunciation etc., may result in lack of consensus.

• The message must have substance: The gist of the message holds importance only until
the receiver shows interest in the subject matter. In other words, the sender of message
must have something worthwhile for the receiver. E.g., any discussion about cricket will
be well received by a cricket fanatic.

• Communication can also be conducted through gestures: Communication should not

necessarily be verbal or written. Certain gestures or actions can also depict an
individual's willingness or understanding of a given problem. Nodding of heads, rolling of
eyes, movement of lips etc., are some of the gestures used for convey certain basic
ideas.

• Communication is all-pervasive: Communication is omnipresent; it exists in all levels of

management. The top management conveys information to the middle management
and vice versa. Similarly, the middle management conveys information to the
supervisory staff and vice versa. There is flow of communication in all directions in a
workplace.

• Communication is a continuous process: In every workplace, someone will always be

conveying or receiving information in some form. Sharing or exchanging information is a
continual process. As long as there is work – personal, official or unofficial,
communication will exist.
Managerial Skill Development 13
• Communication may be formal or informal: Formal communication follows the
hierarchy- the official channel established. For example, when a worker wishes to convey
certain information to the production manager, it can be channelised only through the
foreman. He cannot bypass the foreman and convey information directly to the
production manager. Informal communication does not follow the official channel. It
provides individuals with the liberty to freely convey information to anybody else
without considering the hierarchy. For example, discussion among friends.

Study Notes

Assessment

1. How can communication take place through gestures?

2. What is formal and informal communication?

Discussion

Discuss the two way process of communication.

14 Managerial Skill Development

1.5 Principles of Communication
Communication is complex. While listening to or reading someone else's message,
we often filter what is being said through a screen of our own perceptions. Thus our
preconceived notions and opinions become one of the major barriers to communication.

There is an old communications game- telegraph, that is played in a circle. A

message is whispered around from person to person. What the exercise usually proves is
how profoundly the message changes as it passes through the distortion of each person's
inner "filter".

Communication, when effectually conducted, can assist in building sturdy

relationships and harmonious working conditions. It also simplifies the process of sharing
the best of ourselves with others

There are certain basic principles that need to be followed while conversing
informally with a colleague, addressing a conference or meeting, writing a newsletter article
or formal report; they are as follows:

• Identify your audience.

• Discern the purpose.

• Know your topic.

• Anticipate objections.

• Present a complete picture.

• Achieve credibility with your audience.

• Follow through on what you say.

• Communicate a little at a time.

• Impart information in several ways.

• Formulate a practical, useful way to receive feedback.

• Use multiple communication techniques.

• Communication is largely non-verbal.

• Context affects communication.

• Meanings are in people, not in words.

• Communication is irreversible.

Managerial Skill Development 15

• Noise affects communication.

• Communication is circular.

• Creating common ground is essential.

• Communication has effects.

We can concise these principles as follows:

Be direct and concise: Be clear about the message and the subsequent meaning you
wish to convey. Make your point upfront with minimal preamble. Communicate as directly,
concisely and economically as possible, almost as if you have to pay for every word. Frankly,
people do pay for every word- with their precious time and sharing of mind. Never lose sight
of this principle.

Be honest and genuine: Words are uttered and written by you, but true wisdom and
inspiration worth reading and hearing comes from within. If you are honest and genuine
about your opinions and express them well, people will be attentive and respond with
kindness. They will share and trust and feel comfortable doing business with you. In time,
they will follow you, which is the essence of leadership. It occurs on an emotional level.

Be present and open: Experience the moment- the here and the now. You can only
learn from the past and plan, but the present packs a tremendous amount of information
and content. Its presence is momentary after and then it is gone. Listen attentively, not just
to what people are saying, but also to the meaning and feeling behind the words. That is
truly priceless.

Be confident but measured: Be confident and strong in your views and statements,
but remember that whomever you are communicating with has their own thoughts,
feelings, perspectives, ideals and objectives. Do not shove things down their throats or
threaten. That might elicit responses you did not expect or desire. Be apologetic only when
you have truly behaved in a regretful manner.

Study Notes

16 Managerial Skill Development

 Assessment

1. Explain why communication is complex?

2. What are the basic principles of communication while addressing a conference or

meeting, writing a newsletter article or formal report?

Discussion

Discuss the basic principles of communication.

1.6 Process of Communication

The process of communication as shown in fig 1.2 involves exchange of ideas and it
can be verbal or non-verbal in nature. The pre-requisite of communication is a message and
this message must be conveyed through some medium to the recipient in such a way that it
is understood by the recipient in the same manner as intended by the sender. The recipient
must respond within a period. The response from the recipient to the sender is called
feedback. Therefore, communication is said to be a two way process, which is incomplete
without a feedback from the recipient to the sender on how well the message is understood
by him.

Managerial Skill Development 17

 Fig 1.2: Communication process

Following
ollowing are the components of the process of communication.

• Context: Communication is affected by the context in which it occurs.. This context could
be physical, social, chronological or cultural. Every communication proceeds with
context. The sender chooses the message to communicate within a context. E.g. usage of
the term Labour in relation to manpower or workload.

• Sender / Encoder: Sender / Encoder is a person who sends the message. A sender
utilizes symbols (words,
words, graphic or visual aids) to convey the message and produce the
required response. For instance,
instance a training manager conducting training for induction of
new joinees.. Sender may be an individual, a group or an organisation.
organisation The views,
background, approach, skills, competencies and knowledge of the sender have a great
impact on the message. The verbal and non-verbal symbols chosen are essential in
ascertaining interpretation of the message by the recipient in the same terms as
intended by the sender.

• Message: Message is a key idea that the sender plans to communicate. It elicits the
response of recipient. Communication process begins with planning the message to be
conveyed. One must ensure that the main objective of the message is comprehensible
comprehensible.

• Medium: Medium is a means used for exchanging/transmitting the message. The sender
must choose an appropriate medium for transmitting the message,
message, as there are high
probabilities of the message not being conveyed to the target recipients. The choice of
appropriate medium of communication is essential for making the message effective and
correctly interpreted by the recipient. This choice of communication medium varies
based on the features of communication. Written medium,
medium for instance, is chosen when
a message has to be conveyed to a small group of people, while an oral medium is

18 Managerial Skill Development

 chosen when spontaneous feedback is required from the recipient and queries are
addressed on the spot.

• Recipient / Decoder: Recipient / Decoder is a person for whom the message is intended
/ aimed / targeted. The degree to which the decoder understands the message is
depends on various factors like knowledge of recipient, their responsiveness to the
message and the reliance of encoder on decoder.

• Feedback: Feedback is the main component of communication process as it permits the

sender to analyze the efficacy of the message. It helps the sender in confirming the
correct interpretation of message by the decoder. Feedback may be verbal or non-verbal
(in form of smiles, sighs, etc.). It could also be in written form (memos, reports, etc).

1.6.1 COMMUNICATION PROCESS: MODELS AND THEORIES

There are many communication process models and theories available for
understanding the process involved in it, as developed by different people. It is very tedious,
time and space consuming to consider all the communication models. It is, therefore,
desirable to familiarise with some significant and important models that serve the purpose
of understanding the process of communication.

1. Linear Model

According to the Encyclopaedia Britannica, one of the most productive schematic

models of a communications system that has been proposed as an answer to Lasswell’s
question (Who (says) What (to) Whom (in) What Channel (with) What Effect?) in relation to
communication that emerged in the late 1940s, largely from the speculations of two
American mathematicians, Claude Shannon and Warren Weaver. The simplicity of their
model, its clarity and its surface generality proved attractive to many students of
communication in various disciplines; although it neither is the only model of the
communication process extant nor is, it universally accepted. As originally conceived, the
model contained five elements—an information source, a transmitter, a channel of
transmission, a receiver and a destination—all arranged in linear order. Messages (electronic
messages, initially) were supposed to travel along this course, to be transformed into
electric energy by the transmitter and to be reconstituted into intelligible language by the
receiver. In due course, the five elements of the model were renamed to specify
components for other types of communication transmitted in various manners. The
information source was split into its components (both source and message) as a provision
for wider range of applicability. The six constituents of the revised model are:

Managerial Skill Development 19

• A source

• An encoder

• A message

• A channel

• A decoder

• A receiver

Some communication systems have simple components. For instance -

• A person on a landline telephone

• The mouthpiece of the telephone

• The words spoken

• The electrical wires along which the words (now electrical impulses) travel

• The earpiece of another telephone

• The mind of the listener

In other communication systems, the components are more complicated to isolate-

e.g., the communication
on of the emotions of aan artist through a painting to people who may
act in response to the message long after the death of the artist.

Begging a multitude of psychological, aesthetic and sociological questions concerning

the exact nature of each component, the linear model appeared, from the commonsense
perspective, at least, to explain generally the ways in which certain classes of
communication
nication occurred. It did not indicate the reason for the inability of certain
communications—obvious
obvious in daily life—to
life fit its neat model.

Fig. 1.3: Linear Model of Communication

20 Managerial Skill Development
2. Aristotle’s Model

Aristotle took the first step towards the development of a communication model. He
developed an easy, simple and elementary model of the communication process. As shown
in the figure 1.4,, in a communication event, there are three main ingredients, like:
like

The Speaker

The Speech and

The Audience

Fig. 1.4: Aristotle’s Model

Subsequently, a number of experts have formulated modern models of

communication that are more complex and dynamic.

3. David K. Berlo’s Model

David Berlo’s process theory is one of the fundamental theories for all
communication theorists. The various theories of process models specify the idea
persuasively to another person; Berlo’s model is of general importance in developing other
communication models and identifying elements of communication. Berlo's process theory
has contributed largely to the subject of communication. In this model, he identified
essential elements and other factors affecting them (the five senses). However,
owever, the model
does not consider verbal and nonverbal
non stimuli. As shown in figure 1.5, the
he nine components
are included in his model are:: Source, Encoder, Message, Channel, Receiver, Decoder,
Meaning, Feedback and Noise.

Managerial Skill Development 21

 Fig. 1.5: David K. Berlo’s Model

4. Harold D. Lasswell Model

The communication process of Lasswell, in its broader analysis, spawns to four basic
and important questions. They are: Who? What? Whom? Which? These behavioural aspects
of the sender in the communication process are well defined.

COMMUNICATIONS

Lasswell's model ignores the essential elements of the communication process.

However, Lasswell's model indicates the major elements in the process by posing some
questions related to the act of communication. They are:

Who?

Says What?

In What Channel?

To Whom?

With What Effect?

Fig. 1.6: Lasswell's Model

22 Managerial Skill Development

1. Why?

Why do we want to communicate? What is the purpose of the communication? Is it

to persuade or to inform? Is any particular action required?

2. What?

What do we want to communicate? It may be an order, an idea, an attitude or a

feeling. What form of words or possible actions suits the situation?

3. How?

How are we going to communicate? In what form will the communication get home
the message fastest? What impact will a particular form have on the recipient?

4. Who?

Is there a key to the communication situation? How does he feel about me, about
this situation?

5. When?

Finally, when is the right time to get across this message? When is the receiver likely
to give it the most attention? Is timing critical to the success of the communication?

In this model, he covers the five elements in the process by putting forth the above
questions. The model emphasises on the effects of communication and the response of the
receivers. The behavioural aspects of the sender are the important element in the process.

Table. 1.1: LASSWELL MODEL

Who Says What — In To With What
— Which Whom Effect
Channel

Sender Message Media Receiver Effect

Management can ask for assistance of trade unions and their media, to bring about
effective communication. The management and trade unions should constantly maintain
good relations with each other as it encourages industrial peace and harmony. The
executives should interact with unions and exchange views, share viewpoints to pass on
open and frank information to them to generate confidence. The growth of trade union
Managerial Skill Development 23
movement has increased the importance of communication in the industry. A good mutual
understanding and a friendly and harmonious atmosphere of cooperation in the enterprise
etc. can be developed by way of an effective system of communication in the industry.

5. Emphasis on Human Relations

In recent times, the emphasis is on recognition of dignity of labour and authority.

Workers are not to be treated as commodities. They are inclusive of the organisation and
are treated like a partnership relationship. The concept of master-servant relationship has
lost its significance. They are co-partners of the enterprise. A successful management is one,
which must recognize the needs, attitudes, feelings of the workers. By itself, the emphasis is
on human relations that implies better understanding of workers. Simultaneously, this
accentuates the significance of the two-way traffic in communication. Therefore, the
growing recognition of human relations and maintaining good human relations with workers
along with a host of other factors has necessitated effective communication.

6. Public Relations

The social responsibility of management cannot be overlooked. The responsibilities

imply the obligations, which a business house owes to the society. There are four important
groups for example, owners of the business, i.e., the shareholders, customers, employees
and the society. Each group should be given a timely report of the measures taken for
allocating their respective social responsibilities. Public relations emphasises a proper
understanding of the nature, of the public and the social environment in which an industry is
operating and the changes that are constantly occurring. Relation is the outcome of mutual
understanding derived from the process of sharing of common interests. The integration of
these two elements gives us public relations, which in recent times is a specialised
management function.

Study Notes

24 Managerial Skill Development

 Assessment

1. Explain the linear model of communication?

2. Explain the Harold D. Lasswell Model of communication?

Discussion

Discuss the two way process of communication.

1.7 Communication Network

Communication Network is divided into two parts in an organisation.

Fig. 1.7: Communication network in an organisation

Managerial Skill Development 25
 An organisation is a composite of various individuals working in unison towards a
common goal. They are constantly interacting with each other and with people outside the
company. The communication network in an organisation is bifurcated into two parts:

INTERNAL COMMUNICATION

Interaction among members of the same organisation is termed as internal

communication. It could be both formal and informal. Large organisations with hundreds of
people employees face inability in communicating and directly interacting with everyone.
They adopt a number of strategies e.g. newsletters, annual reports to communicate the
essential message. In such large setups, it is impossible and unnecessary to transmit
information to everyone.

Informal communication is prevalent in organisations with a preliminary work force

of approximately 20 people, all of whom have direct interaction with each other every day.
Almost all messages are communicated back and forth in an informal manner.

The channels of communication may be as follows:

• Vertical

• Horizontal

• Diagonal

DIAGONAL
VERTICAL

HORIZONTAL

Fig. 1.8: Vertical, horizontal and diagonal communication

VERTICAL COMMUNICATION

Vertical communication is upward and downward flow of messages. Information is

transmitted from the top management to the employees working in the organisation or vice
versa. Since it is impossible to have upward and downward direct interface on all occasions,

26 Managerial Skill Development

especially when the downward number of people working is high, messages navigate or
break through with assistance from a mediator or an opinion leader. In such situations, it is
highly possible that the message would be distorted as it travels from one person to
another. Let us use the analogy of a game, viz. Chinese Whisper, to understand how
distortion in message occurs. The content of the original message changes as it advances
from one person to another with the addition or deletion of words. Eventually, when the
message reaches the last person, it is observed, that amusingly the message has totally lost
its meaning. If the observations from this game were transformed into the organisational
set-up, it would be perceived that those messages are distorted when they are passed on
upwards or downwards.

Distortion of original message can be evaded by ensuring the passed on is not

fragmented and there are lesser people to pass the information further. Further efforts
could be made to ensure that there is direct communication within the departments. The
managing heads of the various departments could form a close link and disperse
information. Besides, distortions can he minimised with the usage of the electronic media
and e-mails.

LATERAL/HORIZONTAL COMMUNICATION

Interaction with peers or colleagues is called lateral/horizontal communication. This

could prove to be the most effectual form of communication, as peers are not stalled by the
‘chain-of-command’ methods. The volume of horizontal communication that a company
benefits from would be subject to the interdependence of various departments. In fact, if
the work is conducted by considering operations of various departments, communication is
improved and more inclusive. Without lateral communication, there cannot be productive
development at the organisational level. In similar situations, there would be lack of
coordination, cooperation and numerous forced attempts would be carried out to
amalgamate activities of various departments. Further, it could also cause repetition of work
and poor employee relationships.

DIAGONAL COMMUNICATION

In an organisation, communication does not necessarily move across a specific path.

Vertical and lateral forms or informal and diagonal forms of transferring messages are vital.
As shown in figure 1.9, in diagonal communication, there is no direct path planned for
transmission of information. At certain stages, it could take on the upward trend, then a
lateral direction and, finally, move downward or even skip a few stages.

This channel is considered extremely effective as hierarchical bindings are removed

Managerial Skill Development 27

and there is a free flow of communication, irrespective of position or status. Furthermore, it
facilitates in building relationships and bonding between the superior and the subordinate.
In fact, in many Western countries, managers are trained to harmonise with the employees;
it works to eradicate fear of status and position. Nonetheless, this channel could lead to
gossip, grapevine and rumours. Since nobody is directly accountable for the flow of
information, nobody is prepared to assume responsibility. Only a sensible manager can filter
through the information, in the midst of rumours and gossip, note the aim of the sender and
finally reach a definite conclusion.

This channel could, nevertheless turn a little challenging for managers who aspire to
control flow of information. They might feel vulnerable that their controlling authority is
under observation. However, this is a temporary phase and with continuous and mature
communication, it can be straightened out.

Fig. 1.9: Diagonal Communication

EXTERNAL COMMUNICATION

Communication is an ongoing process. It not only occurs with people both within and
outside the organisation. If a company plans to exist in a competitive environment, it has to
implement the latter form of communication also. The image of the company is reliant on
external communication. External communication can take on a number of forms:

• Advertising

• Media interaction

• Public relations

• Presentations

• Negotiations

• Mails

28 Managerial Skill Development

• Telegrams

• Letters

External communication could be oral or written. The first three forms of

communication mentioned above, i.e. advertising, media interaction and public relations are
mainly included within the field of corporate communications. Establishing good relations,
negotiating or conducting a deal, interacting with clients, issuing lenders, soliciting
proposals, sending letters are conducted in external communication. This is a complex job
since interaction varies between various people from myriad disciplines, with diverse
personalities and varied expectations. When communication is persevered with external
customers, nearly all skills required for proficient communication have to be brought to the
forefront in order to avoid any humiliation or drop in performance.

On certain occasions, in the course of internal level communications, individuals

could seem lackadaisical. The same laid-back behaviour would not be considered
appropriate in case of external communication. As employees are the face of the company,
they have to, take into account the image of the organisation and generate a positive
impression that has an enduring effect.

Study Notes

Assessment

1. What is vertical communication?

2. What is diagonal communication?

Managerial Skill Development 29

 Discussion

Discuss external communication.

1.8 Cross Cultural Communication

Cross-cultural communication is a field of study that scrutinizes how people from
varying cultural backgrounds communicate, in similar and different ways among themselves
and how they endeavour to communicate across cultures.

Cross-cultural communication tries to amalgamate such relatively unrelated areas as

cultural anthropology and established areas of communication. Its core is to ascertaining
and understanding how people from variant cultures communicate with each other. Its
charge is producing some guiding principles that would simplify communication for different
people with different background.

1.8.1 CULTURAL DIFFERENCES IN NONVERBAL BEHAVIOUR

Nonverbal Communication differs widely between cultures. Everyone acquires
meaning from both verbal and nonverbal messages, but some people in certain cultures rely
more on verbal communication than nonverbal communication. In contrast, people in other
cultures rely more on nonverbal communication than on verbal communication.

Edward Hall believed that cultures vary in the trust people place on nonverbal signals
or on verbal signals. He defined these extremes a “low-context culture” and “high-context
culture”. These categories, of course, describe broad cultural characteristics, not necessarily
individual behaviours.

• Low-context Culture refers to the dependency of people on direct verbal messages to

communicate. These people prefer explicitly stated information. Directness is considered
desirable.

• High-context Culture refers to the dependency of the people on indirect nonverbal

messages to communicate. Directness is often considered rude.

As shown in table 1.2, in low-context cultures, most transmitted information is

present in the message itself.

Alternatively, in high-context cultures, the interpretation is primarily determined by

the communicator’s nonverbal signals that imply shared social and cultural knowledge of the

30 Managerial Skill Development

context.

This distinction has important implication for communication in organisations.

Communication in low-context cultures is more cumbersome, while communication in high-
context cultures is rich in meaning.

Table 1.2: Views of Communication in High-Context and Low-Context Cultures

High-Context Culture Low-Context Culture

(Examples: Japan, United (Examples: Germany,
Arab Emirates) Canada, United States)
Preferred communication Indirectness, politeness, Directness, confrontation,
strategy ambiguity clarity
Reliance on words to Low High
communicate
Reliance on nonverbal signs High Low
to communicate
Importance of words Low High
Agreement made in writing Not binding Binding
Agreement made orally Binding Not binding
Attention to detail Low High
Source: David A. Victor, ‘ International Business Communication’.
Table 1.3 indicates the various motivational factors and how they are perceived in
different cultures. These motivational factors fall under the nonverbal communication. On
the other hand, oral communication requires cultural understanding.
Table 1.3: Cultural Contrasts in Motivation

United States Japan Arab Countries

Emotional Appeal Opportunity Group Participation; Religion;

Company success Nationalism;
Admiration

Recognition based Individual Group Achievement Individual Status;

on Achievement Status of
class/society

Material Rewards Salary, Bonus, Profit Annual Bonus; Gifts for self/family;
sharing Social Service, Salary
Fringe Benefits

Threats Loss of job Loss of Group Demotion; Loss of

Membership Reputation

Managerial Skill Development 31

Values Competition, Risk Group harmony; Reputation; Family
taking, Freedom Belonging security; Religion

Source: Farid Elashmawi & Philip R. Harris, Multicultural Management 2000: Essential
Cultural Insights for Global Business Success.

Table 1.4 and 1.5 depict purpose and information exchanged in business
introductions differs across cultures.

Table 1.4: Cultural Contrasts in Business Introductions

United States Japan Arab Countries

Purpose of Establish status and Establish position in Establish personal

Introduction job identity; group, build rapport
Network harmony

Image of individual Independent Member of group Part of rich culture

Information Related to business Related to company Personal

Use of language Informal, friendly; Little talking Formal; Expression

use first name of admiration

Values Openness, Harmony; respect, Religious harmony,

directness, action listening hospitality,
emotional support

Source: Farid Elashmawi & Philip R. Harris, Multicultural Management 2000: Essential
Cultural Insights for Global Business Success.

Table 1.5: Cultural Contrasts in Written Persuasive Documents

United States Japan Arab Countries

Opening Request action or Offer thanks; Offer personal

get reader’s apologise greetings
attention

Way to persuade Immediate gain or Waiting Personal

loss of opportunity connection; future
opportunity

Style Short sentences Modesty; minimise Elaborate

32 Managerial Skill Development

 own standing expressions; many
signatures

Closing Specific request Desire to maintain Future relationship;

harmony personal greetings

Values Efficiency; Politeness, Status; continuation

directness; action indirectness,
relationship

Source: Farid Elashmawi & Philip R. Harris, Multicultural Management 2000: Essential
Cultural Insights for Global Business Success.
In written communication directed to international audience, resort to titles and not
first names as the Americans do. In context to writing for most cultures, buffer negative
messages and make requests more indirect. The above table depicts the need for modifying
style, structure and strategy when you write for international audiences. Watch out for
phrases that could seem arrogant or uncaring. Cultural mistakes made orally float away on
the air; those made in writing are permanently recorded.

The following examples of nonverbal behaviour in the Arab world, Latin America and
China divulge some of the cultural errors that a less-than-sensitive American organisation
member could easily commit.

A. THE ARABS

Arabs are highly expressive in their body language. They talk with their hands and
with profuse facial expressions. Raising the eyebrows and clicking the tongue signifies a
negative response, while a sideways nod of the head conveys a positive one. When talking,
Arabs stand much closer together and look more at one another, each focusing their gaze on
the other’s face and eyes much more than persons from ‘low contact’ cultures such as North
America and northern Europe. Arabs touch much more than Westerners do. They gently rap
the other-person or rest a hand on the other’s knee during conversation. Kissing on the
cheeks is the common way for men to greet each other and male friends often hold hands
when walking together. The right hand is for public matters and the left hand, considered
the ‘toilet hand,’ is to be kept private. Thus, nothing should be accepted from or given to
anybody with the left hand and, as the American businessman failed to recognize, one
should not eat with the left hand. Arabs usually do not make business decisions through
correspondence or by telephone. A personal meeting is a prerequisite for reaching
agreements.

Managerial Skill Development 33

 Greetings and leave-takings are highly ritualised. Refreshments are served and gifts
and business cards are exchanged. Foreigners should be careful to present their business
cards, printed in both Arabic and English, with the Arabic side face up. Westerners should
accept offers of hospitality to visit an Arab’s home and the invitation must be returned. No
alcohol should be offered to Arab guests or consumed in their presence.

Being on time for appointments is unusual in the Arab world. When Arabs schedule
time, they will typically say, ‘Insha Allah,’ ‘if Allah wills,’ indicating that time is in Allah’s
hands, not their own. In addition, they continually and freely move timeframes forward and
backward- a practice that may appal North Americans, who cannot change the planned time
for an activity more than couple of times without violating a cultural norm.

B. LATIN AMERICA

Like Arabs, Latin Americans have a much greater tolerance for close interaction,
including touch, than North Americans do. Traditional Latin Americans cannot talk
comfortably unless they are so near that a North American would almost surely back away.
Thus, it is easy for Latin Americans to perceive North Americans or Europeans as distant or
unfriendly. Facial expressions mean essentially the same things to Latin Americans as to
North Americans, but, like Arabs, Latin Americans focus their gaze intently on the eyes and
face of their conversational partner. Formality is expected in introductions: each individual
should receive a handshake as well as a slight bow. A casual greeting or leave-taking
addressed to a group (“Hi, everybody” or “See you all tomorrow”) would be considered
arrogant and discourteous. Conservative dress and calling cards in the local language are
appropriate for business.

Latin Americans think of and handle time very differently than North Americans do.
Latin Americans who are sensitive to this often use the expression, "Hora Americana, horct
mejicana?" (Our time or your time?) Hall describes a Latin American businessman who was
careful to 'make allowances' for his visiting North American business associates. Eventually,
the visitors spent approximately an hour in his office, rather than all day because traditional
Latin American pace of conducting business is traditionally slow. The 'mariana' (it can wait
until tomorrow) concept governs. The future is considered imprecise. Assurances are made
to ensure things are ready at the stipulated time, but they are usually not kept. Latin
Americans tend to feel that chance reins their destiny and outside forces are in direct
command over one’s life.

The anarchism attitude is cultural characteristic that Latin Americans manifested

through their nonverbal behaviour. A man is expected to demonstrate forcefulness, self-

34 Managerial Skill Development

confidence, visible courage and leadership with a flourish. Traditional Latin culture is
authoritarian. Signs in a person’s demeanour and tone of voice denote grades of superiority
or inferiority. The owner-manager (caudillo), for example, behaves as master in his own
domain, based on the supposition that his subordinates want a strongman who would
command. However, the caudillo himself be startled jump when someone superior arrives.

C. THE CHINESE

Generally, Chinese do not like to be touched or even to shake hands. Business

greetings, a slight bow and very brief handshake are considered apposite. Speaking distance
between two people in a non-intimate relationship is greater than it is in the West. The
Chinese are more retiring and shy than North Americans. Thus, Western businesspeople
should avoid loud, boisterous or aggressive behaviour when dealing with the Chinese.

In business interactions, one should not focus on an individual Chinese person, but
rather on the group, which is striving towards a common goal. Chinese are embarrassed are
being singled out. Being faced directly while seated on the opposite side of a desk may
alienate a Chinese, who considers this like being under assessment. To evade humiliation,
Chinese often favour negotiate through intermediaries.

Typically, dealings with Chinese are lengthy than Westerners arc accustomed to.
Perhaps because Chinese are wary of Western imperialism and supposed superiority,
Western businesspeople should be equipped to allocating long hours for building trust.
Visitors should behave in a non-condescending manner. Since establishing an attitude of
friendship is an essential foundation for business transactions, any one transaction might
require several visits to the PRC. Five sessions may be required to finalize negotiations that
might take one or two meetings among Westerners. Habitually Chinese consider first
meetings devoted to social conversation: pleasantries and serving tea. Businesspeople
visiting China should be prepared to spend hours waiting a great deal of time simply waiting:
in appointment may take days to obtain. However, their patience and persistence are to be
rewarded since these are the attributes that Chinese expect foreigners to demonstrate.
Chinese are punctual and expect others to arrive promptly for each meeting or even before
time. The Chinese host will indicate the appropriate time for the visitor to depart.

1.8.2 TIPS FOR COMMUNICATING WITH PEOPLE CROSS-CULTURALLY

You may never completely overcome linguistic and cultural barriers or totally erase
ethnocentric tendencies, but you can communicate effectively with people from other
cultures if you strive towards it. Here are some tips for handling intercultural business
communication more effectively (J.V. Thill & C.L. Bovee, Excellence in Business

Managerial Skill Development 35

Communication).

1. Learning about a culture

The finest way to of preparing yourself to do business with people from other
cultures is scrutinizing their culture beforehand. If you aim to conduct business on a
recurrent basis, it will be advisable to learn the language. Even if you undertake business
transactions in English, you show consideration by striving to learn the local language.
Concentrate on learning something about their history, religion, politics and customs, but do
not ignore the practical side of life. Seasoned business travellers suggest the following:

• In Spain, let a handshake last for five or seven strokes; pulling away instantly may be
misinterpreted as a sign of rejection. In France, however, the handshake is a single
stroke.

• Never gift liquor in Arab countries.

• In England, placing pens or other objects in the front suit pocket is considered
awkward or clumsy.

• In Africa, allow plenty of time to familiarise with the people you are dealing with.
Africans are distrustful of people who are in a hurry. If you concentrate solely on the
task, Africans will doubt you and shun doing business with you in future.

• In Arab countries, never decline food or drink as it is an insult to refuse hospitality of

any kind. However, ensure you are not too quick to accept. A ritual refusal [“I don’t
want to put you to any trouble” or “I don’t want to be a bother”] is expected before
you finally accept.

• Stress the longevity [age, span of life] of your company when dealing with the
Germans, Dutch and Swiss. If your company has been around for a while, the
founding date should be printed on your business cards.

2. Handling Written Communication

Intercultural business writing falls into the same general categories as other forms of
business writing. Unless you are personally fluent in the language of the intended readers,
all written communication should be in English or ensure it is translated by a professional
translator.

If both the reader and you speak different languages, be especially concerned with
achieving clarity:

a. Some tips for handling written communication :

36 Managerial Skill Development
 • Use short, precise words that say what they mean.

• Rely on specific terms to elucidating your points. Avoid abstractions altogether or

illustrate them with concrete examples.

• Stay away from slang, jargon and buzz words. Such words rarely translate well. Avoid
idioms and figurative expressions, abbreviations and acronyms. These may lead to
perplexity.

• Construct shorter and simpler sentences that are utilized while writing to someone
proficient in English.

• Use short paragraphs. Each paragraph should stand by one point or topic and
minimum eight to ten lines.

• Help readers follow your drift by using transitional devices. Precede related points
with expressions like in addition and first, second, third.

• Use numbers, visual aids and pre-printed forms to clarify your message. These
devices are generally comprehended in most cultures.

3. Handling Oral Communication

Oral communication with people from other cultures is more difficult to cope with
than written communication. Some transactions cannot be handled without face-to-face
communication. When engaging in verbal communication, be attentive about the
possibilities of confusions. Be conscious of the non-verbal messages that you may be
sending or receiving.

To overcome the language and cultural barriers, follow these suggestions:

• Keep an open mind. Do not stereotype the other person or react with preconceived
ideas. Regard the person as an individual first, not as a representative of another
culture.

• Be conscious of the other person’s customs. Anticipate him or her to follow different
values, beliefs, expectations and mannerisms.

• Try to be aware of unintentional meanings that may be read into your message.
Clarify your true intent by repetition and examples.

• Listen carefully and patiently. If you are unable to understand a comment, ask the
person to reiterate it.

• Be aware that the other person’s body language may mislead you. Gestures and

Managerial Skill Development 37

 expressions mean different things in different cultures. Rely more on words than on
nonverbal communication to interpret the message.

• Adapt your style according to that of the other person.. If the other person seems
direct and straightforward, follow suit. If not, alter your behaviour to match.

• At the end of the conversation, ensure both you and the other person agree on
common grounds what has been said and decided. Clarify decisions or activities next
in line.

• If appropriate, revert by writing a letter or memo summarizing the conversation and

thanking the person for meeting with you.

Study Notes

Assessment

1. Explain the cultural differences in nonverbal communication.

2. Explain the nonverbal behaviour in the Arab world.

Discussion

Discuss the way of communicating with people cross-culturally.

38 Managerial Skill Development

1.9 Summary
Meaning and Definition of Communication: Communication is a process, which
involves organising, selecting and transmission of symbols in such a way as to help the
listener perceive and recreate in his own mind the meaning contained in the mind of the
communicator. Communication involves the creation of meaning in the listener, the transfer
of information and thousands of potential stimuli. Communication enables us to do
important things, to grow, to learn to be aware of ourselves and to accommodate to our
environment. Communication is a two way process between two parties- the sender and the
receiver. It involves an exchange and progression of thoughts, ideas, knowledge and
information towards a mutually accepted goal or direction.

Importance of Communication: Communication is an important aspect of

management. Its importance cannot be overlooked. The main cause of misunderstanding is
dearth of effective communication. In an inter-dependent company, the importance of
communication in management cannot be overemphasized. Its importance has been widely
recognized in recent years. Group activities in the case of common goals cannot be
accomplished without communication. The entire organisation control, coordination and
motivation cannot be discharged without communication. Reasons behind significance:

• Coordination

• Smooth Working

• Effective Decision-Making

• Managerial Efficiency

• Co-operation

• Effective Leadership

• Job Satisfaction

• Increase Productivity

• Morale Building

• Achieving Managerial Role

Nature of Communication: The nature of communication can be explained by the

following characteristics of communication:

• Two-way process

Managerial Skill Development 39

• Knowledge of language

• Meeting of minds necessary

• The message must have substance

• Communication may be made through gestures as well

• Communication is all-pervasive

• Communication is a continuous process

• Communication may be formal or informal

Principles of Communication: Whether one is speaking informally to a colleague,

addressing a conference or meeting, writing a newsletter article or formal report, the
following basic principles should be considered:

• Be direct and concise

• Be honest and genuine

• Be present and open

• Be confident but measured

Process of Communication: The main components of communication process are as

follows:

• Context

• Sender / Encoder

• Message

• Medium

• Recipient / Decoder

• Feedback

1.10 Self Assessment Test

Broad Questions

1. What do you mean by Communication? Explain in detail meaning, definition and nature
of Communication.

2. What are the principles of good and effective Communication? What are components of
Communication Process?

40 Managerial Skill Development

3. What is Communication Network? Explain the role and importance of Communication in
an organisation.

Short Notes

a. Significance and Objective of Communication

b. Theories of Communication

c. Cross Cultural Communication

d. Views of Communication in High-Context and Low-Context Cultures

e. Nonverbal behaviour in the Arab world, Latin America and China

1.11 Further Reading

1. Business Communication from Process to Product, Bowman Joel P and Branchaw
Bemadine, Dryden Press, 1987

2. Business Communications: Principles and Applications, Pearce C. Glenn etc. Ed. 2, 1988

3. Communicating in Business, Hatch Richard, Science Research Associates, 1977

4. Effective Business Communications, Murphy Herta A. and Peck Charries E. Ed. 2, Tata
McGraw Hill 1976

5. Successful Business Communication, Treece Maira, Ed. 3,. Allyn and Bacon, 1987

Managerial Skill Development 41

Assignment
Consider that you are an entrepreneur starting a new business. Define your business,
product, marketing strategy, finance etc and make a presentation.
___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

42 Managerial Skill Development

Case Study
Read the below case study carefully.

Case Study: The Logistic Company

Most courier and cargo companies send their total consignments (load in their
language) to a particular station, with prior intimation by way of E-mail (pre-alert message
in their language). ABC Logistics was no exception to this procedure. Before they send their
load by evening flight to Mumbai, they send a pre-alert to the Mumbai office that gives
details of the load like flight number, total number of bags, total weight of the bags etc.
Night-duty Airport Executive at Mumbai airport retrieves the load and confirms the receipt
of the same to the Bangalore office.

This arrangement worked fine for months and even years. The Airport Executive
continued to get the pre-alert message and after retrieval of the load, he continued to
confirm the receipt of the same..

However, one night Satish who was on night-duty at Mumbai airport observed that
neither had any pre-alert been received from Bangalore nor had any load been delivered.
Contacting the Bangalore office had been of no avail since it was well past midnight and the
office was shut. Satish was told by the security guard on duty that the staff at the Bangalore
office had already left. Satish tried contacting Ravi who he knew worked at night. However,
this attempt was futile as Ravi's mobile was switched off.

Satish had no other option except to call the Assistant Manager, Operations,
Bangalore - Charles. Charles tried contacting Ravi but like Satish he found that Ravi's mobile
was switched off.

The situation was perplexing. Charles was concerned about what had happened. He
tried calling other operations' staff to find out whether anybody knew where Ravi resided.
However, he was unable to procure any information about Ravi's residence. Charles was
disappointed. Although he had disturbed a couple of staff members in the dead of the night,
he did not make any headway. Charles was faced with a dilemma. He wondered whether he
should defer the matter till the morning or settle it right away. After a little deliberation, he
chose the latter.

As a last resort, Charles called Hari, the HR Executive. Charles explained the situation
to him and told him to go to the office and find out Ravi's address from his personal
documents. It was 01:30 in the morning and Hari was appalled by the fact that he was being
disturbed at this hour of the night. Nevertheless, Hari went to the office, confirmed Ravi's
address and forwarded it to Charles.
Managerial Skill Development 43
 Charles had no option but to commute 15 km to reach Ravi's residence. He reached
Ravi’s home at 02:15 hours. Ravi found it strange that his manager was visiting him well past
midnight. On being questioned as to why he had not sent the pre alert message he said,
"Very simple, today there was excess booking by other logistic companies and there was no
space, so cargo officials of all the airlines refused to accept our load. Since no load was
connected, I did not send pre-alert as well. However, I have done booking for morning flight
and load will be connected through morning flight”.

Charles was infuriated by his answer. Ravi's lack of communication had

inconvenienced many people.

After going through the above situation, can you identify the communication issues
involved in it? What exactly went wrong and where did it go wrong? Who could have
avoided or saved the situation and how?

44 Managerial Skill Development

Unit 2 Communication Skills

Learning Outcome

After reading this unit, you will able to:

• Outline basics of effective communication

• Recall keys and guidelines for effective communication

• Identify essentials for business writing

• Point out blunders which can be avoided while writing for business

• Use tips for effective business writings

• Outline various kinds of communication

Time Required to Complete the unit

1. 1st Reading: It will need 3 Hrs for reading a unit

2. 2nd Reading with understanding: It will need 4 Hrs for reading and understanding a
unit
3. Self Assessment: It will need 3 Hrs for reading and understanding a unit
4. Assignment: It will need 2 Hrs for completing an assignment
5. Revision and Further Reading: It is a continuous process

Content Map

2.1 Introduction

2.2 Barriers to Effective Communication

2.2.1 Physical Barriers

2.2.2 Psychological Barriers

2.2.3 Linguistic and Cultural Barriers

Managerial Skill Development 45

 2.2.4 Mechanical Barriers

2.3 Gateways of Effective Communication

2.3.1 Guidelines for Effective Communication

2.3.2 7 C's and 4 S's

2.3.3 Keys to more Effective Communication

2.4 Do's and Don'ts of Business Writing

2.4.1 Essentials of Business Writing

2.4.2 Must Avoid Sentence Blunders for Business Writings

2.4.3 Tips for Effective Business writing

2.5 Types of Communication

2.5.1 Oral V/s Written Communication

2.5.2 Link between Non-Verbal Messages and Verbal Messages

2.6 Summary

2.7 Self Assessment Test

2.8 Further Reading

46 Managerial Skill Development

2.1 Introduction
Effective communication is indispensible for any organisation. In the absence of
effective communication, a message can be interpreted erroneously or it can breed
misunderstandings. Ineffective communication skills have been known to make or break
relationships. Miscommunication in a business can mushroom disastrous consequences as
the reputation of the business, forecasts and other important goals are at stake. It thereby
becomes imperative to lay emphasis on training in effective communication in order to keep
failure at bay.

Communication skills need to be honed and developed continuously. The success of

sort of relationship, whether it is a business relation or personal relation is contingent upon
on oral communication.

Take for example the instance of an English speaking tourist in a foreign country. If
the tourist carries out conversations only in English in a non English speaking country,
he/she will fail to communicate effectively. Similarly communication skills need to constantly
kept at par with the changing environment and need to be worked upon on a continuous
basis.

2.2 Barriers to Effective Communication

Effective communication can face multiple barriers.

In business communication, obstacles occur because of organisational barriers. The

obstacles could be:

• Size of organisation

• Physical distance between employees

• Specialisation of jobs, activities

• Power struggles, status of relationships

• Defensiveness, distorted perceptions, guilt, distortions from past

• Misleading body language, tone or other non-verbal communication

• Interpersonal relationships (individual or groups)

• Prejudices

• The channels used to communicate

Managerial Skill Development 47

 2.2.1 PHYSICAL BARRIERS
There are four kinds of physical barriers.

• Competing stimulus: Another conversation (within hearing distance), loud music, traffic
noise (in the background), crows cawing, plane overhead - can drown message.

• Environmental stress: High temperature plus humidity, poor ventilation, vibrations felt,
strong glare can contribute to distractions (in sending and receiving messages).

• Subjective stress: Sleeplessness, ill health, effects of drugs, mood variations give rise to
stress, leading to difficulty in listening and interpretation

• Ignorance of medium: The various media for communication are oral, written, audio,
visual, audio-visual. Use of a medium, which the communicator is not familiar with could
turn the medium itself into barrier (e.g. maps, charts used to instruct workers who have
not been taught to read maps will alienate workers immediately).

2.2.2 PSYCHOLOGICAL BARRIERS

Each person has a ‘frame of reference’, a kind of window to view the world, people,
events and situations. A ‘frame of reference’ is a system of standards and values, usually
implicit, underlying and to some extent controlling an action or the expression of any belief,
attitude or idea. No two people will have same ‘frame of reference’. Our ‘frame of
reference’ is fashioned by our expressions, childhood experiences, cultural environment and
heredity.

With the passage of time, we develop diverse frames of references to meet our
myriad needs - our own and that of the group we identify with. This is the reference group
whose attitudes, religion, politics, education etc. we espouse as our own (without being fully
aware that we are doing so).

• Self Image: Enmeshed in the ‘frame of reference’ is the self-image or self- concept of a
person. Owing to this self-image people establish their point of view, and interpret
messages in accordance with their self concepts. They interpret 'reality' in the light of
these pre-conceived notions. As a part of this system, people tend to listen and interpret
favourably towards those messages, which give a further their self-image and reject
those messages, which threaten that image.

• Resistance to change: “The risk of being changed is one of the most frightening
prospects many of us can face”(On Becoming a Person by Carl Rogers,
www.listeningway.com). It is a human tendency to resist change and new ideas.

48 Managerial Skill Development

 However, the effective communicator does not wait for resistance to accumulate but
takes people into confidence, even at planning stage, lends a ear to their point of view,
involves them in change, converses about benefits, assures them security will not be
affected and explains why change is necessary.

• Defensiveness and fear: This is strongly allied to the barrier raised by a ‘resistance to
change’. One of man’s most compelling needs is to justify himself. “Fear is an effect of
great potency in determining what the individual will perceive, think and do”, said Izard
and Tomkins. Together with connected emotions of nervousness, anxiety and tension,
fear is the most restricting of all effects, resulting often in 'tunnel vision'. It also gives
slow, narrow thinking, which selects and distorts communication. Appropriate examples
of this are interviews and exams. Some psychologists propose that a little anxiety is
good; it heightens attention, improves performance, releases certain hormones and
facilitates learning by a greater nerve messages to brain. In other words, fear and anxiety
can be turned into a source of energy and confidence.

2.2.3 LINGUISTIC AND CULTURAL BARRIERS

Language is an expression of thoughts/expression of people in terms of cultural
environment. When same language is used in different cultures, it takes another colour.
Language can be appropriated to suit varied situations e.g. financial terms, medical terms,
psychological terms etc. Language facilitates understanding, but it can also prove to be a
barrier to communication. A language, whether verbal or non-verbal, is ambiguous in
nature. Words are mere symbols. Symbols are comprehended differently by participants in
communication. Cultural differences have an impact on language and meanings.

Cultures provide people with ways of thinking, ways of seeing, hearing, and
interpreting the world. Thus, the same words can possess myriad meanings for who speak
the same language, but are native to different cultures. When languages are distinct,
communication is carried out through translation, which increases the probability of
misunderstandings.

2.2.4 MECHANICAL BARRIERS

Mechanical barriers are those raised by channels employed for interpersonal or mass
communication. Channels become barriers when the message is impeded by disturbances.
In such a case, it a)increases the difficulty in reception or b)prevents some elements of the
message reaching its destination or both.

Absence of communication facilities can also be mechanical barrier. Technically such

barriers are clubbed as 'channel noise'. These include any disturbance, which interferes with
Managerial Skill Development 49
the fidelity of physical transmission of a message. Some examples of mechanical barriers are
static on radio, smeared ink on newspaper, a rolling screen on TV, a barely readable point
size or a film projector, video/DVD that does not function properly.

Barriers or channel noise can be associated with cultural or social issues, language,
customs, beliefs, motives, aspirations, assumptions across geographic lines or simply
illiteracy.

A large number of sources of ‘noise’ or interference can infiltrate the channel of

communication. This may occur when people are not very familiar with each other and they
do not understand the sources of error. This kind of interference is frequent in a work
setting where the people have not known each other very long. This may lead to conflicting
relationship, which can make the process of communication even more complex.

There can be many sources of 'noise' at a workplace and some of them are as
follows:

• Language: Language is symbolic representation of a phenomenon. There is always

prospect for interpretation so the meaning can be construed in several ways and even
distorted at times. The choice of words or language deeply impinges on the quality of
communication. Moreover, the same message or the same words can have many
implications since they can be interpreted variously by different people. Several factors
affect how an individual attributes meaning to particular words. Some of these factors
can be defensiveness, distorted perceptions, guilt, project, transference, distortions from
the past, misreading of body language, tone and other non-verbal forms of
communication. Other factors can be noisy transmission (unreadable messages,
inconsistency), receiver distortion, ignoring non-verbal cues, selective hearing, self-
fulfilling assumptions and power struggles. People's perception of situations is also
distinct from that of each other's.

• Perpetual Biases: People react to stimuli in very different ways. All of us construe
shortcuts that we employ to organise data. These shortcuts introduce some or the other
biases into the channel of communication. Some of these can be stereotyping, projection
and self-fulfilling prophecies. Stereotyping comes into play when we assume that a
person participating or belonging to a certain group will display those characteristics that
are inherent to the group as a whole. Stereotyping occurs when these group
characteristics are attributed to the person without validating the individual
independently to find out whether he/she actually exhibits those characteristics or not.

50 Managerial Skill Development

• Impersonal relationships: Our perception is prejudiced by the past experience with the
individual and the organisational relationship two people have which in turn affects our
communication. E.g. Communication from a superior may be perceived differently than
that from a subordinate or peer.

• Cultural differences: Effective communication requires deciphering the basic motives,

values, assumptions and aspirations that operate across geographical lines. Since, there
is a dramatic difference in the approaches to time, space and privacy in a cross-cultural
situation; the opportunities for miscommunication are abundant.

Study Notes

Assessment

1. What types of obstacles does business communication face in an organization?

2. Explain the linguistic and cultural barriers to communication.

Discussion

Discuss the mechanical barriers to communication.

Managerial Skill Development 51

2.3 Gateways of Effective Communication
Over 70% of our time is spent in communicating with others and that interaction is
compulsory. Everyone must communicate his or her needs and ideas. In case of an
organisation, it is important for the organisation to communicate regarding its products and
services.

Unfortunately, many people have trouble in this area. Remember, you must have the
professional impact that is needed to get ahead in the corporate world today.

Communication is important as people judge us, our companies, our products, our
services and our professionalism by the way we write, act, dress, talk and manage our
responsibilities, in short, how well we communicate with others.

Successful people know how to communicate effectively. They know how to

communicate their ideas without hurting the sentiments or ego of the people they are
dealing with. An appropriate communication style behoves a person dealing with peers,
external groups, customers, employees and managers.

2.3.1 GUIDELINES FOR EFFECTIVE COMMUNICATION

Communication guidelines are vital for horizontal integration of the communication
process. These guidelines may incorporate work procedures, which have been agreed upon,
design regulations regarding logotypes and colours. Most companies have ‘house style’
books that comprise such regulations and express the core values of the corporate identity.
It should be noted that corporate communication and management of stakeholders are
affected by other functions as well. Therefore, horizontal arrangements are required to be in
place for the coordination of work process between communication experts e.g. finance and
human resource. This might be in the form of a meeting between the senior managers of
communications, human resource and finance. Work teams can be assigned to the
management functions, which show more interdependencies and require horizontal
arrangements.

2.3.2 7 C'S AND 4 S'S

In any business environment, adherence to the 7C’s and 4S’s helps the sender in
transmitting his message with ease and accuracy.

The 7C’s are as follows:

1. Conciseness: The message to be communicated should be as brief and concise as

possible. Only simple and brief statements should be made.
52 Managerial Skill Development
2. Concreteness: Concrete and specified expressions should be used in favour of vague and
abstract expressions. The facts should also be specified. The level of message of the
sender should be according to the receiver’s level of knowledge, understanding and
educational background. Such communication builds confidence between sender and
receiver.

Abstract statements can confuse the sender. For instance, if the sender instead of
saying: “There has been a tremendous escalation in the sales figure”, states “There has been
an escalation in the sales figures by almost 50% as compared to last year”, the receiver
would listen and comprehend the details more easily.

The message to be communicated should be as brief. Ornamental language definitely

sounds impressive but does not lead people to concrete action. As far as possible, the
language used should be simple and brief in nature.

3. Consistency: Communication approach must have consistency. Excessive vicissitudes

might lead to confusion in the mind of the receiver. All the ideas and points must work in
tandem and form an appropriate sequence. Such communication will minimise
communication barriers.

The sender should also make firm decisions. If the sender desires to bring about a
change in his handling of the situation, he should ensure that the handling is gradual and
easy for the receiver to comprehend.

4. Correctness: It is mandatory to send the message in a correct manner i.e. it must have
supporting facts, figures, examples etc. This is done to ensure that if any idea has
remained unclear to the receiver he may understand it more clearly, correctly and
appropriately based on the supply of facts etc. The sender's ideas must be balanced. The
most important aspects of the message should be emphasised for increased attention of
the receiver.

5. Clarity: Clarity of thought should precede a conversation. The message constructed by

the sender should be unambiguous should adhere to a simple sentence structure. This
permits the receiver to understand the message with little effort.

Complete clarity of ideas facilitates ease of comprehension. Ideas should be

conveyed in a manner that they are understood with simplicity. At the time of encoding, the
sender should take into account the level of knowledge, background and status of the
decoder and encode the message accordingly. In case there is any discrepancy between the
usages of terms, miscommunication can arise. The facts communicated by the sender as a
back up should be accurate. Although a situation may arise when the listener is forced to
Managerial Skill Development 53
refer to the facts, such a situation should be avoided as far as possible. Finally, the usage of
terms should be non discriminatory.

6. Credibility: The above-mentioned points prove futile in the absence of the credibility
factor because credibility depends on the trust factor between the sender and receiver.
The sender should exude confidence that the receiver will receive the message being
sent by him. Similarly, the receiver should maintain constant interaction with the sender
and display trust in the sender's credibility. He should accept the sender's messages as
the truth.

7. Courtesy: Courtesy follows credibility. Results beyond expectation can be achieved if

tact, diplomacy and appreciation of people are woven in the message. Courtesy in
expression is an effective and integral part of business world.

Once the credibility of the sender has been established, attempts should be made at
being courteous in expression. In the business world, being courteous can pave the way to
success.

Further, expressions that might hurt or impair the receiver psychologically should be
ignored. Therefore, it is important to espouse the 'you' attitude and discard the 'I' attitude.
Development of the 'you' point of view will enable the individual to see other's point of view
as well.

One should employ the 'you' attitude only for the pleasant or positive 'you-issues'
and it should not be used as a corrective measure. If utilised as a corrective measure, the
results might not be very positive or encouraging.

The 4S’s are as follows:

The 4S’s are as important as 7C’s. They also increase the possibility of effective
communication.

1. Sincerity: Sincerity increases the level of trust between sender and receiver. The receiver
also expects sincerity from the sender. If there is a slight sense of insincerity in the
message and if the observer is keen about the message then it may affect the
communication process.

2. Strength: The strength of the message depends upon the credibility of the sender. If the
sender himself believes in the message then there is strength and conviction in whatever
he states.

Half hearted statements or utterances that the sender does not believe in pepper the

54 Managerial Skill Development

 process of communication with falsehood.

3. Simplicity: Simplicity of language is a pivotal factor is communication. Lucidity of ideas,

simple words give rise to an unequivocal message.

4. Shortness: The message must be precise and concise. Brief messages are transmitted
and comprehended more clearly, more effortlessly and are more effective and
economical.

‘Brevity is the soul of wit'. The same holds true for communication. If the message
can be trimmed down and redundant verbosity eradicated then it fastens the process of
transmission and comprehension. Many people harbour a misconception that they can
actually make an impression on the receiver with wordy and lengthy messages. Little do
they realise that in adopting that approach they actually end up slowing down the process of
comprehension. The major chunk of receiver's time is spent is just trying to decipher the
meaning of the message due to this approach.

2.3.3 KEYS TO MORE EFFECTIVE COMMUNICATION

Communication can be deemed a science as well a feeling. For instance, the chill in
the wind, the smell of fresh flowers, the taste of hot chocolate, the sound of the background
music of a horror movie– all elicit actions or reactions. These actions or reactions do not
engage words, yet these are all examples of effective communication.

Communication is not bereft of risks. Success cannot be assured despite whatever

Managerial Skill Development 55

plans we make and precautions we take. It has been seen that the meaning as intended by
the sender is not understood by the receiver. The reason for this apparent discrepancy is
that the message is what we hear and not what is said. However, in such a scenario a
predetermined system or method to follow can condense the risk and at the same time
improve the chances of being effective.

Communication can exist if the exchange of ideas, values, beliefs, feelings is two way.
Clarification of signals is also an chief part of communication.

• Adjust the climate

Two factors should be taken into consideration while communicating. Firstly, all
communications focuses on delivery of some content in the form of news, gossip, ideas,
reports, evaluations, instructions etc. Secondly, all communication is irrevocably linked to
what is known as the ‘communication climate’. This is the atmosphere or feeling, which
accompanies what you say.

Just as weather conditions mould our mood, the communication climate also shapes
us. When the communication climate is positive, communication, problem solving, decision-
making, expression of thoughts and feelings becomes facile. In short, it constructs an
environment where working and dealing with people is more pleasant and productive. We
have all been to restaurants, stores, offices, malls and homes where we feel comfortable;
we have also been to places where we feel negative, where we feel uncomfortable, uneasy
and less open. We do not normally enjoy communicating or doing business in a negative
climate.

• Choose your channel

A communication channel is the medium through which information transfers form

sender to receiver; examples are lectures, written messages, telephone conversations, face-
to-face dialogue and group meetings.

It is essential to choose the channel of communication vigilantly because eventually

it has a great impact on the quality of communication and thereby on the degree to which
the receiver will respond to it. Therefore, only a channel that will be most effective in
accomplishing your purpose should be chosen.

Written communication should be used when communicating facts or information,

such as engineering, legal or financial data, since communication breakdowns often result
when complex material is presented orally. When you have to communicate with a large
chunk of people and have to transmit a large amount of data or need to keep a record of the

56 Managerial Skill Development

communication, written communication is the best channel.

Telephonic conversation is an apt method when you have to communicate simple

facts to a few people. A telephonic conversation has more impact as compared to the
written communication and it emanates a sense of urgency but not as much as a meeting.

Face-to-face communication has more urgency than meetings and also has the
advantage of speed, allows considerable two-way communication to take place and usually
elicits a quick response. It appropriate to keep the communication face to face especially
when the interaction is personal for instance while praising, counselling or taking disciplinary
action.

If the interaction has to be verbal among the members of a group then meeting is an
appropriate option to communicate. Studies have revealed that supervisors and managers
spend more than half of their potential productive time in meetings, discussions and
conferences.

• Eliminate Static

Elimination of communication 'static' or barriers is another helpful skill. If there is too

much of static or noise, there is a garbled message. The problem is that each of us has
different barriers and we are unaware of what kind of noise the other person is hearing.
Sometimes we guess right and sometimes we guess wrong. Our natural tendencies to judge,
evaluate, approve or disapprove the other person's statements also form a major barrier to
communication.

• Tune in

Another way to ensure effective communication is to 'tune in' to the other person
and find out how they process and store the information they receive. The studies of Neuro
Linguistic Programming (NLP) have proven that there are three sensory process types: visual,
auditory and kinesthetic.

Some people are visually oriented. They remember and imagine things by what they
look like. They store pictures. Some people have a strong auditory memory. They recall
sounds and make associations with them. Some people have kinesthetic memory. They
recall sensations of touch.

How do we discover a someone's processing system? The answer is by paying heed

to their speech patterns. People evince patterns of their processing systems through their
speech or their behaviour the way. People say, “Do you see that? Do you get the picture?”
(visually oriented view) or “Here’s what is sounds to me. Do you hear what I mean?
Managerial Skill Development 57
(auditory oriented) or “Here’s what it feels like. Do you grasp what I’m saying?” (Kinesthetic
oriented).

• Know your non-verbals

Body movements, eye contact, posture and clothing are also very important
elements. In fact, studies prove that 93% of your message is non-verbal and symbolic.
Employees learn to cue on the boss’s moods, spouses learn to react in each other’s
movements and children instinctively watch for signs from their parents.

Studies have also shown us that our words say something and our body language
may say something else. Hence, you need to be continually aware of the picture you present
before others. Is it assertive and approachable? Conversely, is it unfriendly and uncaring? Do
your clothes and posture reflect a person of high quality or one of sloppy habits?

Albert Mehrabian widely acknowledged for his publications on the relative importance of
verbal and nonverbal messages. His findings on inconsistent messages of feelings and
attitudes have been quoted throughout human communication seminars worldwide, and
have become known as the 7%-38%-55% rule.

In his studies, Mehrabian comes to two conclusions. Firstly, that there are three elements in
any face-to-face communication:

• Words
• Tone of voice
• Nonverbal behaviour (e.g. facial expression)
Secondly, the non-verbal elements are particularly important for communicating
feelings and attitude, especially when they are incongruent. If words disagree with the tone
of voice and nonverbal behaviour, people tend to believe the tonality and nonverbal
behaviour.
It can be reiterated that non-verbal elements in all senses convey the bulk of the
message, even though this is how conclusions are frequently misinterpreted. For instance,
when delivering a lecture or presentation, the textual content of the lecture is delivered
entirely verbally, but the non-verbal cues are very important in conveying the speaker's
attitude towards what they are saying, notably their belief or conviction.

58 Managerial Skill Development

 Study Notes

Assessment

1. What is the importance of verbal and nonverbal messages according to Albert

Mehrabian?

2. Explain the importance of choosing the channel of communication.

Discussion

Discuss the 7c’s and 4s’s of communication.

2.4 Do's and Don'ts of Business Writing

2.4.1 ESSENTIALS OF BUSINESS WRITING

There are seven essential elements to successful written business communication:

• Structure

• Clarity

• Consistency

• Medium
Managerial Skill Development 59
• Relevancy

• Primacy

• Psychological Rule of 7±2

1. Structure

The structure of communication is fundamental to how easily it is absorbed and

understood by the audience. Every good communication should incorporate three structural
elements: an opening, a body and a close. This structural rule holds true no matter what
your communication- a memo, a phone call, a voice mail message, a personal presentation,
a speech, an email, a webpage or a multi-media presentation. Remember that your
communication's audience can be anywhere from just one person, a small team to an
auditorium full of people or a national, even global, group of millions. In this instance, size
does not matter; the rules remain the same.

Opening
An opening permits the audience to comprehend the meaning entailed in the
communication. Short, sharp and to the point, a good opening ensures that the audience
quickly reaches a decision of whether or not to pay attention to your message. Time is a
precious resource after all and the quicker you can 'get to the point' and the faster your
audience can make that 'disregard/pay attention' decision, the more positively they will
view you, which can be very important if you need or want to communicate with them in the
future.

Body
The body of the message is where the crux of the content lies. The body of the
message contains all of facts that would elicit a required response in the audience. Facts,
figures and any graphs or charts you might present should precise and to the point in the
body. Irrelevant material or charts with confusing, illegible numbers and colours should not
be included..The simpler the presentation, better the chances are that you will be
understood.

Close
The closing is where you sum up your communication, remind the audience of your
key points and leave them with a clear understanding of what is required of them. The more
powerfully the communication is ended, the more easily your audience will remember it.

60 Managerial Skill Development

A sample invitation letter containing the opening, body and close is given below:

December 1, 2008

Dear Alumni,

Pune university MBA department (PUMBA) will be having a Grand Alumni Homecoming on
December 7, 2010 at 2:00 pm at Manas Resort and Restaurant as the celebration of 30th
Foundation Anniversary of PUMBA.

In this regard, we are cordially inviting you to attend the said event to meet your old friends,
classmates, acquaintances and teachers, reminiscing memorable experiences and sharing
stories of success and most specially to renew our commitment to the noble ideals of our
beloved Alma Mater.

The registration charges are Rs 500 per person, which payable at the venue. These charges
include Alumni T-shirt, Alumni ID, Alumni souvenir, dinner, live band and raffle draws.

For further inquiries, please contact our Alumni Secretariat at (020) 237-2383 or text us at
09173445631.

We look forward to your presence in this once a year celebration.

Thank you very much.

Truly yours,

Anand Salunke
Dean

School of Management

2. Clarity

Ambiguous messages that give a mixed or confusing signals to your audience leads to
confusion and may even lead them to ignore the message. If you are giving a message about,
say, overtime payments, do not add in messages about detailed budget issues or the
upcoming staff picnic unless they absolutely fit in with your original message. It is far better
and clearer for your audience if separate communication regarding these ancillary issues is
carried out.

3. Consistency

Avoid contradicting yourself even after some time gap. Your audience usually
remembers what you said or commented on something earlier. Therefore, when you change
your ideas slightly or greatly, they are bound to be noticed. As a result, the audience loses
Managerial Skill Development 61
trust and may question your credibility. People who distrust you are very unlikely to take the
action you wish them to take. They are also highly unlikely to pay any attention to your
future messages.

4. Medium

It has been seen that people tend to use the medium they are most familiar and
comfortable with when they want to present or get across some message. However,
repetitive use of the same medium can tedious, monotonous and can be inconsistent with
the message and purpose at times. Therefore, choice of the medium of communication is an
important factor. Choose the medium that communicates your message:

• With the greatest accuracy

• With the largest likelihood of audience comprehension

• At the lowest fiscal cost

• At the lowest time cost

Note: It must meet all of these criteria. There is absolutely no value in spending the
least amount of money if the medium you choose does fulfill any of the other criteria.

Many media of communication are available. You have a choice from any one or
combination of the following:

Paper-based memo
Letter
One-to-one face-to-face presentation
Seminar
One-to-one phone presentation
Meeting
One-to-many personal presentation
Plain text email
One-to-many phone presentation
Text and graphics email
Voice email
Webpage
Webcast/web video
Radio broadcast
Television broadcast
Press release

62 Managerial Skill Development

TV/film commercial
CD-Rom/DVD

Choosing the right medium or media is obviously critical, as the fiscal costs of some
in the above list are high. An incorrect media mix may result in propelling time and money
that delivers next-to-zero ROI (return on investment).

5. Relevancy

If a person is not interested in the subject of the message, it is improbable that

he/she will pay any attention to it. If your business communication needs to touch on
several areas that might not be of interest to your entire audience, let them know of
alternative resources that more fully address each of these additional areas. You can do this
by, for example, providing them with an easily remembered and written link to a webpage
where a greater depth of information can be stored.

6. Primacy and Recency

It is essential to know that a receiver will retain memory of a business

communication for one or both of two things:

• The power and memorability of its opening

• The power and memorability of its close

Psychologists term the effect of remembering the first few items presented as a
'primacy effect'. Similarly, they call the effect of remembering the last few items presented
to you as a 'recency effect'.

Since individuals hold opposing views regarding which effect is the most dominant
for them, it is best to make an effort to have both a powerful and memorable opening and a
powerful close. A powerful opening can entail anything that captures the audience's
attention- a quote, a joke, a loud noise or a preposterous statement. Ensure that the
opening remains consistent with and relates to the subject of the communication.

Equally, a powerful close that bears no resemblance to the main body of the
communication would just confuse and disappoint an audience brought up to expect
something more. Humour will not save you because business communication is a serious
business and very few people have the skill to be able to deliver a humorous message that
the audience will retain and act on.

If you are determined to use humour in your presentation, then follow Toogood's
recommendation:

Managerial Skill Development 63

 "Tell the story as if it were true. The punch line is a lot funnier if we are not expecting
it. Tell the story to make a business point. If you do not make a point, you have no business
telling a joke. Make sure you tell the story correctly, do not mess up the punch line and
make sure it is appropriate".

The opening and closing of your business communication are the two most easily
remembered and therefore essential elements. Make sure you give your audience
something to remember.

7. The Psychological Rule of 7±2 (seven plus or minus two)

Psychologists have acknowledged that the human brain has a finite capacity to hold
information in short-term memory or 'working' memory. Equally, the brain is also structured
to retain information in 'clusters' or groups of items. These clusters or groups average,
across the whole of humankind, at seven items, plus or minus two, which means that your
audience is only able to hold on to between five and nine pieces of information at any one
time. Similarly, the audience will group a business communication message with four to
eight other messages in their long-term memory. Keeping this in mind, the clarity of
message and a distinctive and memorable opening and close becomes important.

If the key points are to be committed to memory even five minutes later, it is
essential that business communication should be limited to five to nine key points. Similarly,
if the key action points are to be remembered five weeks later, ensure that your
communication is amongst the five to nine most impressive messages the audience has
received in the last five weeks.

The human brain 'chunks' information together, therefore, a long document or

communication that you want to deliver, especially on paper should be structured such that
there exist:

• 7±2 chapters or sections

• 7±2 sub-sections in each section

If there are 10 or 11 sub-headings in a chapter or sub-sections in a section, see if two

or three sub-sections can be consolidated as create a new main section out of them.

2.4.2 MUST AVOID SENTENCE BLUNDERS FOR BUSINESS WRITINGS

Ten types of sentence blunders to refrain from are as follows:

• Run-On Sentences: These drag on and pack a paragraph's worth of details into a single
sentence. Short sentences are easier to understand than long ones; they provide

64 Managerial Skill Development

 information in bits and pieces instead of a deluge. In most business writing, aim for an
average sentence length of 20 or fewer words. This is an average; good writing contains
both long and short sentences to keep it interesting.

• Pompous Sentences: Many business writers use a phrase or a whole clause when a well-
chosen verb would be much clearer. They do so to appear more knowledgeable or
articulate than they actually are. Ornamentation or trite expressions should be kept at
way-keep your writing at the level of your reader.

• Overloaded Sentences: Such sentences are bloated with excess words. The passive voice
is a common culprit, adding unnecessarily to the word count. Redundancies are also to
blame. Verbose phrases can usually be replaced with one or two words, making
sentences concise and meaningful.

• Undue Enthusiasm: An occasional intensifier lends emphasis but using too many can
ruin writing and give the impression that sender of the message is not being genuine.

• Crowded-Together Sentences: Attempts at connecting a series of related sentences with

conjunctions such as 'and' instead of ending each with a period should be circumvented.
In many cases, these sentences can be improved and shortened by using only one
subject.

• Hedging Sentences: It is tempting to insert 'it seems that' or 'there appears to be' in your
sentences in order to evade stating a judgment as a fact. However, when you have too
many such hedges, particularly in the same sentence, you are not really saying anything.
More often than not, your reader will know the difference between a fact and an
inference.

• Slow Starters: Opening a sentence with 'it is' or 'there are' simply delays getting to your
point. Compare: 'It would be appreciated if you could send the files immediately' and
'Please send the files immediately'.

• Nonparallel Sentences: Two or more similar (parallel) ideas should be presented in the
same pattern, whether within sentences or between sentences. Lack of parallelism
generates an awkward style. For example, the clauses in this sentence are not parallel:
'Mr. Reynolds dictated the letter and next he signed it and left the office'. Compare this
to 'Mr. Reynolds dictated the letter, signed it and left the office'.

• Awkward Pointers: To economise the usage of words, business writers often direct the
readers' attention backward with expressions like 'as mentioned above', 'the
aforementioned', 'the former', 'the latter', and so on. However, this is a distraction to the

Managerial Skill Development 65

 reader and is usually unnecessary. If a reference does need to be made, it is better to
name or restate the specific thing to which you are referring.

2.4.3 TIPS FOR EFFECTIVE BUSINESS WRITING

Following are the tips for effective business writing:

• Be assertive and forthright: Be assertive and forthright in business writing. Customers

and prospects become distrustful of evasive writers.

• Bring about cordiality: When writing to business colleagues, use phrases like 'team
effort', 'your valued opinion', 'work together' and so on. This ushers in cordiality among
co-workers.

• Qualities of Business letters: Keep business letters concise, factual and focused. Do not
attempt at exceeding one page – generally 350 to 450 words.

• Margins in writing layout: Employ left justified margins and ragged right margins in your
writing layout. Fully justified text leaves uneven spaces between words, causing the eyes
to readjust constantly.

• Avoid gender bias: Avoid gender-biased nouns and pronouns in your business writing. It
is more appropriate and ‘politically correct’ to use gender-neutral words instead. For
example: Replace 'chairman' with 'chairperson'; use 'humanity' in lieu of 'mankind',
'he/she' instead of 'he' when referring to both genders or change to plural form 'they'.
Gender-neutral nouns and pronouns make everyone feel included.

• Avoid using 'weasel' words: Steer clear of 'weasel' words such as 'seems', 'perhaps',
'apparently', 'usually', in business writing. They perpetuate an impression of insecurity or
insincerity. For example, ‘It seems that perhaps we may be able to have our meeting on
Monday’ may better be written as, ‘We will have our meeting on Monday’.

• Format business e-mails in plain text: When composing a business e-mail, format it in
plain text rather than HTML. Not all e-mail clients can read HTML.

• Dateline in business correspondence: Write the dateline in your business

correspondence in full, not abbreviated or in figures. For example: August 1, 2006, not
Aug. 1, 2006, August 1st, 2006 or 8-1-06.

• Business letter with cc: If sending copies of a business letter to other individuals,
indicate by typing 'cc' and the name(s) of the individual(s), left justified, two lines below
the signature and title.

• Contractions in business writing: Do not use contractions in business writing. For

66 Managerial Skill Development
 example, 'can't', 'you're' should be replaced by their complete forms. Contractions are
used only in informal writing or in tables in instances of limited space.

• Foreign words and phrases: Foreign words and phrases should be set in italics (e.g. faux
pas, ipso facto, prima facie), unless they are very familiar and have been anglicised (e.g.
ad hoc, post mortem, status quo).

• Keep business letters formal and factual: Maintain a formal and factual tone and
content of business letters. Feelings and emotions have no place in business letters.

• Avoid use of jargon and buzzwords: Shun use of jargon (highly specialised technical
writing) or buzzwords (stylish and trendy words used primarily to impress laypersons) in
your business writing. They create a barrier and messages fail to get across, as most
people do not understand them.

• Correspondence with foreign clients: Business correspondence with foreign clients

needs a great deal of care. Not everyone speaks the same language, so messages should
be expressed in short, simple and concise terms.

• Fonts in business writing: Eschew fancy fonts in business writing. They may appear
innovative but they also give an unprofessional look.

• Emphasis in academic writing: In academic writing, emphasis is articulated only through

words. Italics, boldface, all-capitals or other devices cause the writing to appear flashy or
loud.

• Make your proposals persuasive: Make your proposals persuasive by presenting your
evidence in quantifiable terms. Make good use of statistics and published results.

• Selecting the right tone: The 'tone' of the business correspondence should be
appropriate. The manner of writing is as vital as the content of the message. The tone of
writing is synonymous to how one 'talks' to the reader. An inappropriate tone may
annoy the reader and may elicit an unfavourable reaction. For example, a)“We have
implemented a change in the policy and you are required to …….” b) “Taking certain
points into consideration, the management has decided to make changes in the policy. It
is, therefore, requested that you …..”. Sentence (a) sounds authoritative, like the issuing
of an order. This tone may cause the reader to either ignore the message or close the
deal off altogether. Though this is not the intention, however the tone is giving that
effect. On the other hand, if the second approach is taken, the reader will take the
request seriously.

• Personal information in resumes: Abstain from divulging personal information in the

Managerial Skill Development 67
 resume. Do include date of birth, marital status, height etc. in the resume.

• Attachments in e-mails: Refrain from sending attachments in business e-mails. It is best

to copy and paste text into body of e-mail. The reasons being:

Recipients can read it immediately. (Attachments take time to download)

Recipients may not have the right program to open the file. (For example
Word 2007 or PaintShop)

Attachments may transmit viruses.

• Italics and underlines: Italics and underlines connote the same thing. They are both used
to make the reader take notice of certain words. Underlining is usually done when the
text is hand written and italics while typing or using a computer as a typographical
device. However, either italics or underlines should be used at a time and not used
together.

• E-mail subject line: Keep the subject line of the e-mail short, simple and pertinent to the
topic. Besides being meaningful, it makes searching for a specific message easy. Subject
line should not be left blank. It may be perceived as junk and deleted. Do not commence
writing the message in the subject line and continue in the body of the e-mail. It is bad e-
mail etiquette.

• Emoticons in business e-mails: Avoid the use of emoticons in business e-mails. They
make your e-mails look unprofessional.

Keep it simple and short (KISS): Most people find it difficult to get their message across. One
reason is that they use more words than required.

1. Clarity: If you only use what is needed then there will be less room and risk for
misunderstandings.

2. Emotional punch: When the message is focused and clearly directed instead of muddled
and lost in too many words it becomes more emphatic.

3. Less risk of boredom: People's perception of what is interesting is variously defined. Even
if the speaker thinks that what he/she says is interesting the audience may not feel so.

4. Simplicity, spurns the message sender's attempt to stroke his/her ego. The habit of
complicating matters reinforces this negative habit. The message sender will not focus
too much on him/herself and may not obsess about his/her self-image.

5. Simple and precise messages keep the remaining communication more focused and
aligned. A single determined focus on the message to be conveyed is more efficient in
68 Managerial Skill Development
 capturing the attention of the audience as compared to situations where the message
sender rambles on. When the mind is focused on these two things the rest of your body
also works in tandem. Body language and voice tonality comprises 93 percent of the
communication.

Study Notes

Assessment

1. Explain the essentials of business writing.

2. Explain the ‘Must avoid sentence blunders’.

Discussion

Discuss the tips for effective business writing.

2.5 Types of Communication

Communication can be categorised as follows:

1. Oral/ verbal Communication:

a. Words

b. Articulation

Managerial Skill Development 69

2. Written Communication:

a. Reports

b. Illustrations

c. Memos

d. Telegrams

e. Facsimiles (FAX)

f. E-mails

g. Tenders

h. Letters

i. Others

3. Non- verbal

a. Body language

b. Signs and symbols

c. Territory/zone

d. Object language

1. Verbal/Oral Communication: Anything spoken by mouth is called oral communication.

Whatever is uttered from the mouth comprises words and the manners of pronouncing
words. The manner of pronouncing words is called articulation.

2. Written Communication: Written communication acquires a number of forms. It is the

most formal of all types of communication. Its manner and style may alter according to
the characteristic manner of a company. It is also bound by the dictates of the
organisation.

3. Non Verbal Communication: This is an essential part of communication. The medium of

communication other than oral and written communication is called as non-verbal
communication. Non-verbal communication includes the way an individual positions
himself, holds his hands, tilts his head etc. A receiver observes non-verbal
communication 55% of the time. Effective and synchronized use of oral and non-verbal
communication is the most effective method of communication. Non-verbal
communication may include gestures, postures, signs, signals etc.

70 Managerial Skill Development

 2.5.1 ORAL V/S WRITTEN COMMUNICATION
Although, both oral and written communications are components of one discipline
yet there are major differences between them. This characteristic makes an oral
communicator adopt them independently on diverse occasions. Oral communication is
interactive, while written communication is non-interactive. In the former, interaction
between the sender and the receiver through words is what characterises and differentiates
it from written communication. It is extremely fluid and knows no limits. If the sender feels
that his goal is not being met, he can resort to a change in strategy. However, the same is
not true for written communication. If it is incomplete, it is reworked. Complex issues are
best sorted out through written communication. On the contrary, oral communication looks
only at basic issues. The minute they start getting convoluted, the normal reaction is to
request the recipient to pen down the ideas for greater clarity. As it takes a comparatively
long time to formulate ideas and put them down, written communication normally enjoys a
longer time frame than oral communication which is aimed at being brief and succinct.

Oral communication has a distinct advantage of being conducted at almost any place
where the two participants meet. The same does not hold true for written communication.
The places where they are received are highly restrictive. Despite this disadvantage coupled
with the factor that is rather high when compared to oral communication, written
communication is still preferred to in many situations. Probably one of the reasons for this is
that written messages have a greater impact. The same things when stated orally may not
create the same impression.

Finally, there is the difference in terms of feedback. In the case of oral

communication, feedback is usually immediate. On the other hand, for written
communication it is not immediate. If the time span in providing feedback exceeds the
normal period, conclusions such as the company is not interested, references are being
worked at, people are influencing and swerving the direction of the feedback are drawn. It is
because of these differences that oral and written communication is used on different
occasions and situations. Both have their advantages and disadvantages. However, none can
take the position of the other. Both are essential and needed.

2.5.2 LINK BETWEEN NON-VERBAL MESSAGE AND VERBAL MESSAGE

Verbal and non-verbal messages are inter-related or act together in the construction
of meaning. Both types of messages support each other.

Following points will show the relation between them.

1. Complement: When the speaker speaks, he alters his facial expression, brings change in
Managerial Skill Development 71
 tone of voice, moves hands to explain his feelings, emotions and thoughts with the help
of words. It builds confidence and trust in the receiver. For example, in a telephonic
conversation, one may not feel at ease, as there is an absence of facial expressions,
movements, gestures that generally accompany words. A non-verbal sign of smile gives
an indication of friendliness and happiness. A sad face gives an impression of grief. In this
manner, non-verbal messages complement verbal messages.

2. Emphasise: In written communication, we underline some words, put them in italics

bold or capital letters. In oral communication, a congruent effect is achieved by
employing pauses, volume, tone, eyebrows raised, pointing finger etc. The rise and fall in
tone gives importance to specific words in a sentence. For instance, laying stress on
different words in the same sentence can change the meaning of the sentence. You can
experiment with the following sentence and see how the meaning modifies when you
place the stress on various underlined words.

I cannot see a great deal from here.

By changing stress on different words in the sentence, the meaning of the sentence
changes.

3. Repetition: If a teacher asks the student to leave the classroom, he will point towards
the door with the words. Similarly, when we agree to any statement we say ‘yes’ and
nod our head. Nodding of head is the repetition of saying yes.

4. Substitute: Joining hands for prayers is an example of substitution. If someone is across

the road we wave our hands so that he/she can recognise us. Therefore, non-verbal
messages can be used as substitutes for verbal messages.

5. Contradiction: If non-verbal messages are not used properly, they can contradict verbal
messages. E.g. i) Wish happy birthday to your friend with sad face ii) Laugh while saying
sorry for your mistake iii) Congratulate your subordinate with angry face and vulgarity.
These examples show that non-verbal messages can contradict the words associated
with them.

Study Notes

72 Managerial Skill Development

 Assessment

1. Explain the essentials of business writing.

2. Explain the link between Verbal and non-verbal messages.

Discussion

Discuss the differences between oral and written communication.

2.6 Summary
Barriers of Effective Communication: Following are the barriers of effective
communication.

• Physical Barriers

• Psychological Barriers

• Linguistic and Cultural Barriers

• Mechanical Barriers

Guidelines for Effective Communication: Communication guidelines are important

for horizontal integration of the communication process. These guidelines may include work
procedures, which have been agreed upon, design regulations regarding logotypes and
colours.

The 7C’s are as follows:

1. Conciseness

2. Concreteness

3. Consistency
Managerial Skill Development 73
4. Correctness

5. Clarity

6. Credibility

7. Courtesy

The 4S’s are as follows

1. Sincerity

2. Strength

3. Simplicity

4. Shortness

KEYS TO MORE EFFECTIVE COMMUNICATION

• Adjust the Climate

• Choose your Channel

• Eliminate Static

• Tune in

• Know your Non-Verbals

Essentials for Effective Business Writing: There are seven essential elements to
successful business communication through writing:

• Structure

• Clarity

• Consistency

• Medium

• Relevancy

• Primacy

• Psychological Rule of 7±2

Must -Avoid Blunders: Here are ten types of sentence blunders to avoid if you want
your reader to get what you mean and not have to stumble through what you write.

• Run-On Sentences

• Pompous Sentences
74 Managerial Skill Development
• Overloaded Sentences

• Undue Enthusiasm

• Crowded-Together Sentences

• Hedging Sentences

• Slow Starters

• Nonparallel Sentences

• Awkward Pointers

• Misassembled Sentences

Tips for Business Writing: Following are the tips for effective business writing

• Be assertive and forthright

• Bring about cordiality

• Business letters

• Margins in writing layout

• Avoid gender bias

• Avoid using 'weasel' words

• Format business e-mails in plain text

• Dateline in business correspondence

• Business letter with cc

• Contractions in business writing

• Foreign words and phrases

• Keep business letters formal and factual

• Avoid use of jargon and buzzwords

• Correspondence with foreign clients

• Fonts in business writing

• Emphasis in academic writing

• Make your proposals persuasive

• Selecting the right tone

Managerial Skill Development 75
• Personal information in resumes

• Attachments in e-mails

• Italics and underlines

• E-mail subject line

• Emoticons in business e-mails

Types of Communication: We can categorise communication under three heads as

follows:

• Oral/ verbal communication

• Written communication

• Non- verbal

2.7 Self Assessment Test

Broad Questions

1. What are the barriers to effective communication? Explain in detail, what are the
gateways/guidelines to effective communication.

2. What are the types of communication? Explain each in detail.

Short Notes

a. Do's and do not's of Business Writings

b. Oral v/s written communication

c. Link between verbal and non-verbal messages

d. Tips for effective business writing

e. 7 C's and 4 S's for effective communication

2.8 Further Reading

1. Business Communication from Process to Product, Bowman, Joel P and Branchaw,
Bemadine, 1987 Dryden Press, Chicago

2. Business Communications: Principles and Applications, 2nd edition, Pearce. C. Glenn etc.
1988, John Wiley, New York

3. Communicating in Business, Hatch Richard, 1977 Science Research Associates, Chicago

4. Effective Business Communications, Murphy, Herta A and Peck, Charries E, 2nd ed, 1976,
76 Managerial Skill Development
 Tata McGraw Hill, New Delhi

5. Successful Business Communication, 3rd ed., Treece Maira,1 987, Allyn and Bacon,
Boston

Managerial Skill Development 77

Assignment
• Collect samples of at least ten different business writings of different organisations and
observe their writing styles.
• Write business letters to the electricity board for excessive billing, a distributor for
recovery of outstanding payment, a supplier for timely delivery of your order, a
congratulatory letter to the sales team for achieving their target.

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

78 Managerial Skill Development

Unit 3 Written Communication

Learning Outcome

After reading this unit, you will be able to:

• Prepare commercial letters

• Identify various kind of letters and their writing styles

• Outline written communication, its advantages, disadvantages, principles and stages

• Use 3x3 process of writing and importance of writing

• Write business reports, outline steps, essentials and kinds of business reports

Time Required to Complete the unit

1. 1st Reading: It will need 3 Hrs for reading a unit

2. 2nd Reading with understanding: It will need 4 Hrs for reading and understanding a
unit
3. Self Assessment: It will need 3 Hrs for reading and understanding a unit
4. Assignment: It will need 2 Hrs for completing an assignment
5. Revision and Further Reading: It is a continuous process

Content Map

3.1 Introduction

3.2 Commercial Letter Types

3.2.1 Types of Commercial Letters

3.2.2 Formats of some Commercial Letters

3.3 Written Communication

3.3.1 Meaning of Written Communication

Managerial Skill Development 79

 3.3.2 Advantages of Written Communication

3.3.3 Disadvantages of Written Communication

3.3.4 Principles of Better Writing

3.3.5 3X3 Writing Process

3.3.6 Features of Written Communication

3.3.7 Stages of Writing Process

3.3.8 Importance of Written Communication

3.4 Writing Business Reports

3.4.1 What is Report Writing?

3.4.2 Steps of Writing a Report

3.4.3 Essentials of a Good Report

3.4.4 Kinds of Reports in Inter-Departmental Communication

3.5 Summary

3.6 Self Assessment Test

3.7 Further Reading

80 Managerial Skill Development

3.1 Introduction
Letter writing is an art. Even though letters have transformed into e-mails and SMS, it
is still venerated as an art; only the medium has changed. Letters can be broadly classified in
two categories- formal letters and informal letters. Formal letters comprise official letters,
business letters, letters of complaints, applications, letters to editors etc. while informal
letters take account of personal letters, letters that are written to our friends and family.
While writing formal letters a certain format has to be adhered to but while writing informal
letters, one can be flexible. However, letter writing is a skill that needs to be honed over
time with practice.

Certain ground rules need to be followed while writing formal letters:

• Write your full name, address and date before you begin the letter

• The name and the designation of the person you are writing to should be correct.

• Start the letter with 'Sir/Madam' or 'Dear sir/Madam' and then mention the name and
the address.

• State the purpose of the letter in one line titled 'Subject' before beginning to write the
letter.

• Your letter should be very crisp and precise, giving only the information, which is
required.

• Your letter should clearly state action/information required/supplied or requesting

action to be taken.

• While closing, end your letter politely by using phrases like 'thanking you' and
undersigning your letter using 'Yours faithfully/sincerely' (Name).

Although this is the basic structure of a letter, it can be appropriated to suit the
purpose for which it is written and the person to whom it is addressed. For example, a job
application should have a resume enclosed or attached, and this should be mentioned in the
application.

3.2 Commercial Letters Types

• A business letter is a formal letter of correspondence and is often used to convey official
messages. It is usually written by one company to another, to clients, to customers and
to any other third party. A well-written business letter helps in enhancing the chances of
achieving good friends and good business ventures. Business letters should be written in
the correct format. Even before the reader actually reads the letter, the format catches
Managerial Skill Development 81
 his eyes. Focus on the key points, which grasp the reader’s attention like the reason for
the letter, qualification, experience, date, time, venues etc.

• It should be written in a warm and polite tone but not too personal.

• Always address a person rather than a department or in general, the supervisor as it

gives a personal touch to the letter and grabs the reader’s attention.

• The body of the letter is very important. Clearly mention what and why you are writing
about and what action you expect on the letter. Give the details for the request, e.g.
attach a resume, invoice receipt etc.

• Always keep the letter short and precise. Do not write lengthy letters, be specific and to
the point as the reader might not like to spend too much time reading the letter.

• Business letter should have a reference that gives the reader knowledge about contents
of the letter .

• End the letter by restating the reasons for writing the letter and thanking the reader for
their time and effort.

AIDA form of letter writing

• Attention (or Attract)

• Interest
• Desire
• Action
These four steps are needed to grab the interest of the audience and get your message
across.
• Attention/Attract: To grab the attention of the reader, potent words, or pictures can be
used. The e-mails should have subject lines that encourage recipients to open them and
read the contents. E.g. People can be encouraged to attend a company training session
on giving feedback by incorporating the email headline, ‘How effective is your
feedback’?, which is more likely to grab attention than the purely factual one of, ‘This
week's seminar on feedback’.
• Interest: The reader should be able to pick out the messages that are pertinent to them
quickly. Bullets, subheadings and breaking up the text make the central points of the text
stand out.
• Desire: As you build the reader's interest, you also need to help them understand that
what you are offering can help them in a real way. The main way of doing this is by
appealing to their personal needs and wants.
82 Managerial Skill Development
• Action: Finally, be very clear about what action you want your readers to take rather
than just leaving people to work out what to do for themselves. E.g. order a product,
send a report etc.

Format of a Business Letter

When creating business letters, employ 8 ½" by 11" unlined paper. Although 24-
pound paper with 100+ brightness is a little more expensive, it will make a superior
impression than mundane copy paper. Use 1" margins on all four sides. Use a serif font such
as Times Roman (12 point), Arial (12 point) or Georgia (11 point). A business letter should be
single-spaced and if possible, typed on a computer. Print the letter on only one side of the
paper. Fold the letter horizontally into thirds. Mail the letter in a No. 10 security envelope (4
1/8" by 9 ½").

There are several business letter formats, but all of them can be subdivided into two
basic groups: the block format and various indented formats. Although the block format is
somewhat more common, (perhaps because it is easier), either one is acceptable. All
conventional formats contain the same features:

1. Return address of the letter writer.

A2/33, Dreams residency,

Kalyani Nagar, Pune 22

2. The date of the letter

This is usually typed in one of two ways:

(Begin with the day, no comma) 15 January 2008

or

(Begin with the month; use a comma) December 1, 2008

3. Complete name, title and address of the recipient

Use ‘Mr.’ for a male recipient. If you do not know how a female recipient prefers to
be addressed, it is best to use ‘Ms.’.

Ms. Rohini Apte, Chair

Department of Linguistics

University of Pune

Ganeshkhind Road

Managerial Skill Development 83

 Pune 411007

4. Salutation with a colon

Dear Ms. Rohini:

5. Body of the letter

It is ideal to create a short initial business letter. In today’s hectic schedule, people do
not possess the time to read long letters. In a one-page letter, you will usually only need
three or four paragraphs that are single-spaced. Use a double space in between paragraphs.

There are two approaches to writing a bad news letter:

Direct approach: presents the bad news first

Indirect approach: says something positive first and then presents the bad news.

The approach should be finalised after the analysing the situation and audience
personality. The direct approach is frequently used in situations where the bad news is being
presented orally. For all other situations, the indirect approach is usually most effective. If
the bad news is first, many readers will not continue reading the letter and the chance to
make a positive impression and explain your rationale has been lost. Thus, the indirect
approach encourages readers to read the whole letter, making it more likely that the
positives and the rationale will be conveyed emphatically to your readers.

6. Closing

The most common closing is "Sincerely." Follow this with a comma. Skip four single
lines after the closing and type your name. Sign your name in the space above your name.

Sincerely,

Jonathan Wilson

7. Enclosures

If you are enclosing additional information with your letter such as a resume or
curriculum vitae, skip two single lines after your typed name and type "Enclosure" or
"Enclosures." If you use the plural, you have the option of stating the number of enclosures
in parentheses.

Enclosures (2)

84 Managerial Skill Development

 3.2.1 TYPES OF COMMERCIAL LETTERS
There are various kinds of business letters for different purposes. They are divided
into two types: the business to business type and the business to client type.

A. Business-to-business types are intended for company to company communication.

Examples are:

• Appreciation letter is a letter of gratitude and appreciation for help extended or a good
business deal

• Thank you is a letter of gratitude

• Congratulations is a letter that praises the recipient for a job well- done

• Letter of recognition is a written statement of recognised efforts similar to an

appreciation letter

• Letter of reference is a character reference letter. It is a letter building up the character

of a person to be accepted in a job.

• Recommendation is an endorsement letter to hire a certain person

• Sympathy letter is a letter of condolences to a person or family

• Invitation letter is a letter persuading a person or a company to join an event or an

occasion

• Letter of credit is a way of endorsing a certain business to be considered for a credit loan

• Letter of interest is a reply to an invitation that confirms presence on the event/occasion

• Business memorandum is notices that are distributed to the staff. They are reminders of
company activities or imminent changes in the company.

• Business introduction is done to introduce a new business to the readers

• Business letter is a letter that talks about the plans for the business

• Donation letter is a letter asking for donations

• Termination letter is more popularly known as a resignation letter. It signifies someone's

desire to leave a job permanently.

B. Business-to-Client letters are:

• Welcome letter welcomes the client and thanks him for choosing the company.

Managerial Skill Development 85

• Letter of appreciation thanks the client for having business with the company.

• Apology letter asks the client for reconsideration and apologises for failing to deliver.

• Collection letter gives a notice of outstanding payments due .

• Invoice letter template asks the clients to state the invoice number of their transaction.

• Letter of invitation invites a client to join a certain gathering.

• Marketing letter states the newest products that the company will provide soon or is
presently providing.

• Rejection letter states the rejection of the client's request.

Business letters are more formal in writing. Follow the formats strictly. Be concise,
clear and direct to the point.

3.2.2 FORMATS OF SOME COMMERCIAL LETTERS

Formats of some commercial letters are as follows:

A) LETTER RELATED TO PURCHASES

Purchase order letter is utilised to order material that is in shortage and will be
needed soon. The letter is a legal document showing the purchase made. This is a letter to
inform the list of items or products required to the vendor. The letter should noticeably
specify what items are required and how much is required, if necessary a time frame can be
given when you expect the goods to be delivered. This kind of a letter is parallel to a
business letter intended to communicate to the reader your requirements and what you
expect the person to do for you. It should be clear and to the point. It is always advisable to
provide all necessary details as this would speed up the process of delivery of products.
Explicate clearly how the payments would be made and provide the address if the person of
company to contact for any further clarification.

While complaining about a delay in the order, give details of the product and date of
the order. Ask for the reason for delay or else ask to refund the money if the order cannot
be fulfilled.

If you are changing an order, specify the reason behind decision to change the order.
Identify the original order by date and product name and give proper details. Adjust the
payment, include an apology, and express appreciation of the change. Decline an order
tactfully and politely and give the reason why the order has been declined. This retains the
goodwill of the reader.

86 Managerial Skill Development

 The objective of the order letter is to afford the reader with details of the
merchandise for fulfilling the order. Commence the order letter by stating that you are
placing an order. Always provide complete details to ensure that the reader fulfils the order
properly. Include catalogue and reference numbers whenever necessary and proffer the
instructions about where and how to deliver the product. In any kind of order letter, it is
advisable to thank the reader for his or her time and consideration and appreciate the
reader for taking appropriate action.

Format of a Purchase Letter

Your address:
Street heading/
City, State Zip code date line
Date

4 spaces

Ms. Usha Rane, Director of Employment

Tops employment exchange
Jamianagar inside address
New Delhi 4588890

3 spaces

Attention: Ms. Jennifer Smith [only use if no name is with the inside address]

3 spaces

Subject: Purchase Order #4987 [use if you need to call attention to the letter's main point]

2 spaces

Dear Ms. Smith: [salutation: follow with a colon]

Managerial Skill Development 87

Here are some clichés that are redundant and obsolete and should be avoided:

attached please find permit me to say

enclosed please find as per your request
herewith, forthwith, herein ... we are in receipt of your request
it is requested that we beg to advise you that

payment for same (just write 'We request payment for the item').

Short paragraphs should be used that deal with one topic. Clarity and compactness is
important but at the same time, overly formal diction and inflated or pompous language
should be avoided.

The ‘you attitude’ should be developed. Try using ‘you’ more often than ‘I’ or avoid
beginning every sentence with ‘I’. The idea behind this is that you should empathise with the
reader. You should consider what they know, what they want and what is in for them in the
whole thing. Being polite even in the case of a dispute is a practice to be followed.

End the letter with a call to action, i.e. what reaction you want from the reader's
side.

2 spaces

Sincerely,
Complimentary
(Sincerely Yours, , . . .)
close
4 spaces
Signature
Lezzy McGuire
Name
Senior Instructor
Title

Enclosure / Encl: Resume / Enclosures (2) enclosure line

cc: Ms. Geoffrey Archer copy line: who else received a copy of the letter

Notes:

88 Managerial Skill Development

 B) LETTER RELATED TO SALES

An appropriate sales prospecting letter serves to introduce your product and

convinces the prospect to buy it. It is always advisable to undertake research about the
prospect before writing the letter. Grab your prospect's attention by providing convincing
reasons. Let your reasons be imposing enough that the prospect develops interested in your
letter. Do not emphasize on the product you are selling but the benefits that the reader
would be getting from this product. The reader always looks at what is the advantage he
would get from the deal or product.

The sales letter should be formulated such that it seizes the reader’s attention. The
content should be impressive; the start of the letter should make an impact on the reader.
Meticulous care should be taken while using words that convince the reader to buy the
product. The start of the letter should be creative, clear and to the point so that the person
understands what is being conveyed. Let the letter be short because people do not like to
read lengthy letters.

The letter should communicate the main features of the product in a short message.
The sales letter should describe the product clearly, the advantages of buying the product
and how it is different from the other products available in the market. It is always good to
be honest rather than making false promises about the product. Always convey the facts and
keep a professional touch to the letter.

Sales letter format

Name of Client,

Title of Client,

Address of Company or Client,

Date,

Dear (name of the client)

Paragraph 1: The introduction of the letter should draw the attention of the reader.
You may mention the problems that the client may be having and which your product or
service will resolve. Introduce the company and its specialisation.

Paragraph 2: Introduce the product or service you intend to sell to the client.
Demonstrate ways in which they will benefit from investing in your product or service. Make
the offer enticing without promising the impossible.

Managerial Skill Development 89

 Paragraph 3: Give your contact information to the client to find out more information
on the product or service.

Sincerely,

....................

C) INTERVIEW LETTER

It is always a good idea to add an interview letter with your Resume since it provides
additional information not given in the resume. The interview letter should grab the
attention of the interviewer so that you get a chance for an interview. In an interview letter,
every word counts, so carefully select the words that you want to use when writing an
interview letter. Before you are called for the interview, a good interview letter or the cover
letter is the first communication you have with the prospective employer, so you should
spend a good time on preparing it. Be very polite in your approach and show enthusiasm to
work with the company. Begin the letter by stating the position you are applying for and
why you are interested in that position. Explain why you think you are the best for the
position. Try to avoid the contents written in the resume. Focus on your accomplishments,
skills and personality, which must match with the job. Let the employer know that you are
ready for the interview. Provide your contact details.. After completing the letter, read it
once again for any kind of spelling mistakes or grammatical mistakes. Even one small
mistake creates a bad impression on the interviewer.

FORMAT OF AN INTERVIEW LETTER

• Your Name

• Street Address (including Apartment No)

• City, State and Zip code

• Country (if other than the USA)

• Telephone, Fax Number and Email (recommended)

• Company's Name

• Employer's Name

• Employer's Title

• Employer's Division

• Company's Street Address (and Suite No.)

• Company's City, State and Zip code

90 Managerial Skill Development
• Company's Country (if other than the USA)

• Date

• (Title) Employer's Name:

First Paragraph:

• State the reason for writing the letter.

• Name the position or type of work you seek.

• Mention how you heard about the opening.

Second Paragraph:

• Explain why you are interested in the position and/or working for that company or
employer.

• Request an employment application (if still needed).

• Explicate how you are ready for the challenge, perfect for the position or in what way
you can be beneficial to the employer.

Third Paragraph:

• Convey that you have enclosed a copy of your resume (and a completed employment
application, if appropriate).

• Ensure that you will follow-up for an agreeable meeting time to discuss your
qualifications and their company's needs.

• Include your address and number should they need any additional information.

• Explain that you expect to hear from them soon.

• Thank them for their time and consideration.

• Sign your name by hand (over a typed signature) and use ‘Sincerely’.

• Suggested Enclosure(s): Resume, Completed Employment Application (if applicable) and

writing or other work samples (again if appropriate).

D) APPOINTMENT LETTER

An appointment letter gives an assurance to a prospective employee of a position in

the new company. A letter of appointment is a significant aspect of every person's career. So
before issuing an appointment letter, carefully check every detail and information, so as not
to miss on any important point in the letter.

Managerial Skill Development 91

An appointment order must carry the following details:

• Date of appointment

• Designation

• Job profile

• Job timings

• Compensation package

• Transfer or travel details

• Notice period and company rules and regulations

FORMAT OF AN ORDER OF APPOINTMENT

Dear Mr./Ms. <Name>,

<company name>.

I am pleased to offer you employment in the position of <designation> with

<company name>

I am eager to have you as part of our team. I foresee your potential skills as a
valuable contribution to our company and clients. Your appointment as <designation> will
commence on <date>

As <designation>, you will be entitled to a monthly starting remuneration of Rs

00,000/- (Rupees…………. only) which indicates cost to company. You will be on a probation
period of six months. Regular performance review will be conducted to assess your
performance and suitability. Your continued employment at <company name> is dependent
on your successful completion of the probationary period. Your salary will be reviewed after
a period of 6 months and thereafter every 12 months. You will be entitled to all allowances
ad benefits whatsoever decided by the management.

You shall receive your payment before 5th of every month. Leave and other company
policies are available at <website link>. These policies are reviewed and posted at our
website from time to time by the management of <company name> for your benefit.

Your signing this appointment letter confirms your acceptance of the terms and
conditions and that you would be joining <company name> on the given date.

I am looking forward to working with you.

Sincerely,

92 Managerial Skill Development

 <Name>,
<Designation>
<Company name>
<Date: dd/mm/yyyy>

Study Notes

Assessment

1. Explain the ground rules of letter writing.

2. What are the types of commercial letters.

Discussion

Discuss the AIDA form of letter writing.

3.3 Written Communication

3.3.1 MEANING OF WRITTEN COMMUNICATION

Written communication is of immense consequence in today’s business world. It is
an innovative activity of the mind. Effective written communication is indispensable for
preparing worthy promotional materials for business development. Speech came before

Managerial Skill Development 93

writing. However, writing is exclusive and more formal than speech. Effective writing
involves careful choice of words, their organisation in correct order in sentences formation
as well as cohesive composition of sentences. In addition, writing is binding and reliable as
compared to speech. While speech is spontaneous, writing causes delay and takes time as
feedback is not immediate.

3.3.2 ADVANTAGES OF WRITTEN COMMUNICATION

• Written communication helps in instituting apparent principles, policies and rules for
running an organisation.

• It is a permanent means of communication. Thus, it is useful where permanent record

maintenance is obligatory.

• It assists in proper delegation of responsibilities.

• Written communication is more precise and explicit.

• Effective written communication progresses and enhances an organisation's image.

• It provides ready records and references.

• Legal defenses can depend upon written communication as it provides valid records.

3.3.3 DISADVANTAGES OF WRITTEN COMMUNICATION

• Written communication is not very economical. The expenses are huge in terms of
stationery and the work force employed in writing/typing and delivering letters.

• Further, if the receivers of the written message are separated by distance and if they
need to clarify their doubts, the response is not spontaneous.

• Written communication is time-consuming as the feedback is not immediate. The

encoding and sending of message takes time.

• Effective written communication requires great skills and competencies in language and
vocabulary use. Poor writing skills and quality have a negative impact on the
organisation’s reputation.

• Too much paper work and e-mails burden is involved.

94 Managerial Skill Development

Employees' Poor Writing Skills Can Lead to Lost Profit
Employees' writing skills - or the lack of them - substantially affect the bottom line in ways
you may never have considered. Here are just a few.

* Badly written instructions can lead to incorrect procedures, lost time, damaged
equipment, lost customers - and lost profit.

* Ineffective letters, which often took too long to write in the first place, can create a poor
company image, wasted time, bad customer or supplier relations, lost customers - and lost
profit.

* Interdepartmental miscommunication - often through incomprehensible e-mail exchanges

- can result in fragmentation of the workforce, loss of corporate loyalty, missed
collaboration and innovation opportunities, possibly lost employees resulting in more
recruitment and training costs - and lost profit.

* Cold, impersonal ‘boilerplate’ letters in response to customers' problems or complaints

can lead to loss of those customers, bad news spread to their friends and colleagues, loss of
present and future income - and lost profit.

Mangled syntax can cause expensive confusion, inconvenience or even danger. Here are just
a few examples:

1. A consultant's proposal on a new benefits package for his corporate client read, "By
paying a 5% premium on wages, all employees will be enrolled in the company insurance
program". Who was supposed to pay the 5%? According to this sentence, the employees
would be liable to pay - but in reality the company is suppose to pay. It should have read, 'By
paying a premium of 5% of wages, the company can enrol all employees in its insurance
program'. There is a gaping difference between both.

2. A passenger broke into the flight deck on a commercial airplane. Subsequent

investigation revealed that written regulations said, "The doors to the flight deck must be
locked only on takeoff and landing". What exactly does that mean? Must they be unlocked
at other times or are they simply permitted to be unlocked at other times?
Misinterpretation of this ambiguous message almost resulted in disaster.

3. An airport terminal sign read, "No smoking areas available". Does that mean there are no
areas for people to smoke or does it mean there are areas set aside for non-smokers.

4. A company tried to cancel a contract, believing the contract allowed it to do so under

current conditions. However, because of the incorrect placement of a comma in the
agreement, the other party contested the cancellation and successfully sued the company
for $1.2 million. The comma proved to be very expensive.

Managerial Skill Development 95

 3.3.4 PRINCIPLES OF BETTER WRITING
According to F.L. Lucas (1894-1967) "To write really well is a gift inborn; those who
have it teach themselves". However, he maintained, "One can sometimes teach them to
write rather better".

In his book Style (Cassell, 1955), Lucas offered the following basic principles to
"shorten that painful process" of learning how to write better.

• Brevity: It is bad manners to waste [the reader's] time. Therefore, brevity comes first.

• Clarity: It is bad manners to give [readers] needless trouble. Therefore, clarity is to be

achieved mainly by taking trouble and by writing to serve people rather than to impress
them.

• Communication: The social purpose of language is communication- to inform, misinform

or otherwise influence our fellows. Communication is more difficult than we may think.

• Emphasis: Just as the art of war largely consists of deploying the strongest forces at the
most important points, so the art of writing depends a good deal on putting the
strongest words in the most important places

• Honesty: Anything you say may be used as evidence against you. You must be honest at
all times for all purposes.

• Passion and Control: This, indeed, is one of the eternal paradoxes of both life and
literature--that without passion little gets done; yet, without control of that passion, its
effects are largely ill or null.

• Reading: One learns to write by reading good books, as one learns to talk by hearing
good talkers.

• Revision: Exposure to writing different types of letters over a period of time gives the
writer confidence to write a good letter.

• Sophistication and Simplicity: The sophisticated do not necessarily express themselves

better than the simple-in fact, they may often have much to learn from the simple
people.

• Sound and Rhythm: Apart from a few simple principles, the sound and rhythm of English
prose are where both writers and readers should trust their ears rather than rules.

96 Managerial Skill Development

 3.3.5 3X3 WRITING PROCESS
1. Prewriting: Prewriting is the first stage of the writing process. Elements of prewriting
may include planning, research, outlining, diagramming, storyboarding or clustering.
Writers usually begin with a clear idea of audience, content and the importance of their
communication.

• Analyse: The purpose that has is to be served through writing should be clear. The
reaction that you want from the receiver's end and the sort of communication
channel you intend to follow for the same should be decided well in advance.

• Anticipate: The background of the audience and their knowledge regarding a

particular subject should be anticipated. One should predict whether the receiver's
response will be neutral, positive or negative.

• Adapt: It is advisable to ponder over the kinds of techniques you can use to adapt
your message to its audiences and anticipated reaction

2. Writing

• Research: Facts should be founded on accurate data. Extensive research should be

done using the Internet or correspondence etc. to know all that you need to know to
write this message.

• Organise: Similar facts need to be grouped together and the information should be
well organised. You can outline your plan and prepare some notes.

• Compose: Prepare a first draft, usually writing quickly.

3. Revising

• Revise: Message editing should be done to ensure the clarity of the message. The
message should be concise, conversational and readable.

• Proofread: Look out if there are any grammatical errors or spelling mistakes. Errors
of names, numbers, formats and punctuations should be avoided.

• Evaluate: Evaluate whether the message suffices the purpose. Is the message
appropriate and appealing? Will it be able to put across the main idea correctly and
efficiently in front of the audience?

3.3.6 FEATURES OF WRITTEN COMMUNICATION

Academic writing in English is linear, which implies it has one central point or theme
with every part contributing to the main line of argument, without digressions or

Managerial Skill Development 97

repetitions. Its objective is to inform rather than entertain. Eight main features of academic
writing are often discussed. Academic writing is to some extent: complex, formal, objective,
explicit, hedged and responsible.
• Complexity: Written language is relatively more complex than spoken language. Written
language has longer words, it is lexically denser and it has a more varied vocabulary. It
uses more noun-based phrases than verb-based phrases. Written texts are shorter and
the language has greater grammatical complexity, including more subordinate clauses
and more passives as compared to spoken words.

• Formality: Academic writing is relatively formal. In general, this means that you should
avoid colloquial words and expressions.

• Precision: In academic writing, meticulous care is take should be taken that facts are
stated precisely.

• Objectivity: Written language is in general objective rather than personal. It therefore

has fewer words that refer to the writer or the reader. This means that the main
emphasis should be on the information that you want to give and the arguments you
want to make, rather than on you. For that reason, academic writing tends to use nouns
(and adjectives), rather than verbs (and adverbs).

• Explicitness: Academic writing is explicit about the relationships in the text.

Furthermore, it is the responsibility of the writer in English to make it clear to the reader
how the various parts of the text are related. These connections can be made explicit by
the use of different signalling words.

• Accuracy: Academic writing uses vocabulary accurately. Most subjects have words with
narrow specific meanings. Linguistics distinguishes clearly between 'phonetics' and
'phonemics'; while English as a language does not.

• Hedging: In any kind of academic writing you do, it is necessary to make decisions about
your stance on a particular subject or the strength of the claims you are making.
Different subjects prefer to do this in different ways. A technique common in certain
kinds of academic writing is known by linguists as a ‘hedge’.

• Responsibility: In academic writing, you must be responsible for and must be able to
provide evidence and justification for any claims you make. You are also responsible for
demonstrating an understanding of any source texts you use.

98 Managerial Skill Development

 3.3.7 STAGES OF WRITING PROCESS
Gardner and Johnson (1997) describe the stages of the writing process:

"Writing is a fluid process created by writers as they work. Accomplished writers

move back and forth between the stages of the process, both consciously and
unconsciously". Young writers, however, benefit from the structure and security of following
the writing process in their writing.

• Prewriting: Students generate ideas for writing: brainstorming; reading literature;

creating life maps, webs and story charts; developing word banks; deciding on form,
audience, voice and purpose as well as through teacher motivation.

• Rough draft: Students get their ideas on paper. They write without concern for
conventions. Written work does not have to be neat; it is a 'sloppy copy.'

• Reread: Students proofread their own work by reading aloud and reading for sensibility.

• Share with a peer reviser: Students share and make suggestions for improvement:
asking who, what, when, where, why and how questions about parts of the story the
peer does not understand; looking for better words; and talking about how to make the
work better.

• Revise: Improve what the narrative says and how it says it: write additions, imagery and
details. Take out unnecessary work or verbiage. Use peer suggestions to improve. Clarify.

• Editing: Work together on editing for mechanics and spelling. Make sure the work is
'goof proof.'

• Final Draft: Students construct their final copy to discuss with the teacher and write a
final draft.

• Publishing: Students publish their written pieces: sending their work to publishers,
reading their finished story aloud, making books. In actuality, the writing process is not a
highly organised linear process, but rather a continual movement between the different
steps of the writing model.

3.3.8 IMPORTANCE OF WRITTEN COMMUNICATION

• Writing is the primary basis upon which your work, your learning and your intellect will
be judged—in college, in the workplace and in the community.

• Writing expresses who you are as a person.

• Writing is portable and permanent. It makes your thinking visible.

Managerial Skill Development 99
• Writing helps, you move easily among facts, inferences and opinions without getting
confused and without confusing your reader.

• Writing promotes your ability to pose worthwhile questions.

• Writing fosters your ability to explain a complex position to readers and to yourself.

• Writing helps, others give you feedback.

• Writing helps you refine your ideas when you give others feedback.

• Writing requires that you anticipate your readers’ needs. Your ability to do so
demonstrates your intellectual flexibility and maturity.

• Writing ideas down preserves them so that you can reflect upon them later.

• Writing out your ideas permits you to evaluate the adequacy of your argument.

• Writing stimulates you to extend a line of thought beyond your first impressions or gut
responses.

• Writing helps, you understand how truth is established in a given discipline.

• Writing equips you with the communication and thinking skills you need to participate
effectively in democracy.

• Writing is an essential job skill.

Study Notes

100 Managerial Skill Development

 Assessment

1. What is 3x3 writing?

2. What are the stages of the writing process.

Discussion

Discuss the importance of written communication in an organisation.

3.4 Writing Business Reports

3.4.1 WHAT IS REPORT WRITING?
A report can be delineated as a testimonial or account of some happening. It is
purely based on observation and analysis. A report explains any circumstance. In today’s
corporate world, reports play an essential role. They are a strong base for planning and
control in an organisation i.e. reports give information, which can be utilised by the
management team in an organisation for charting plans and for solving complex issues in the
organisation.

A report discusses a particular problem in detail. It brings significant and reliable

information to the attention of top management in an organisation. Hence, based on such
information, the management can make strong decisions. Reports are required for judging
the performances of various departments in an organisation.

3.4.2 STEPS OF WRITING A REPORT

An effective report can be written going through the following steps-

• Determine the objective of the report i.e. identify the problem.

• Collect the required material (facts) for the report.

• Study and examine the facts gathered.

• Plan the facts for the report.

• Prepare an outline for the report, i.e. draft the report.

• Edit the drafted report.

Managerial Skill Development 101
• Distribute the draft report to the advisory team and ask for feedback and
recommendations.

3.4.3 ESSENTIALS OF A GOOD REPORT

The essentials of good/effective report writing are as follows-

• Know your objective, i.e. be focused.

• Analyse the niche audience i.e. make an analysis of the target audience, the purpose for
which audience requires the report, kind of data audience is looking for in the report, the
implications of report reading, etc.

• Decide the length of report.

• Disclose correct and true information in a report.

• Discuss all sides of the problem reasonably and impartially. Include all relevant facts in a
report.

• Concentrate on the report structure and matter. Pre-decide the report writing style. Use
vivid structure of sentences.

• The report should be neatly presented and should be carefully documented.

• Highlight and recap the main message in a report.

• Encourage feedback on the report from the critics. The feedback, if negative, might be
useful if properly supported with reasons by the critics. The report can be modified
based on such feedback.

• Use graphs, pie charts, etc to show the numerical data records over years.

• Decide on the margins on a report. Ideally, the top and the side margins should be the
same (minimum 1-inch broad) but the lower/bottom margins can be one and a half
times as broad as others can.

• Attempt to generate reader’s interest by making appropriate paragraphs, giving bold

headings for each paragraph, using bullets wherever required, etc.

3.4.4 KINDS OF REPORTS IN INTER-DEPARTMENTAL COMMUNICATION

There are various kind of reports used in day-to-day business and routine functions
of departments. Some of them are as follows:

1. Progress Reports: When a long-term project or work is undertaken, the administration

keeps itself informed through progress reports. The project may be the construction of a
102 Managerial Skill Development
 bridge or a building, the layout of a residential colony, the installation of equipment in a
factory or the investigation of some problem. These reports also assist the officers and
workers immediately responsible for the job to take stock of what has already been done
and to relate it to the total amount of time and money available. The frequency of
progress reports depends upon the practice followed in an organisation. These may be
written and circulated at the end of each phase or a specified period or completion of
the stage of work. If they are prepared at regular intervals, they are sometimes called
periodical reports. The performa for preparation of such reports is specified by each
organisation but they contain the following information:

• Name of the work or project

• Total work to be completed

• Date

• Work completed to date

• Work to be completed

• Possible date for completion

• Remarks, if any

• Signature and designation of the reporting officer

2. Laboratory Reports: A laboratory report is an account of various steps, findings and

conclusions put together in a logic order. In fact, no scientific experiment can be
considered valid unless it is presented in terms intelligible to other scientists. Thus,
writing laboratory reports is considered an essential part of scientific investigation and
experimentation. These reports contain the following elements:

• Heading

• Experiment No.

• Date

• Statement of objects

• Apparatus used

• Method or produce followed

• Observations

• Conclusions

Managerial Skill Development 103

 • Signature

3. Inspection Reports: Inspection reports are of two types:

• It is a report, which incorporates the result of the inspection of a piece of equipment

to ascertain whether it is functioning properly or requires any repairs or
replacement. This may be done as a matter of routine or on receipt of a complaint.

• It is a report, which indicates the result of inspection of a product as a part of quality

control. Most manufacturing organisations have a quality control section or
department whose duty is to inspect every product with a view to ensure that it
fulfils the required specifications.

4. Inventory Reports: It is customary for every organisation to take stock of equipment,

furniture, stationery, etc. at regular intervals. The person who checks the stock fills in his
findings in a prescribed form.

5. Annual Confidential Reports on Employees: Most organisations formulate a periodic

evaluation of the performance and general conduct of their employees. The assessment
thus made is used at appropriate times for rewards such as increments, promotion,
transfer to more responsible job.

Study Notes

Assessment

1. What are the steps in writing a good report?

2. What are the essentials of good a report.

104 Managerial Skill Development

 Discussion

Discuss the kinds of reports in inter departmental communication.

3.5 Summary
Letter Writing: Letters can be broadly classified in two categories- formal letters and
informal letters. Formal letters include official letters, business letters, complaints,
applications, letters to editors etc. while informal letters include personal letters, letters that
are written to our friends and family. Letter writing is a skill that needs to be honed over
time with practice. It is a pleasurable task once you know the basic rules.

Commercial Letters: A business letter is a formal letter of correspondence and is

often used to convey official messages. It is usually written by one company to another, to
clients, to customers and to any other third party. It should be written in a warm and polite
tone but not too personal. The body of the letter is very important. Always keep the letter
short and to the point.

Kinds of Commercial Letters: There are different kinds of business letters, used for
different purposes. They are divided into two types:

A. Business-to-business types are intended for company-to-company communication.

Examples are:

• Appreciation Letter

Thank you

Congratulations

Letter of Recognition

Letter of Reference

Recommendation

Sympathy letter

Invitation letter

Letter of credit

Letter of interest

Business memorandum
Managerial Skill Development 105

Business introduction

Business letter

Donation letter

Termination letter

B. Business-to-Client letters are:

• Welcome Letter

Letter of Appreciation

Apology Letter

Collection Letter

Invoice Letter Template

Letter of Invitation

Marketing Letter

Rejection Letter

Written communication: Effective written communication is essential for preparing

worthy promotional materials for business development. Effective writing involves careful
choice of words, their organisation in a correct order in sentences formation as well as
cohesive composition of sentences.

PRINCIPLES OF GOOD WRITING

• Brevity

• Clarity

• Communication

• Emphasis

• Honesty

• Passion and Control

• Reading

• Revision

• Sophistication and Simplicity

• Sound and Rhythm

106 Managerial Skill Development
 3X3 Writing Process: It involves three stages: 1. Prewriting, 2. Writing, 3. Revising.

FEATURES OF WRITING

• Complexity

• Formality

• Precision

• Objectivity

• Explicitness

• Accuracy

• Hedging

• Responsibility

STAGES OF WRITING PROCESS

• Prewriting

• Rough draft

• Reread

• Share with a peer reviser

• Revise

• Editing

• Final draft

• Publishing

Report Writing: A report can be defined as a testimonial or account of some

happening. It is purely based on observation and analysis. A report sheds light upon any
circumstance. In today’s corporate world, reports play a crucial role.

Kinds of Reports: There are various kind of reports used in day-to-day business and
routine functions of departments. Some of them are as follows: Progress reports, laboratory
reports, inspection reports, inventory reports, annual confidential reports on employees.

Managerial Skill Development 107

3.6 Self Assessment Test
Broad Questions

1. What do you understand by letter writing? Explain different kinds of commercial letters.

2. What is business report writing? What are the steps and essentials of good report?

Short Notes

a. Advantages and disadvantages of written communication

b. Kinds of reports in inter-departmental communication

c. Principles of better writing

d. 3X3 Writing Process and stages in writing

e. Types of commercial letters

3.7 Further Reading

1. Business Communication from Process to Product, Bowman, Joel P and Branchaw,
Bemadine, 1987 Dryden Press, Chicago

2. Business Communications: Principles and Applications, 2nd edition, Pearce C Glenn etc.
1988, John Wiley, New York

3. Communicating in Business, Hatch Richard, 1977 Science Research Associates, Chicago

4. Effective Business Communications, Murphy, Herta A and Peck, Charries E, 2nd ed, 1976,
Tata McGraw Hill, New Delhi

5. Successful Business Communication, 3rd ed., Treece Maira, 1987, Allyn and Bacon,
Boston

108 Managerial Skill Development

Assignment
Write a sales letter to a company, promoting a specific featured mobile phone, which your
company manufactures.

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

Managerial Skill Development 109

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________
110 Managerial Skill Development
Unit 4 Verbal Communication

Learning Outcome

After reading this unit, you will be able to:

• Outline tenets of oral communication

• Explain features, advantages, disadvantages, principles and essentials or oral

communication

• Prepare a good business report

• Prepare public speeches and identify do's and don'ts for delivering them.

• Use presentation skills

Time Required to Complete the unit

1. 1st Reading: It will need 3 Hrs for reading a unit

2. 2nd Reading with understanding: It will need 4 Hrs for reading and understanding a
unit
3. Self Assessment: It will need 3 Hrs for reading and understanding a unit
4. Assignment: It will need 2 Hrs for completing an assignment
5. Revision and Further Reading: It is a continuous process

Content Map

4.1 Introduction

4.2 Oral Communication

4.2.1 Meaning of Oral Communication

4.2.2 Basic Features of Oral Communication

4.2.3 Advantages of Oral Communication

Managerial Skill Development 111

 4.2.4 Disadvantages of Oral Communication

4.2.5 Principles of Oral Communication

4.2.6 Effective Oral Communication

4.3 Presentation of Reports-Introduction

4.3.1 Characteristics of Good/Effective Presentation

4.3.2 Presentation Skills

4.3.3 Factors for Effective Presentation

4.4 Public Speaking and Negotiations

4.4.1 Public Speaking

4.4.2 Step-by-step Approach to Public Speaking

4.4.3 Negotiations

4.5 Summary

4.6 Self Assessment Test

4.7 Further Reading

112 Managerial Skill Development

4.1 Introduction
Modern age has had a significant impact on the manner in which we communicate.
Information technologies such as electronic mail, cellular phones, video-conferencing and
fax machines have enhanced communication. Communication has increased the
dependency of business on technology and this has made decision-making process faster. In
spite of all these developments, face-to-face communication is still important. In addition, in
the business world, face-to-face presentation is still the most effective way to reach the
intended audience.

Presentation is a form of face-to-face communication and plays an important role in

sharing information and guiding actions within organisations. Presentation is a more formal
type of communication and hence requires a definite strategy- such as goal setting,
situational knowledge, communication competence and anxiety management. All these
require adequate preparation to ensure effective performance.

Making a presentation is quite different from speaking with others in a two-party or

small-group context. Ensuring audience comprehension is more difficult because feedback is
less direct and less spontaneous. During a presentation, the speaker must be able to read
the audience’s non-verbal behaviour and infer the moods and reactions of the audience to
the message being presented.

In the communication process, oral or verbal communication is the most important

factor for the sender and the receiver of the message. In business communication, more
than 75% of the executive’s time is spent on talking to others. At the highest-level of
management, the talking process exceeds more than 90 %.

There are three basic stages in oral communication:

• The technical problems for achieving accuracy in communicating the message

• The problem of ensuring that the message carries the desired meaning

• The received meaning affects behavior in the desired way

4.2 Oral Communication

4.2.1 MEANING OF ORAL COMMUNICATION
Oral communication implies communication through speech. It comprises individuals
conversing with each other, be it direct conversation or telephonic conversation e.g.
speeches, presentations. Oral communication is generally recommended when the
communication matter is of an impermanent kind or where a direct interaction is required.
Managerial Skill Development 113
Face to face, communication (meetings, lectures, conferences, interviews, etc.) is significant
to build rapport and trust.

4.2.2 BASIC FEATURES OF ORAL COMMUNICATION

Speaking and listening activities can create overall impact if used effectively. Let us
understand the basic features of communication:

• Idea: In this preliminary step speakers decide the issue to be communicated. There are
many ideas in the speakers mind. He/she may choose the ideas, which suits the
occasion as well as receiver.

• Message: Message construction depends upon various factors such as:

The language must be easily understood by the receiver

The thought idea in the language must easily convey the meaning to elicit a positive
feedback from the receiver.

All/most care must be taken by the speaker not to harm the interests of receiver.

Queries of the receiver must be anticipated in advance by the speaker for greater
impact on receiver

• Paragraph/Pauses: Pauses must be appropriately timed to give the receiver some time
to absorb whatever he has listened to earlier. This is just for few seconds, but its impact
is long and meaningful. In written communication pauses can be translated into
paragraphs.

• Receiver: The receiver plays an important role in communication. The speaker must
always take care to retain the interest of the receiver in communication because if he
loses interest the whole communication process stops. The speaker should always
address himself to the needs and expectation of the receiver.

• Empathy: Greater the empathy between the sender and receiver, higher the level of
understanding and more is the receptivity to message and ideas. In brief, we can say
that the receiver must get completely involved with the ideas and thoughts of the
speaker from speakers point of view, without any prior conceptions for better results or
communication.

• Sender: Sender or the speaker takes the first step towards sharing of ideas, thoughts
concepts with receiver. The success and failure of interaction totally depends upon the
methods used by him to convey his message across by recurring attention of the
receiver.

114 Managerial Skill Development

 4.2.3 ADVANTAGES OF ORAL COMMUNICATION
• There is a high level of understanding and transparency in oral communication as it is
interpersonal.

• There is no element of rigidity in oral communication. There is flexibility for allowing

changes in the decisions previously taken.

• The feedback is spontaneous in case of oral communication. Thus, decisions can be

made quickly without any delay.

• Oral communication is economical not only in terms of time but also in terms of money
and efforts.

• Oral communication is best in case of problem resolution. The conflicts, disputes and
many issues/differences can be put to an end by talking them so over.

• Oral communication is an essential for teamwork and group energy.

• Oral communication promotes a receptive and encouraging morale among

organisational employees.

• Oral communication can be best used to transfer private and confidential

information/matter.

4.2.4 DISADVANTAGES OF ORAL COMMUNICATION

• Relying only on oral communication may not be adequate, as business communication is

formal and very organised.

• Oral communication is less authentic than written communication as it is informal and

not as organised as written communication.

• Oral communication is timesaving as far as daily interactions are concerned, but in case
of meetings, long speeches consume a lot of time and are unproductive at times.

• Oral communications are not easy to maintain and thus they are vacillating.

• There may be misunderstandings as the information is not complete and may lack
essentials.

• It requires attentiveness and great receptivity on part of the receivers/audience.

• Oral communication (such as speeches) is not frequently used as legal records except in
investigation work.

Managerial Skill Development 115

 4.2.5 PRINCIPLES OF ORAL COMMUNICATION
Following are some of the principles you can follow as guidelines for planning the
design of your sermons. Keeping these principles in mind while communicating would help
getting your design closer to the goal of making real communication contact.

• Design a dynamic format rather than a static one: Dynamic means active, forceful and
ever changing whereas static means fixed, complete and still. The design of your speech
should be alive and in motion when you interact with the audience. Not everything
should be pre-planned. Some room for spontaneity should be left. Each word of the
sermon should not be planned. It is important to remember that a sermon is an oral
presentation that does not come into existence until it is preached.

• Keep your outline clear and simple: The words used to frame the sermon play a very
important role. Therefore, it becomes essential to make sure that the main ideas are
clear in concept and wording. What you write may look good on paper. However, these
statements should be read aloud and they following criteria should be paid heed to:

How do they sound?

Are they immediately understandable?

Is there a rhythm and symmetry to their wording?

Do they roll off the tongue without a stutter?

• Oral design should be oriented to time rather than space: The time spent on speaking
about a particular topic is directly proportional to the emphasis and importance of the
topic. It takes only two or three minutes to state your bridging sentences or read the text
or division statements and the rest of the time is development or support material.

Take care to orient your design to time rather than space, to plan carefully but
remain flexible. Moreover, if you jot down only a word or two to indicate a long illustration,
argument or application the notes can be misleading.

• Emphasise main ideas by placement and reiteration: The audience remembers the main
idea only because of the way you say it because they cannot see that bold or italics print
or the underlining. Therefore, important or key statements should be placed in
prominent positions. Place the most important statements in the starting or towards the
end of the speech. What you say first and last is remembered. As you repeat your
division statements in the same words, the hearer will grasp their significance.
Announcing and numbering them using the keyword is a great technique.

116 Managerial Skill Development

• Use carefully worded transitions as you move through the presentation: Using natural
analogy in the beginning is a good idea but only if it is well related with the sermon idea.
This will smoothen the way to the next segment. The transition from the need element
to the text has to be planned vigilantly. In addition, one can use bridging sentences and
then let the transition sentences with the key word usher your audience into the
divisions.

The process of wrapping up a division should include two things. One is the summary
of all previous points and the second is an introduction of the upcoming points.

• Plan carefully for a combination of inductive and deductive movement: Inductive

thinking begins with particulars. The sermon can be started inductively to grab the
attention of the audience by starting with something that is familiar to the audience and
that parallels the main subject. Then you can move to the main idea of the sermon. The
whole idea is that the movement from general to specific should be done and it should
not look artificial. Use deductive moment when you give the division statement and then
move to particulars of development.

• Use language best suited to the ear not the eye: The accurate selection of words is very
important to a speech. Therefore, it should be noted that the language should be kept
simple and direct even if you repeat the main ideas. Usage of very flowery language
should be avoided so that the ideas are easily comprehendible. Grammatical errors and
the errors of pronunciation should be avoided. If you mention some historical or biblical
references in your speech do not forget to explain them assuming that the people will
know about it. Avoid using technical or theological terminology without defining them.

• Plan the introductory segments carefully: The introduction is the most important part
but unfortunately, most preachers just stand up and wander into their subject. A good
start always leaves a good impression on the audience.

There are five purposes of the introduction; each of them calls for careful planning:

To arrest the attention of the hearer

To awaken interest in your subject

To introduce your subject

To introduce the text

To make a smooth transition into the body of the sermon

• Plan the closing design of the segment carefully: The conclusion is as important as the

Managerial Skill Development 117

 introduction. The conclusion outlines the visualisation and action steps. This is the
development, which returns to your central sermon idea. For the visualisation step, use
illustrations and applications to picture the experience of the sermon idea to the hearer.
The action step calls for the specific changes that are needed to apply the sermon idea.
This step allows the hearer to respond to the message as it leads into a time of prayer,
reflection or invitation.

• Plan the whole design from the audience's point of view: The focus should also be on
the audience's point of view and not only on your expository material and how to
organise it.

Who will be there?

How do they think?

What do they understand?

What do they need to know?

If you do not communicate your material effectively, it is of no value to your hearer.

4.2.6 EFFECTIVE ORAL COMMUNICATION

A number of generalisations can be made about ones role for successful and
effective oral communication. At least two parties are involved in the communication
process- the speaker and the receiver or listener.

Given below are some of the features of a speaker.

• Contents:

If possible, one should do groundwork before the final presentation.

The speaker must be certain about all the information gathered and planned for
presentation in his capacity.

Speaker must anticipate and note down the questions, which the audience may ask.

He should note down the question that he has planned to ask the audience.

• Audience:

The speaker must have the information about the mentality and psychology of the
audience.

If the background is known, it becomes easy for the speaker to interact or

communicate with the audience and vice versa.

118 Managerial Skill Development

• Adaptation:

The speaker must adapt himself according to the audience. If the crowd is small the
speaker must be flexible. In a one to one communication, he can finely tune his
message to knowledge, abilities and needs of the receiver and vice versa is the case
with huge masses.

• Clarification:

All the points of doubt must be made clear before final speech.

If doubts remain unsolved, they may create misunderstanding.

Study Notes

Assessment

1. What are the advantages of oral communication?

2. What are the principles of oral communication.

Discussion

Discuss the basic features of oral communication.

Managerial Skill Development 119

4.3 Presentation of Reports- Introduction
Presentation can be distinguished as a formal event characterised by teamwork and
use of audio-visual aids. The main purpose of presentation is to confer information, to
persuade the audience to act and to engender goodwill. A good presentation should have
good subject matter, should match with the objective, should best fit the audience and
should be well organised.

Fig. 4.1: A Poor Presentation (Illegible)

Fig. 4.2: A Good Presentation(Clear to read and understand)

120 Managerial Skill Development

 4.3.1 CHARACTERISTICS OF GOOD/EFFECTIVE PRESENTATION
• The presentation ideas should be well adapted to your audience. Relate your
presentation message/idea to the interests of the audience. A detailed audience analysis
must be made before the presentation i.e. an analysis of the needs, age, educational
background, language and culture of the target audience. Their body language instantly
gives the speaker the required feedback.

• A good presentation should be concise and should be focused on the topic. It should not
move off-track.

• A good presentation should have the propensity to convey the required information.

• The fear should be transformed into positive energy during the presentation. Be calm
and relaxed while giving a presentation. Before beginning, wait and develop eye contact
with the audience. Focus on conveying your message well and use a positive body
language.

• To communicate the desired information, the speaker should employ more visual aids
such as transparencies, diagrams, pictures, charts, etc. Each transparency/slide should
enclose limited and essential information only. No slide should be kept on for a longer
time. Try facing the audience, rather than the screen. The speaker should not block the
view. The room lights should be turned on or else the audience might fall asleep and
loose interest. Organise all the visuals for making a logical and sound presentation.

• A good presentation must be planned. The speaker must plan how to begin the
presentation, what to speak in the middle of presentation and how to end the
presentation without losing audience interests at any point of time.

• Rehearse and practice the presentation. This will help the speaker to be more confident
and self-assured. The more the speaker rehearses the better the presentation turns to
be.

• The speaker should encourage more questions from the audience. He should be honest
enough to answer those questions. If any biased question is put forth by the audience,
rearticulate it before answering.

• Summarise the presentation at the end. Give final comments. Leave a positive impact
upon the audience.

• The speaker must have a presentable appearance while giving a presentation. The
speaker should stand with feet far apart maintaining a good balance. He must use
confident gestures. He must use short and simple words.
Managerial Skill Development 121
• Try to gain and maintain audience interest by using positive quotes, humour or
remarkable fact.

• The speaker must be affirmative and optimistic before giving presentation. He should
ensure all tools and equipments to be used in presentation are working well.

• The speaker must state the objectives of the presentation at beginning of the
presentation.

4.3.2 PRESENTATION SKILLS

Organisations today are increasingly interested in hiring people with speaking skills.
"As organisations are downsizing, we need more well rounded people", says Hollis Church,
communications specialist. "They may not only be the technical expert, but the
spokesperson for a product".

At some point, everyone in business has to market an idea and such persuasion is
often done in person. Speaking skills play a vital role in a successful career. You may need to
explicate your company's expansion plans to your banker or you might need to persuade
management to support your proposed marketing strategy. You might have to make a sales
pitch before customers or speak to a professional gathering. This section will help you
develop speaking skills in making oral presentations and in using the telephone and voice
mail to advantage. You will also learn to plan and participate in efficient business meetings.

Presentation skill is an art, which must be mastered by the people belonging to

various fields related to oral communication such as instructors, trainers, administrators,
executives etc. These people modify their skills with respect to their presentation before
target audience groups. The speaker must select the topic for presentation bearing in mind
the interest and level of understanding of the audience. The material should be assembled
in a systematic manner with facts and figures for confidence building of the speaker and
better understanding of the audience for effective result. Adequate time should be given for
questions and discussions.

4.3.3 FACTORS FOR EFFECTIVE PRESENTATION

The important factors for effective presentations skill are planning, preparing,
practicing and presenting.

A) GATHERING INFORMATION FOR YOUR PRESENTATION

Most presentations of any significance will entail some research to extend or update
your knowledge. Research, does not mean rigorous, scientifically based investigation. In this
context, research refers to any systematic study that extends beyond your present
122 Managerial Skill Development
knowledge of the subject matter.

Information is gathered in five ways: personal observation, questionnaires,

interviews, experiments, secondary sources of information.

Personal observation: This is the simplest form of obtaining information and

sometimes the most neglected. Personal observation and introspection can come of use
when one is a dilemma. Personal observation may also supplement other ways of getting
information. After exploring a situation for yourself, you may decide that next you need to
follow up with interviews or an assessment of secondary sources of information.

Questionnaires: Questionnaires are a straightforward way of finding out people's

perception of a topic. Here it is enough to say that questionnaires can be deliberated in a
very structured format, requiring every respondent to answer the same questions or to a
free format, allowing your sample to raise aspects of the topic of concern to them. In the
latter case, you are likely to receive a much greater breadth of information.

Interviews: For procuring information from a broad spectrum of respondents,

questionnaires are of great importance. To get below the surface in assessing people's
opinions and discovering their ideas, there is no substitute for the interview. However,
interviews take a lot of time to organise, run and evaluate later. For these reasons, it is
usually not possible to set up in-depth interviews with more than a few Individuals. Yet the
particular strength of the interview is that it enables the researcher to explore what other
people think or feel about a topic in as much depth as the person and time allow,

Experiment: Observations, questionnaires and interviews permit finding out what

seems to be happening now. Experiments enable you to anticipate what might happen and
you can test a different way of doing things. As in scientific research, you start with an
informed conjecture about how things may develop in your investigation. Next you try to
prove or disprove your guess.

Perhaps you intend to find out what the effect would be if you introduced a new
system of asking counter staff to attend to customer enquiries in your organisation. You
begin by simply making a change in way your procedure currently works. Simultaneously you
try to keep other things constant so that you are able to observe how the change made
things different. Once you are sure you understand the effect of that change, you may wish
to introduce another change, monitor that and then compare how the two different
approaches seemed to work.

Secondary sources: Observation, questionnaires, interviews and experiments all

constitute primary sources of information in that they give you first-hand information. Often
Managerial Skill Development 123
this kind of data is not sufficient and you will have to consult secondary sources. These
include all sources of formation that are not first-hand. Examples are books, journals, year-
books, annual reports, computer based information systems, business directories, almanacs,
trade publications, library catalogues and organisational records.

In recent years, business information has become highly accessible by means of

computer terminal. A number of university and other libraries in New Zealand now offer
online access to literally hundreds of data banks throughout the world. Specially trained
librarians assist business people and researchers to determine the key words on which
information will be sought. Then they select the most suitable data banks for the kind of

All forms of investigation take time and Murphy's second law nearly always applies:
everything takes longer than you think. As well as the time taken to search in libraries, files,
records, directories and so on, there is the time of waiting for the information you requested
to arrive.

The solution you identify should be long enough to do justice to the problem you
have been discussing but short enough to ensure that the audience's interest is maintained.

B) PREPARING A PRESENTATION

PREPARING AN EFFECTIVE ORAL PRESENTATION

It is natural to experience a certain amount of fear before making an oral presenta-

tion. However, you can capitalise on the adrenaline that is coursing through your body by
converting it to excitement and enthusiasm for your performance. People who do not
prepare suffer the most anxiety and give the worst performances. You can learn to make
effective oral presentations by focusing on four areas: preparation, organisation, visual aids
and delivery.

KNOWING YOUR PURPOSE

The most essential part of your preparation is deciding what you want to accomplish.
Do you want to sell a health care program to a prospective client? Do you want to persuade
management to increase the marketing budget? Do you want to inform customer service
reps of three important ways to prevent miscommunication? Whether your goal is to
persuade or to inform, you must have a clear idea of where you are going. At the end of
your presentation, what do you want your listeners to remember or do?

Consider the purpose of the presentation, the time available and primarily – the
subject matter.

124 Managerial Skill Development

 PURPOSE

A presentation is made by keeping basic purpose in mind

• End result of the presentation

• Benefits acquired by the audience after the presentation

• Speaker’s ideas, concepts with which he wants to convince the audience

• Impartment of knowledge, development of skills and values from action

• Sale of concept, ideas or product

• Entertainment of the audience

• Dissemination of information

• Suggestions regarding new concepts

• Creation of an image or strategy

TIME AVAILABLE

• 5 to 10% of time should be partitioned for subject introduction.

• 15 to 20% time must be devoted to the main topic and terms related to it.

• 60 to 70% time must be granted for developing; describing and making the audience
understand various aspects related to main topic and subtopics.

• 5 to 10% time should be committed to integrating the main purpose or idea in short for
better results.

• Minimum 2 to 5% time should be utilised for summary or conclusions.

SUBJECT MATTER

• The introduction of the subject matter must be brief and to the point. Introductory part
must be designed in such a manner so that interest and curiosity of the audience starts
from the beginning.

• The body of the talk should be designed logically so the audience can understand and
remember the main points easily. Visual aids should be used, real life examples should
be discussed, etc.

• Conclusion of subject matter largely depends upon the objective. The achievement of
speaker’s objectives may depend upon the quality of conclusion in a presentation.

Managerial Skill Development 125

 KNOW YOUR AUDIENCE

A second key component in preparation is analysing your audience, anticipating its

reactions and making appropriate adaptations. Many factors influence a presentation. A
large audience, for example, usually requires a more formal and less personalised approach.
Other audience characteristics, such as age, gender, education, experience and attitude
toward the subject, will affect your style and message content. Analyse these factors to
determine your strategy, vocabulary, illustrations and level of detail.

Keeping in mind the following points with respect to audience will help the speaker
to plan his presentation in a better way.

• Educational background of the audience

• Audience knowledge level

• The number of audience attending

• Professional areas to which the audience belong e.g. managers, teachers, doctors,
students etc

• Audiences listening interest to presentation

• Audience knowledge about subject of presentation

• Audience attitude i.e. whether they are friendly in different or hostile etc.

• Likes and dislikes

• Cultural features of audience

Here are specific questions to consider while you plan the presentation:

• How will this topic appeal to this audience?

• How can I relate this information to their needs?

• How can I earn respect so that they accept my message?

• Which of the following would be most effective in making my point? Statistics, graphic
illustrations, demonstrations, case histories, analogies and cost figures

• What measures must I take to ensure that this audience remembers my main points?

DRAFTING A PRESENTATION

Once you have determined your objectives, selected a topic, analysed your audience
and gathered sufficient facts, the next stage is to draft your presentation using an

126 Managerial Skill Development

appropriate internal pattern for the body of the presentation. A typical structure for a
briefing (or public speech) may consist of the three parts of introduction, body and
conclusion:

Introduction Obtain the audience's interest

Develop rapport with the group
Indicate the main point or objective of the talk
Body 1. Major Point a. Minor Point b. Minor Point
2. Major Point a. Minor Point b. Minor Point
3. Major Point a. Minor Point b. Minor Point
(The combination of major and minor points in the body of
your speech makes up its internal pattern.)
Conclusion Sum up the major points
Tell the group what you want them to do as a result

When designing an internal pattern you may select from any of the following
possibilities or you might prefer to adapt or combine them to fit your own needs. An internal
pattern is not meant to be a straitjacket to confine your speech. It is a means by which you
can display the logic of a point of view or the force of an argument and thereby win over
your listeners.

ORGANIZING THE CONTENT

Once you have determined your purpose and analysed the audience, you are ready
to collect information and organise it logically. Good organisation and conscious repetition
are the two most powerful keys to audience comprehension and retention. In fact, many
speech experts recommend the following admittedly repetitive but effective plan:

• Step 1: Tell them what you are going to say.

• Step 2: Say it.

• Step 3: Tell them what you have just said.

In other words, repeat your main points in the introduction, body and conclusion of
your presentation. Although it sounds deadly, this strategy works surprisingly well. Let us
examine how to construct the three parts of a presentation and add appropriate verbal
signposts to ensure that listeners understand and remember.

Managerial Skill Development 127

 INTRODUCTION

The opening of your presentation should strive to accomplish three specific goals:

• Capture listeners' attention and get them involved.

• Identify yourself and establish your credibility.

• Preview your main points.

If you are able to appeal to listeners and involve them in your presentation right from
the start, you are more likely to hold their attention until the finish. Consider some of the
same techniques that you used to open sales letters: a question, a startling fact, a joke, a
story or a quotation. Some speakers achieve involvement by opening with a question or
command that requires audience members to raise their hands or stand up.

To establish your credibility, you need to describe your position, knowledge and
experience- whatever qualifies you to speak. Try also to connect with your audience.
Listeners are particularly drawn to speakers who reveal something of themselves and
identify with them.

After capturing attention and establishing yourself, you will want to preview the
main points of your topic, perhaps with a visual aid. You may wish to put off actually writing
your introduction, however, until after you have organised the rest of the presentation and
crystallised your principal ideas.

BODY

The biggest problem with most oral presentations is a failure to focus on a few
principal ideas. Thus, the body of your short presentation (20 or fewer minutes) should
embrace a limited number of main points, say, two to four. Develop each main point with
adequate but without an undue, explanation and details. Since, too many details can
obscure the main message; keep your presentation uncomplicated and logical. Remember,
listeners have no pages to leaf back through should they become confused.

How to organise and sequence main ideas may not be immediately obvious when
you begin working on a presentation you could structure your ideas by the following
elements:

• Time-Example: A presentation describing the history of a problem, organised from the

first sign of trouble to the present

• Component-Example: A sales report organised by divisions or products

• Importance-Example: A report describing operating problems arranged from the most

128 Managerial Skill Development
 important to the least important

• Criteria-Example: A presentation evaluating equipment by comparing each model

against a set of specifications

• Conventional groupings-Example: A report comparing asset size, fees

charged and yields of mutual funds arranged by these existing categories

In organising any presentation, prepare a little more material than you think you will
actually need. Perceptive speakers always have something useful in reserve (such as an extra
handout, transparency or idea)—just in case they finish early.

CONCLUSION

You should prepare the conclusion carefully because this is your last chance to drive
home your main points. Do not end flaccidly with comments such as "I guess that is about all
I have to say". Skilled speakers use the conclusion to review the main themes of the
presentation and focus on a goal. They concentrate on what they want the audience to do,
think or remember. Even though they were mentioned earlier, important ideas must be
repeated.

When they finish, most speakers encourage questions. If silence ensues, you can take
initiative with "One question that I'm frequently asked is . . . ." You can also remark that you
will be happy to answer questions individually after the presentation is completed.

VERBAL SIGNPOSTS

Speakers must bear in mind that listeners, unlike readers of a report, cannot control
the rate of presentation or flip back through pages to review main points. As a result,
listeners get lost easily. Knowledgeable speakers help the audience recognise the
organisation and main points in an oral message with verbal signposts. They keep listeners
on track by including helpful previews, summaries and transitions, such as these:

• To Preview

The next segment of my talk presents three reasons for...

Let us now consider the causes of...

• To Summarise

Let me review with you the major problems I have just discussed...

You see, then, that the most significant factors are...

Thus far, we have talked solely about...; now let us move to...

Managerial Skill Development 129

 I have argued that... and..., but an alternate view holds that....

You can further improve any oral presentation by including appropriate transitional
expressions such as first, second, next, flier, therefore, moreover, on the other hand, on the
contrary and in conclusion. These expressions lend emphasis and tell listeners where you are
headed. Notice in Eric Evans's outline, in Figure, the specific transitional elements designed
to help listeners recognise each new principal point.

Oral presentation outline:

Prewriting Writing Revising

Analyse: The purpose of Research: Analyse Revise: Develop
this report is to inform previous loan translations between topics.
listeners of three critical applications, interview Prepare note cards or
elements in securing the other loan officers, speakers notes.
business loans. gather critical data. Practice: Rehearse the
Anticipate: The audience Organise: Organise entire talk and time it.
members are aspiring the data into three Practice enunciating words
business people who are major categories. and projecting your voice.
probably unfamiliar with Support with statistics, Practice using visual aids.
loan operations details and examples, Develop natural hand
Adapt: Because the plan visual aid. motions.
audience will be receptive Compose: Prepare a Evaluate: Tape record or
but informed, explain sentence outline. video tape a practice
terms and provide Consider using session to evaluate your
examples. Repeat the preparation software to movements, voice tone,
main ideas to ensure outline your talk. enunciating, and timing.
comprehension.

PLANNING VISUAL AIDS AND HANDOUTS

There is a wise Chinese proverb: "Tell me, I forget. Show me, I remember. Involve
me, I understand". It would be valuable to consider this proverb while making any business
presentation as the goal of the speaker is to make his audience listen, understand and
remember at the same time. To do this one can add visual aids to the presentation to make
it more interesting and encourage audience involvement. Some studies suggest that 85% of
our knowledge is acquired visually. Therefore, an oral presentation is likely to make less
impact on the audience as compared to an audio-visual presentation.

Visual aids in a presentation serve various purposes. Visual aids are particularly
supportive in case some points need to be clarified or emphasised. They also improve
comprehension and retention. Visual aids increase the audience interest. It also makes the
presenter look more professional, more prepared and more persuasive. Even for
inexperienced presenters video aid is useful because the audience concentrates on the
visual presentation and not only the presenter. Good visuals also serve to jog the memory of
a speaker, thus improving self-confidence, poise and delivery.

130 Managerial Skill Development

 These days there is a huge variety available in the visual media to enhance a
presentation. For instance overhead projectors, flipcharts, blackboards, slide projectors,
powerpoint etc Three of the most popular visuals are overhead transparencies, computer
visuals and handouts.

Overhead Transparencies: It is useful for both students as well as professional

speakers. Most of the meetings are also equipped with projectors and screens. There are
many reasons why there is a huge reliance on overhead projectors. Acetate transparencies
for the overhead are cheap, easily prepared on a computer or copier and simple to use.
Moreover, the rooms need not be darkened. A speaker using transparencies can maintain
eye contact with the audience. Remember while using transparencies to stand on the side of
the projector so that you do not block the audience's view. However, transparencies are not
preferred by the business people because they can give the impression that the speaker is
not up to date as these transparencies are considered 'low-tech'.

Handouts: Presentations can be enhanced by means of visual aid but it should be

noted that the pictures, charts, brochures, articles, outlines, summaries or other
supplements used for this purpose should complement the presentation. Speakers who
make use of computer presentation programs often arrange a set of their slides along with
notes to hand out to viewers. However, timing the distribution of handouts is tricky. If the
handouts are distributed during the presentation then they tend to distract the attention of
the audiences. Therefore, the content of the handouts should be explained or discussed
during the presentation and the handouts can be handed over to the audience later i.e. after
the completion of the presentation.

Computer Visuals: Software programs such as Power Point, Freelance Graphics and
Corel presentations help to create dynamic, colourful presentations with your PC. The
output from these programs is generally shown on a PC monitor, a TV monitor, an LCD
(liquid crystal display) panel or a screen. Also with a little expertise and advanced
equipment, you can create a multimedia presentation that includes stereo sound, videos
and hyperlinks.

A) POLISHING YOUR DELIVERY

Once you have organised your presentation and prepared visuals, you are ready to
practice delivering it. Here are suggestions for selecting a delivery method, along with
specific techniques to use before, during and after your presentation.

STAGE FRIGHT

Stage fright is a phenomenon that you must learn to transcend if you want to excel at
Managerial Skill Development 131
public speaking. Actually, stage fright is an inaccurate term for the nervousness that occurs
when considering a speaking engagement. In fact, most of the fear occurs before you step
on-stage. Once you are up there, it usually goes away. Try to think of stage fright in a
positive way. Fear is your friend. It sharpens your reflexes. It heightens your energy, adds a
sparkle to your eye and colour to your cheeks. When you are nervous about speaking, you
are more conscious of your posture and breathing. With all those good side effects, you will
actually look healthier and more physically attractive.

There are certain techniques, which can be used to reduce this fear of stage.

• Capitalise on your public speaking talent.

• Pretend you are just chatting with a group of friends.

• Close your eyes and imagine the audience listening, laughing and applauding.

• Remember happy moments from your past.

Strategies in advance of program

• Be extremely well prepared.

• Get individual or group public speaking coaching.

• Listen to music.

• Read a poem.

• Anticipate hard and easy questions.

• Organise your speaking notes.

• Absolutely memorise your opening statement so you can recite it on autopilot if you
have to.

DELIVERY TECHNIQUES

Inexperienced speakers often feel that they must memorise an entire presentation to
be effective. Unless you are an experienced performer, you will sound wooden and
unnatural. Moreover, forgetting some of the middle words is always a risk. That is why
memorising an entire oral presentation is not recommended. However, memorising
significant parts-the introduction, the conclusion and perhaps a meaningful quotation can be
dramatic and imposing.

If memorising does not work, do not attempt at reading the presentation. Reading to
an audience is boring and ineffective. Because reading suggests that you do not know your
topic very well, the audience loses confidence in your expertise. Reading also prevents you
132 Managerial Skill Development
from maintaining eye contact. You cannot see audience reactions; consequently, you cannot
benefit from feedback.

Neither the memorising nor the reading method creates very convincing
presentations. The unsurpassed plan, by far, is a 'notes' method. Map your presentation
carefully and talk from note cards or an outline containing key sentences and major ideas.
By preparing and then practicing with your notes, you can talk to your audience in a
conversational manner. Your notes should be neither entire paragraphs nor single words.
Instead, they should contain a complete sentence or two to introduce each major idea,
below the topic sentence(s), outline sub-points and illustrations. Note cards will keep you on
track and prompt your memory, but only if you have rehearsed the presentation thoroughly.

BEFORE YOUR PRESENTATION

Instead of worrying about everything that could go wrong during your presentation,
get ready by doing the following:

• Prepare thoroughly: One of the most effective strategies for indurating yourself from
stage fright is to your subject thoroughly. Research your topic diligently and arrange a
careful sentence outline. Those who try to 'wing it' usually suffer the worst butterflies—
and make the worst presentations.

• Rehearse repeatedly: Repeated rehearsals and thorough practice of the entire

presentation can help in reducing the stage fright. Place your outline sentences on
separate cards. Use these cards as you practice and include your visual aids in your
rehearsal. You can also record your rehearsal to evaluate how effective is the
presentation.

• Time yourself: Keep your presentation short and to the point and try to complete it in no
more than 20 minutes. You can also set a timer during the rehearsals to keep a track of
time. Most audience tends to get restless during longer talks. Thus, try to complete your
presentation in no more than 20 minutes. Set a timer during your rehearsal to measure
you are speaking time.

• Request a podium. Request for a high desk or podium to deliver a presentation. It serves
as a note holder and a convenient place to rest wandering hands and arms. In case of
beginners, it is really helpful.

• Check the room: Prior to starting with the presentation, ensure you have all the
equipments you need to make the presentation and that all equipments are functioning
properly. For instance, you might use a sound equipment or a projector. Also, check the

Managerial Skill Development 133

 electrical outlets in which they are to be plugged and the positioning of the viewing
screen. Ensure that the seating arrangement is appropriate to your needs.

• Practice stress reduction: Exercise stress reduction techniques to reduce stage fear or
any kind of stress or anxiety. You can use stress reduction techniques like taking deep
breaths etc.

DURING YOUR PRESENTATION

The following techniques can help you make a good impression during your
presentation:

• Developing the pitch: Start with your main point of view and a handful of take-away.
Then build a storyboard around that, one slide per thought. Keep the number of slides
down and allow a few minutes per slide.

• The icebreaker: Commence with something to break the tension (yours and theirs): a
welcome gesture, engaging or humorous anecdote, graphic, video, or some
combination. Keep it relevant and appropriate. Do not tell a joke.

• The old advice, but it works: First tell the audience what you are going to tell them, then
tell them, then tell them what you told them.

• Do not read what is on the slide: Know the pitch cold (without having to look except for
a brief cue) and speak in your own words. If you (rarely) want the audience to read what
is on a slide, look at it and read silently along with them.

• Engage the audience: Ask questions. If they do not respond, try offering an answer and
asking for a show of hands or ask easier questions. Make the audience part of the
experience.

• Be accessible: Do cower behind a podium. Use a wireless mic if needed. Get close to the
audience and move from place to place while maintaining eye contact, but only from
time to time.

• Pause for effect and emphasis: Practice being comfortable with silence for two or three
seconds. It is the most dramatic way to make a point. Abstain from using non-sense
syllables as and other fillers of uncomfortable silence; they are annoying and detract
from your presence.

• Make eye contact: Use eye contact for only a few seconds per person. Too short and you
will fail to engage; too long and it becomes uncomfortable. Shifting eye contact can
create a mirage that the speaker is not confident.

134 Managerial Skill Development

• Use hand gestures: They are engaging and interesting. However, when you are not, keep
your hands at your sides. Do not fidget, hold onto things or put your hands in front of
you, behind you or in your pockets. Avoid nervous habits.

• Do not block the audience’s view: Do not step in front of the screen or block it from
view, except for the occasional walk-across. Gesture with your hand, but do not touch
the screen. Do not use a pointer unless you must.

AFTER YOUR PRESENTATION

Most presentations involve interaction with the audience once the speaker finishes.
Use this time to do the following:

• Distribute handouts: If there are, some notes or data to be shared pass it to the audience
in form of handouts once you are through with the presentation.

• Encourage questions: There can also be a question answer session subsequent to the
presentation. This is also an ideal time to interact with the audience. The speaker can
also set a time limit for the session.

• Repeat questions: While answering the questions the speaker should begin each answer
with a repetition of the question. Although the speaker may hear the question, audience
members often do not. The answer should be directed towards the entire audience.

• Reinforce your main points: You can use your answers to reiterate your primary ideas. In
answering questions, avoid becoming defensive or debating the questioner.

• Keep control: Refrain from focussing on one individual and do not let him take over. It
can give a feeling of being left out to the rest of the audience. Do not Keep the entire
audience involved.

• End with a summary and appreciation: Before ending the session try to summarise the
main points while answering the last question. Then thank the audience for being
patient and appreciate the opportunity to talk with them.

• Handle Questions: Anticipate questions, which you think your audience will ask and try
to answer them. Be ready for questions. Make questioners feel that their questions are
welcome. Answer a question truthfully. Admitting ignorance is better than giving wrong
answer. Monopolise question time; you have to learn to handle that too by indicating
that every questioner has to be given a fair chance.

Managerial Skill Development 135

 PREPARING AN OUTLINE

An outline is deemed a mechanical framework where bits and pieces of your

presentation material are built-in; it serves as a guide to show you the right path for your
presentation. So spending lime in developing an outline never goes waste. In fact, you
should use an outline as your ‘script’. However, you should stand guard in case you have to
deviate in response to audience feedback.

Suppose you are the project leader of a team, which has taken up a project of
developing a new product for the company. You have to present before a committee the
new product, which will be launched in the market. This may be a 10-minute presentation
about the facilities the product offers, its functioning etc. Your outline can be in the form of
words, phrases or sentences:

• Introduction

• Product appearance

• Various parts

• Functioning

• Facilities

• Conclusions

You may have to work out the sub-headings under each or some of these main
topics. However, as already said, you should be ready to skip or add some topics if your
audience wants you to do so.

B) UNDERSTANDING NUANCES OF DELIVERY

Even a dull and drab topic will accrue interest if presented well, whereas an
appealing topic may emerge dull owing to poor delivery. It is clear that just having
something to say is not enough; you must also know how to say it. Superior delivery does
not call attention to itself. It conveys your ideas coherently, interestingly and without
distracting the audience. Most audiences prefer delivery that combines a certain degree of
formality with the best attributes of good conversation -directness, spontaneity, animation,
vocal and facial expressiveness and a lively sense of communication.

136 Managerial Skill Development

 Study Notes

Assessment

1. What are the characteristics of effective presentation?

2. Explain the importance of presentation skills for an employee.

Discussion

Discuss the factors of effective presentation.

4.4 Public Speaking and Negotiations

4.4.1 PUBLIC SPEAKING

Speaking is an important method for communicating knowledge and expressing
ideas. Effective and excellent communication skill is an advantage for work in school,
business as well as your personal life. Delivering an effective presentation to 20 or to 200
people is difficult. Since, listeners have better access to information owing to advent of the
Internet audiences expect more content from speakers today. In addition, because of the
entertainment slant of most media today, audiences want a presentation delivered with
animation, humour and excitement.

Managerial Skill Development 137

 4.4.2 STEP-BY-STEP APPROACH TO PUBLIC SPEAKING
A) PREPARING FOR YOUR SPEECH

The rationale of public speech is allied with the occasion and it is identified while
selecting the topic. It may be:

• To inform

• To persuade

• To encourage

To feel confident you need to be familiar with your material. Hesitancy and constant
note-reading do not a good speech make.

Become familiar with the ‘signposts' of your speech and fully acquaint yourself with
your content so that you can trust yourself to remember.

Many good presenters use mind mapping to prepare and memorise speech notes. It
is quick and really aids memory and recall.

Rehearse aloud until you feel 'conversationally comfortable' about your material, as
well as secure in the knowledge that it is ‘all there'. Remember that rehearsing aloud
can feel artificial. It is actually much more natural to present to an audience.

Self-management also plays a pivotal role. If you feel overly nervous or have
undergone unpleasant experiences presenting before, consider getting an audio
program, which helps you relax properly and prepare mentally for your presentation.
Once the ‘back part' of your mind has a good template for how you want things to
go, it is much easier to present well.

B) USE OF HUMOUR

The use of humour in presentations can help fix an idea in peoples' minds as well as
make them comprehend unexpected perspectives. However, it has to be done in an
(apparently) spontaneous way. If people remain silent in response to your attempt at
humour, you may comment on the silence itself, which often elicits laughter. If you appear
terrified when cracking a joke, the audience may not respond as they would when you are
relaxed because you are sending mixed signals. Your words say “I am being creative and
funny" but your voice tone, body posture and other unconscious signals say “I am terrified”.
People rely much more on these unconscious elements of your communication.

Overall, indulging in humour is worth the risk because it makes a presentation more
interesting.
138 Managerial Skill Development
 C) RESEARCHING AND PLANNING THE SPEECH

Planning and researching involves mental and logical searching for supporting
experience or perhaps for idea development.

Sometimes the speaker’s primary research is conducted in a library or in company

records. The speaker may need to consult colleagues or people from other companies. In
short, he has to take all necessary steps to assimilate information that will form the basis of
his presentation. Although variations are sometimes appropriate, the time-honoured order
of a speech is: introduction, body and conclusion. A few aspects are enumerated below:

The greeting should fit the audience. ‘Ladies and gentlemen’ is appropriate for a
mixed audience; ‘Gentlemen’ fits for all male audience and ‘My fellow Rotarians’ fits an
audience of Rotary Club members. Some speakers eliminate the greeting and begin directly
with the speech after a formal address to the chairman. This is practiced especially in
informal and technical presentations. However, in a normal course of action, one should
acknowledge everybody in his or her greetings.

Unless the speaker can arouse interest at the beginning, his presentation is likely to
fail. There should be a close tie between the opening interest gaining remarks and the
subject of the speech. Following the interest gaining opening remarks, it is appropriate to
state the subject (theme) of his speech. Once the speaker decides on a topic for
presentation, he can determine the main points that will serve as the basis of his speech.

The following brief structure should be borne in mind while making a speech:

• To establish rapport by using:

Showing pleasure and happiness

Occasion of meeting

Previous speaker’s words

Chairman’s remarks

• Focusing attention:

Raising possible questions, facts, figures, story, reference of known personalities and
proverb or quotations related to the topic or the occasion

• Body structured according to:

Purpose, audience, begin with easy to difficult begin with acceptable to newer ones,
incidents should be narrated at a faster pace.

Managerial Skill Development 139

Conclusion

It should be attention focusing. The concluding remarks should not be dragged. The
concluding observations are related to

Thank the audience

Repeat thanks for invitation

Relate the occasion

• Statement of the proposition

Introduction

Short history of the issue/topic

The main arguments will be brief and precise

• Importance of the issue or topic

Body (this is the longest, most detailed portion)
• State again each argument for the affirmative. After each argument, list the specific
evidence that supports it. Also, cite the source for each item of evidence.
• State again each argument for the negative. After each argument, list the specific
evidence that supports it. Cite again the source for each item of evidence.
• Conclusion

Summarise the position and arguments of the affirmative side as well as the negative
side.

D) ORGANISING THE SPEECH

For organising the body of speech, the speaker is more likely to use factors as the
basis of division than time, place or quantity. The threefold division for presentation is:

• The introduction: introduce them to what you are going to tell them.

• The body: content of speech

• The conclusion: summarise what you told them.

The reason is that in most speeches, the presentation will probably envelop issues
and questions that are sub topics of the subject. Even so, subdivisions like time, place and
quantity are possibilities. The speaker thinks while he speaks and speaks while he thinks.

Three methods of presentation are given below:

1. Memorised presentation: Speakers actually memorise an entire speech

140 Managerial Skill Development

2. A method of presentation by reading: Unfortunately, most of us do not read aloud well.
We tend to read in a dull monotonous voice, producing a most uninteresting effect. We
rumble over words that lose our place, miss punctuation marks and such other lapses. Of
course, many speakers overcome this problem and with effort this can be eliminated.
However, it will be advisable to attempt to read a speech until proficiency is reached.

3. Extemporaneous presentation: It is the most popular and effective method of

presentation.

E) WORDING THE SPEECH

Wording includes non-verbal content. A few aspects relating to wording the speech
are as follows:

Use of voice of the speaker: The voice should not detract attention from the
message. Voices that cause such difficulties generally fall into four areas of fault:

• Lack of vocal emphasis: A secret of good speaking is to give words their due emphasis by
varying the manner of speaking. This can be achieved by (a) varying the pitch of his voice
(b) varying the pace of his presentation and (c) varying the volume of his voice.

• Incorrect use of pauses: When properly used, they emphasise the upcoming subject
matter and are effective in gaining attention. Pauses convey meaning to the listeners.
Further, it helps the speakers to take rest between sentences or words. However,
frequent and arbitrary pause are irritating and break the listener’s concentration.

• Lack of variation in speaking speed: As a general rule, the speaker should present the
easy parts of the message at fairly brisk rate and hard-to-understand information at a
slower pace. The reason for varying the speed of presentation should be apparent.

• Lack of pitch variation: Speakers who talk in monotones are unlikely to hold their
listeners’ interest for long. Without variations in pitch, the speaker may not be
impressive most voices are capable of wide variations in pitch and the problem usually
can be corrected. Most often the failure to vary pitch of the voice is a matter of habit of
vocal patterns, which are developed over years of talking without being aware of their
effects.

• Others: a) Latin and French words, technical terms, socially unpleasant words, b) cheap,
hollow and slang terms, c) difficult words, d) repetitive phrases - you see, you know, e)
gestures of the speaker, f) facial expression of the speaker

Walking of the speaker

Managerial Skill Development 141

 Posture of the speaker

Personal appearance of the speaker

The communication environment of the speaker

Appearance and bodily actions of the speaker

F) FEARS, ANXIETY AND MISTAKES

FEARS

How do we cull the fear of public speaking?

Firstly, let us accept that we need fear. Without the ability to become very fearful no
human beings would be here today - our ancestors relied on fear to survive bigger, stronger
and faster predators.

When we become highly fearful, the unconscious mind takes over and we become
primarily set up for physical action. In order to survive a physical threat we respond
automatically for the sake a quick reaction. In certain situations, this can be a life-saver.

During this 'fight or flight' response, breathing speeds up in preparation for physical
exertion, we may sweat to cool the body or feel as if we ‘cannot think'. Survival in very
primitive conditions is primarily about action rather than thinking.

ANXIETY

When presenting, we need a little anxiety as this will improve recall, boost energy
levels and make for a more focused, dynamic speech. An overly laid-back speaker can
become a source of boredom.

Therefore, we do not want too much anxiety and we do not want too much
relaxation. We need enough tension to give us energy and enough calmness for clear
thinking and recall. We need the right balance.

MISTAKES

When you first begin speaking to audiences, you will be extremely sensitive to the
way audience members looked. During the presentation you should try to read their mood.

• Were they frowning?

• Did they have blank expressions?

• Did this mean they were hostile?

If no-one was smiling this may really bother you and if one person appeared

142 Managerial Skill Development

friendlier than the rest you tend to focus on them during your talk, to the exclusion of the
others.

Learn to relax and enjoy public speaking and your perceptions will begin to change.
An expert in public speaking observed, “What I had seen as hostile, I started to see as
nervousness in the audience members”. Rather than looking at them to put yourself at ease
you can begin to try to put them at their ease. You will also see that this approach will help
you.

G) REGULATING SPEECH

The vocal elements of communication are namely, pitch, volume, rate, quality,
animation and pause. Pitch is the tone of sounds depending upon the rate of vibration of the
vocal chords. Volume refers to the power of the sound and it ranges from very loud to very
soft. Rate is the degree of speed at which you speak words. The characteristic tone of a
voice is its quality. Sometimes a voice may be termed as creaky or jarring to the ears or it
may be labelled pleasant, free. Liveliness of speech is known as animation. Pause refers to
junctures in speech. Except the quality of the voice you can control and regulate all vocal
elements by careful perception and repeated practice. A well-prepared presentation can be
lost if you speak in a monotone, i.e. when you use a constant pitch, volume and rate.
Similarly, lack of animation and inappropriate pauses can cause Communication breakdown.

4.4.3 NEGOTIATIONS
Business negotiation is the process by which typically two or more parties come
together to try to create a mutually agreeable contractual decision. Each party will have
competing interests and thus, negotiations can be quite intricate and lengthy. Negotiations
end when all parties have come to a final decision and have agreed to contractual
guidelines.

Aside from the technical definition, negotiation is an intricate process that entails
more than just numbers, details and information collecting. Skillful negotiation deals with
every aspect of negotiation you can think of from running in depth cost analyses to learning
how to deal with a specific party at its level and its comfort level.

For example, just like people, we all have different customs and ways we are used to
doing business. If a one party is used to more formal business meetings and another is not,
regardless of the more casual company’s quality of business, this can directly affect the
more formal business’ opinion of the former. Skillful negotiation considers such factors.

Negotiation is the concerted effort that is placed to give your company the cutting
edge it needs for business survival, growth and empowerment. Negotiation will help your
Managerial Skill Development 143
company make the best financial and inter-company decisions possible. Negotiation is for
your company’s protection.

Negotiation is valuable time spent to make sure that profitable, cost effective
relationships are made with other important businesses that can further promote your
company’s good name as well. The more fruitful and positive relationships your company is
able to create and maintain the more positive advertisement and acknowledgement your
company enjoy. Contacts like these are invaluable and help to sustain and keep your
company growing and able to remain competitive.

Negotiation is not settling for anything less than getting the very best contractual
agreements for your company. If you want your company to continue to grow and thrive,
you will not let your company fall prey to unwise contractual agreements. Negotiation will
make sure that the best possible deals are made keeping your company’s assets safe and
well protected.

Negotiation is a strategic business endeavour or tool that protects companies from

spending their money unwisely or venturing into a business contract too quickly without
taking the time to really weigh the varying pro and con factors. It is a tool that ensures that
the company lands the best deals possible.

NEGOTIATIONS SKILLS

Negotiation skills are essential to the successful outcome of a contractual agreement.

While any party can conduct negotiation meetings, it takes an experienced negotiating
consultant to bring specialised negotiation skills to the table that will create positive, money
saving contractual agreements.

LEARNING THE BASICS

Some basic negotiation skills that experienced negotiating consultants are equipped
with and are important to know about follow:

• In negotiations, it is important to focus on company needs and not individual positions.

When needs are the focus, the negotiation process can remain objective and fair for all
parties involved.

• Be open and creative about potential options available to you. This makes for the
potential for more positive outcomes possible.

• Focus on coming to a common agreement point between the parties involved. The more
everyone is on the same page, the better for everyone.

144 Managerial Skill Development

• Make contractual agreements as clear and decipherable as possible so as to avoid any
miscommunication or misunderstandings.

• Focus hard on any specific problems, but handle the people involved with the utmost
care. People want to work with people they like.

• Prepare as much as you can in advance. Think about your company needs as well as the
other company’s needs.

• Try to state requests within the negotiation process as positively as possible. It makes a
big difference in how it is perceived.

• When you are in contractual negotiating deals, they can become emotional. Do not let
them. This will only damage the negotiating process. Thinking with your head is
important and will allow you to not miss any important details.

• Be open and when you suspect or discover unfair tactics, name them and speak openly
about them. If it is more comfortable to talk about them in smaller groups, make this
change. Ensure that any negative element is eliminated from the process.

• When a problem like the one addressed in step number nine occurs, once it has been
resolved, take the time to re-address what will be the fairest decisions for both parties
involved. Regain trust and rebuild the negotiation process.

Negotiation skills involve taking a deeper, analytical look that entire negotiation
process, from beginning to end. Negotiation skills are meant to give your company the best
advantage possible when working to get your contractual needs met and often exceeded.
Great negotiation skills will help keep your company ahead of the game and protected from
potential needless overspending.

THE NEGOTIATION PROCESS

There can be no doubt that the process is a contest where each negotiator can take
nothing for granted and can never relax. Even if it is possible to establish mutual interests
and move into the principled negotiation mode, prudence demands risk analysis and
control. The more consequential the issue, the more important risk management is. The key
to a successful negotiation process is preparation.

The Negotiation Process

• Discover what the other side knows

• Educate the other side on your position

Managerial Skill Development 145

• Create doubt about the other side's position

• Make the other side advocates for your position

• Determine enforcement means

• Enhance implementation through good relationship

Until the other side establishes trustworthiness by credible performance, one must
learn as much about the other side's position as possible, while revealing as little as possible
about one's own:

• First, one should have completed preliminary work, to scope out what the other side's
position and strategy will be, so you aren't hearing it in negotiations for the first time.
Second, you should have selected your team with an eye toward enhancing your ability
to figure out the other side -- its strengths and its weaknesses. The team should be
highly disciplined in order to establish a good relationship. It should also be understood
who talks for the team.

• The second principle is to get the other side to lose confidence in its position while
gaining confidence in yours. This is where ‘education’ plays a crucial role. The process of
selectively revealing information that strengthens your case while questioning that of
the other side. It sounds like a breach of ethics to reveal information selectively to
strengthen your case while weakening your opponent's case. However, until trust is
established, negotiation is a contest. You would not use your weak arm to arm-wrestle
with a stranger. Ethics in negotiation has to do with being principled and fair and neither
demands complete disclosure.

The ‘decision’ in negotiation is whatever the negotiators agree on and can convince
their ratifiers to accept. This, incidentally, is another reason for intense preparation prior to
the actual negotiation. If you are not going to reveal weaknesses, you can be sure your
opponent will not. You will need to discover them through meticulous spadework before the
act. Careful attention should be paid to body language, tone and what your opponent does
not say.

• This leads to the third principle: creating doubt about the other side's position. As you
educate the other side to see the advantages of your position, you want to undermine
their confidence in their own position. These two principles, educating the other side on
your position and creating doubt about their own position, are a cyclical process.

• The fourth principle is to make the other side an advocate for your own position. Neither
you nor they will have the power to decide. Those who sent you to negotiate for them
146 Managerial Skill Development
 withhold that power. They are your ‘ratifiers’, your ‘closers’. You are a better negotiator
than they are or you would not have been sent to do that job for them. So, a part of your
strategy is to manage the other side's access to your ratifiers. You do not want someone
as good as you are to have access to your own decision makers.

• The fifth principle is to enhance both enforcement and implementation by building in

objectively verifiable means. Even with principled negotiation and trust, future doubt or
suspicion can be avoided by including in the agreement some objective means for
checking that the agreement is honoured by both sides and for enforcing compliance.
Sales contracts, for example, have clauses that address the potential for default. A house
loan is secured by a deed of trust. Equally, negotiated agreements should be written
with some consideration of how non-compliance would be treated.

• The sixth principle is that it is essential to maintain a good relationship with the other
side. A good relationship enhances the operation of the preceding principles and indeed
may be essential to some of them. Further, if initial initiatives toward principled
negotiation elicit no response from the other side, maintaining a good relationship ‘in
spite of it all’ may produce a change of heart with your opponent. Principled negotiation
can emerge at almost any time, so long as one negotiator has been behaving in a
principled manner all along. The other side must be treated with courtesy and respect.

Study Notes

Assessment

1. What does preparing of a speech involve?

2. What is the process of business negotiation?

Managerial Skill Development 147

 Discussion

Discuss the step by step approach to public speaking.

4.5 Summary
Oral Communication: Oral communication implies communication through mouth. It
includes individuals conversing with each other, be it direct conversation or telephonic
conversation e.g. speeches, presentations. Oral communication is generally recommended
when the communication matter is of temporary kind or where a direct interaction is
required.

Principles of Oral Communication: Following are some of the principles you can
follow as guidelines for planning the design of your sermons:

• Design a dynamic format rather than a static one.

• Keep your outline clear and simple.

• Oral design should be oriented to time rather than space.

• Emphasise main ideas by placement and reiteration.

• Use carefully worded transitions as you move through the presentation.

• Plan carefully and incorporate a combination of inductive and deductive movement.

• Use language best suited to the ear not the eye.

• Plan the introductory segments carefully.

• Plan the closing design of the segment carefully.

• Plan the whole design from the audience's point of view.

Presentation: Presentation can be defined as a formal event characterised by

teamwork and use of audio-visual aids. The main purpose of presentation is to give
information, to persuade the audience to act and to create a goodwill.

Presentation Skills: Presentation skill is an art, which must be mastered by the

people belonging to various fields related to oral communication such as instructors,
trainers, administrators, executives etc.

Factors of Effective Presentation Skills: The important factors for effective

148 Managerial Skill Development
presentations skill are planning, preparing, practicing and presenting.

STEP-BY-STEP APPROACH TO PUBLIC SPEAKING

Preparing for your Speech

Use of humour

Researching and planning the speech

Organizing the speech

Wording the speech

Fears, anxiety and mistakes

Regulating speech

Business Negotiations: Business negotiation is the process by which typically two or

more parties come together to try to create a mutually agreeable contractual decision. Each
party will have competing interests and thus, negotiations can be quite intricate and lengthy.

The Negotiation Process: The Negotiation process is as follows:

• Discover what the other side knows

• Educate the other side on your position

• Create doubt about the other side's position

• Make the other side advocates for your position

• Determine enforcement means

• Enhance implementation through good relationship

4.6 Self Assessment Test

Broad Questions

1. What is oral communication? What are the features, advantages and disadvantages of
oral communication?

2. What do you mean by presentation skills? What are the characteristics and factors of
effective presentation?

Short Notes

a. Negotiations

b. Public speaking

Managerial Skill Development 149

 c. Principles of oral communication

d. Presentation of reports

e. Step-by-step approach to public speaking

4.7 Further Reading

1. Business Communication from Process to Product, Bowman, Joel P and Branchaw,
Bemadine, 1987 Dryden Press, Chicago

2. Business Communications: Principles and Applications, 2nd edition, Pearce C Glenn etc.
1988, John Wiley, New York

3. Communicating in Business, Hatch Richard, 1977 Science Research Associates, Chicago

4. Effective Business Communications, Murphy, Herta A and Peck, Charries E, 2nd ed, 1976,
Tata McGraw Hill, New Delhi

5. Successful Business Communication, 3rd ed., Treece Maira, 1987, Allyn and Bacon,
Boston

150 Managerial Skill Development

Assignment
What are the various kinds of reports used in organization, which you have visited last.

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

Managerial Skill Development 151

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________
152 Managerial Skill Development
Unit 5 Non -Verbal Communication

Learning Outcome

After reading this unit, you will be able to:

• Outline basics of Non-Verbal Communication

• Identify the types of Non-Verbal Communication

• Explain the role played by body Language in Non-Verbal Communication

• Outline Kinesics

Time Required to Complete the unit

1. 1st Reading: It will need 3 Hrs for reading a unit

2. 2nd Reading with understanding: It will need 4 Hrs for reading and understanding a
unit
3. Self Assessment: It will need 3 Hrs for reading and understanding a unit
4. Assignment: It will need 2 Hrs for completing an assignment
5. Revision and Further Reading: It is a continuous process

Content Map

5.1 Introduction
5.2 What is Communicating Non-Verbally?
5.3 Types of Non-Verbal Communication
5.4 Body Language
5.5 What is Kinesics?
5.6 Summary
5.7 Self Assessment Test
5.8 Further Reading

Managerial Skill Development 153

5.1 Introduction
Everything we do, say, do not do, or say, may be taken as a form of communication
by some other person. This is especially true of non-verbal communication. Non-verbal
communication is the oldest form of social interaction used by the human race. Numerous
centuries ago, our remote ancestors succeeded in the complex task of creating symbols in
the form of words to convey the needs, intentions and ideas. However, even before this,
they employed a rich repertoire of non-verbal signals by which they could share meaning.

Yet it is only comparatively recently that scholars of human communication have

begun to examine by systematic and scientific means the ways in which we communicate
without using words. Non-verbal communication entails those interpersonal forms of
communication that do not rely on either written or spoken words. There is a distinction
between communication without words and interpersonal interaction (non-verbal
communication) when using print media. We may of course communicate a good deal
without using words when we produce a written document such as a memo or a report (e.g.,
by the appearance of the document, the quality of paper used, the amount of white space
we allow and so on). This kind of non-verbal information transfer is known, however, as
Meta-communication.

Meta-communication means the additional elements beyond the apparent message

content that are contained in a message or a communicative situation. These additional
elements help us to achieve supplementary insights into what we should construe from the
message or what else the message sender may have in mind. Often meta-communication is
considered a special reference to communication of a print or non-interpersonal nature.

5.2 What is Communicating Non-Verbally?

In business communication as well as routine communication, non-verbal
communication plays an key role. It is human nature to see, to hear, to think and then to
react i.e. we see or hear a thing first; then the mind analyses it and then we react according
to the situation. More than 90% of the total impact of any message is created through non-
verbal communication. In an organisation, higher-level authorities have 50 to 60 % impact by
facial expression, body position and gestures. They use 5 to 10 % words for impact and 30 to
40 % impact is given by their verbal communication.

Non-verbal communication is an integral part of us and facilitates effective

communication. The way an individual stands, holds his hands, tilts his head, all transmit
volumes about the individual. One of the most important solutions to understanding
communication is to realise that much of it is never expressed verbally. A non-verbal
154 Managerial Skill Development
message can be transmitted by a nod of the head, a frown, an enthusiastic tone of voice,
leaving one’s office door open or closed, wearing a dirty shirt or arriving late for an appoint-
ment. Actions often do speak louder than words, as the following examples show: nodding
head sideways for negative and up and down for affirmative.

Non-verbal communication affects decisions, shapes, careers and in many other ways
moulds the quality of working life in organisations. This chapter is an introduction to the rich
variety of dimensions by which we transmit and receive meanings non-verbally.

Non-verbal communication is the term commonly used to refer to all communication

that occurs by other means than spoken and written words. Such communication takes
place along many dimensions:

Non-verbal communication consists of four main elements: body language (face,

eyes, touch, gestures), artifacts (clothing, appearance, office design), voice (pitch, loudness,
rate, vocal variety, vocal emphasis) and time.

Study Notes

Assessment

1. What is non-verbal communication?

Discussion

Discuss the types of non-verbal gestures which you use every day.

Managerial Skill Development 155

5.3 Types of Non Verbal Communication
A) POSTURE AND GESTURE

It is the most common type of non-verbal communication. It is also called as kinesics.

Postures and gestures are reflexive of tension, relaxation, power, happiness, sorrow etc. At
times, they have the ability to add meanings to verbal message.

Gestures serve a controlling function when in some way they regulate behaviour. On
a building site, the person in charge of the crane is dependent on controlling gestures from
people on the ground for instructions on when to lift and where to put materials etc. The
conductor of an orchestra uses controlling gestures to communicate with the players; the
conductor will additionally employ gestures to emphasise and to convey emotion.

A more subtle form of control through gestures may occur in an organisation where a
manager uses a very dominant style to control subordinates. In this kind of context, it is very
likely that the subordinates will pay close attention to the gestures used by their superior,
putting a lot of weight on whether the boss nods or shakes his or her head or looks pleased
or displeased with a particular suggestion.

Display refers to a physical show of emotion or feelings, such as an expansive gesture

with the hands to display happiness, wiping the forehead in relief, clenching fists in anger,
opening arms in a welcoming gesture and so on. The nature and amount of display gestures
we use vary by culture and by personality. Some countries, like Italy and France, are rich in
display gestures with many Non-verbal signals accompanying interpersonal speech, while
people of British descent tend to use positively fewer such gestures.

An emblem is a gesture that substitutes for a verbal equivalent Examples are the sign
language used by the deaf, thumbs up means "yes" or "go ahead," V for victory or the poll
man's extended vertical palm as a stop sign.

Fig. 5.1: Thumbs up, Victory, stop hand signs

156 Managerial Skill Development

 Gestures used as emblems are always deliberate in nature but most others are
involuntary. Because they are involuntary in nature, they can serve to alert an observer as to
how listeners react to emblem gestures. The trained observer therefore knows to study the
gestures and body positioning of the other person to see what 'leaks' of actual response are
occurring. The study of how posture and body movement together combine to suggest
meaning is called kinesics.

Posture is another form of body language by which we send (usually involuntary)

messages. The way we stand shows how confident we feel, how we sit suggests whether we
feel relaxed, in charge or intimidated. When sitting with another person, posture can
indicate how we feel about that person. If the body is turned to show close attention to the
other, this implies attraction or that we think this person has high status.

When two individuals are in close agreement with one another or wish to exclude
others, frequently they will unconsciously mirror the other's body language. For example,
one person might cross their legs and very shortly after the other person will as well.

Turning away indicates fear, boredom or rejection of what the other is saying.
Crossed arms may convey opposition to what the speaker is saying and hands on hips may
suggest either self-confidence or a readiness to argue with what is being said. A person
leaning back in a chair with arms behind the head can be seen as signaling dominance or
complacency.

Posture is an aspect of non-verbal behaviour particularly likely to cause problems of

cross-cultural communication. A recent publication of the Accident Compensation
Commission and the Vocational Training Council describes some of the differences between
Polynesian and Pakeha New Zealand culture. In Polynesian culture, head down and
avoidance of eye contact signifies respect. This same body language, however, in Pakeha
society signifies disinterest. Sitting down in a chair before you are asked to displays respect
in Polynesian society but it suggests poor manners in a Pakeha setting.

Many other forms of movement also communicate. The speed with which we do our
work indicates our level of interest in it and if we are a formal or informal leader in a work
group, either our rate of work is an important message to our followers as to how fast or
slowly they should work also. If a leader becomes uninterested in the work, this usually com-
municates itself by body language. It may be expected that shortly thereafter, the
performance of others will decline also. Conversely, enthusiasm also communicates itself
and people respond positively when an influential other person displays pleasure in their
work.

Managerial Skill Development 157

 B) FACE AND OCCULESICS(EYES)

There is tremendous complexity in understanding these non-verbal messages.

Messages sent by eyes and faces are first to be noticed. Complexity arises because there are
so many ways in which eyes, eyebrows, forehead, lips and jaws can move. The movements
are so fast that various emotions can be made in very less time. However, researchers have
shown that people in general are accurate at judging the meaning of facial expression.

C) HAPTICS (TOUCH)

From ancient times, we have been using the touch method for communication.
Touch is a symbol of love, affection, praise, warmth etc.

• We shake hands to show warmth and affection to others.

• We hug our friends to show love and affection.

• Babies and children are touched in order to grow and flourish.

• Touch improves mental functioning.

• Touch improves physical health problem.

• Respect for parents is shown by touching their feet.

• Elders bless younger ones by touching their head.

Yet touch is also surrounded by strong cultural and social taboos. Touch that is
acceptable between people of the same sex or within the same family may be much less
acceptable between individuals of opposite sexes or different families. The extent of
touching found allowable varies according to one's culture, age group, sex and social
situation. Like other non-verbal interaction, there are no formal guidelines on what is and is
not acceptable touching behaviour. However, usually people are in little doubt about the
extent of touch acceptable in their particular setting.

In some societies, it is usual for men to kiss each other on meeting or hold hands
while walking together and not to do so would be regarded as cold and unfriendly. Other
societies find this either comical or threatening. In Maori culture, it is customary for visitors
to be greeted by a hug, kiss or both and in this context a kiss between a man and a woman
who have not met each other before is normal behaviour. In the culture of some countries, a
kiss between two adults of the opposite sex who have not met each other before would be
considered unusual. It is very easy for misunderstandings to develop between people of
different cultural backgrounds. Either or both individuals may fail to understand the normal
cultural context of the other person.
158 Managerial Skill Development
 In addition to cultural background, the extent of touch is also influenced by
personality factors. Some people incorporate a lot of touch as part of their personal style.
They find it easy to give, and perhaps accept, touch in the form of a pat on the back or
shoulder or a touch on the arm. Often we are able to sense the difference between touch as
a natural expression of warmth or concern by another person or as lacking in sincerity. All of
us have a large collection of non-verbal signs by which we can signal to the other person
whether or not their touch is welcomed by us.

The major form of touch used in organisations is the handshake. It is also our most
common form of social physical contact. The handshake is virtually required behaviour for
men who meet each other for the first time. It is an important symbol of welcoming and
acceptance. Refusing or neglecting to shake hands with someone is considered insulting; it is
considered very poor manners if men shake hands when wearing gloves. In most societies, it
is even appropriate to remove the right glove before shaking hands.

Unlike women in many western European countries, New Zealand women do not
shake hands with men when being introduced. This historical detail will surely change with
time. Younger women, for example, generally seem to find shaking hands acceptable. The
entry of more women into managerial and other senior positions in organisations has left
many people confused about what is and is not appropriate behaviour when men and
women meet in a business context.

Recent observation seems to suggest that it is becoming normal for women to shake
hands with men. This can be a useful way of implying that there need be no distinctions at
work based on sex. It is best if women initiate a handshake when meeting a man as the male
is likely to be unsure if the woman wants this form of contact.

A handshake often serves as our first source of information about the other person
when we meet them. Wesson (1992) calls the handshake one of the most direct statements
of a person's self image and how they want to be perceived. The folklore of handshakes
suggests that a very limp grasp implies the person is insecure or depressed, an individual
with an excessively strong grip is trying to dominate you, someone who pumps your arm in a
very vigorous, machine-like fashion is lacking in flexibility and sensitivity to others and
someone who shakes hands compulsively with everyone he meets has a high need for
acceptance.

Apart from the handshake, in organisational settings touch is an infrequently used

means of communication. Touch can suggest that one person is signaling that he or she is of
a higher organisational rank than the other. It is normally more acceptable for a person of

Managerial Skill Development 159

higher status to pat a subordinate on the shoulder, for example, than vice versa.

D) CLOTHING

Clothing must be always suitable to the occasion. Two candidates were called for an
interview for the post of Marketing Executive. The first one wore jeans pant and T-shirt
without press and carried a hand written resume. The second person wore a pressed shirt,
necktie and typed resume. They answered same questions and even their answers were
almost same. However, chances are that the second person will be preferred due to his
professional appearance.

E) PROXEMICS (SPACE)

Distance plays an important role in Communication. For normal non-verbal

Communication distance varies from country to country, culture to culture and people to
people. Messages are created by the space we occupy and consider as "ours".

Proxemics is the term used by Hall (1969) to indicate our use of space and specifically
the distancing behaviour we employ. Each of us has a set of personal zones that we employ
when communicating with other people. Those we are psychologically closest to, we allow
closest to us in a physical sense. We avoid those whom we do not know, fear or dislike and
try to ensure there is a considerable space between us. Hall studied the distancing behaviour
of Americans and proposed they have four personal space zones:

Fig. 5.2: Proxemics

160 Managerial Skill Development
 Intimate zone: 0 to 45 cm. Hall suggested this is the distance of making love,
wrestling, offering comfort and protection. To this, we should add the dimensions of
controlling and aggression; when a person wishes to dominate another, often a strategy is to
invade their intimate zone.

Personal zone: 45 cm to 1.2 metres. This is a friendship distance, usually not available
to strangers or passing acquaintances. Touch is not usual but the distance is close enough to
enable conversation to be carried out in a quiet voice.

Social zone: 1.2 metres to 3.7 metres. In this zone, we carry out much of our casual
conversations or business of an impersonal nature. People in this zone have some minor
transaction to conduct with us but when it is completed, we normally break eye contact.

Public zone: over 3.7 metres. At this distance, we no longer communicate on a

conversational level; this is the appropriate distance for a public address or briefing. Part of
the art of public speaking is to convey the impression that we are conversing one to one in a
natural and conversational way, even though both the speaker and the listeners are well
aware that the speaker is completely outside the normal distance for conversational
discourse.

People's zones will differ according to the cultural group in which they were brought
up. Study these distances and assess how relevant they are to people you know. Do you
think there are differences between younger and older people? What is the influence of sex
differences on zones? When communicating with a person from another culture, it is
important to realize that their preference may be for either closer or more distant
communication than yours.

F) CHRONEMICS (TIME)

It is rightly said that time is money. The way one uses his/her time shows or gives
intentional or unintentional message about the importance and valuation of an individual. It
is also called as chronemics.

On the research front, non-verbal Communication is divided into three major parts
i.e. voice, quality, body language and Communication through space.

G) ARTIFACTS

Our offices and our homes tend to contain many indications of our status and our
self-image. Sometimes this is known as object language; the artifacts with which we
surround ourselves carry messages about the way we see ourselves and the positions we
occupy within our organisation.

Managerial Skill Development 161

 The number, quality and cost of the office furnishings signal organisational rank and
personal taste. An office filled with paintings, ornaments and other adornments signals that
the occupant places much store by aesthetic surroundings. A bare and simple environment
suggests that the inhabitant has a very business-like and functional approach to his or her
work.

There may also be company requirements about what may or may not be displayed
in people's offices. Over the past twenty years or so, some companies (especially larger
ones) have begun collecting art, both old and recent. Usually this is less as an investment
(though the astute collector can justify the costs of an art collection on economic grounds)
than as a statement that they like to be recognised as supporting the arts. Other companies
have no interest in building an art collection, preferring a more utilitarian approach to doing
business.

The manner in which we arrange the furniture within our office can say a lot about
how we view relationships with others. If we position the desk so it forms a barrier between
ourselves and the door, this signals that we wish to maintain a certain reserve between
ourselves and people entering. The desk used as barrier gives the occupant of the room a
non-verbal advantage. If the desk is positioned up against the wall, so you sit at it facing the
wall, then turn around to greet whoever enters, this indicates that you do not consider it
necessary to place barriers between yourself and the visitor.

Similarly, the height of the seating in an office can serve as a status barrier. If the
office incumbent has a chair higher than that of the visitor, this gives the former the
advantage of looking down on the other person. This can easily inhibit good communication,
particularly if the visitor already feels some reserve about being in the other's office space.
Some managers feel insecure about their own ability to handle an interview. Either
consciously or unwittingly they put on a show of authority to impress their visitor. Such a
manager needs to realize that when people arrive at their office, they are well aware that
the person they have come to see has the status conferred by their organisation. Therefore,
further demonstrations of rank should not be necessary.

If you want to show openness in an interview, by far the best strategy is to come out
from behind your desk and sit with the other person in as equal a relationship as possible.
This has the effect of helping him or her to relax and participate fully in the interview and
the occasion is much more likely to be successful.

162 Managerial Skill Development

 Study Notes

Assessment

1. Explain the posture and gesture form of non-verbal communication

2. Explain the Haptics (touch) form of non-verbal communication.

Discussion

Discuss the types of non-verbal gestures which you use every day.

5.4 Body Language

The body sends a continuous flow of hints and cues. As Erving Goffman observes,
even if a person stops talking, ‘he cannot stop communicating through body idiom; he must
say either the right thing or the wrong thing. He cannot say nothing.’

Presidents are not the only people who can communicate a lot while saying little. We
all use ‘body English.’ We lean; we point; we look away. Our hands move to punctuate our
sentences. We frown, smile, fold our arms, move forward, then move away. We express our
liking of another person, for example, by looking at them attentively, asking questions and
leaning forward, while with someone we dislike we remain silent, look away and lean back.
We tell somebody about our social or organisational status by walking tall or hunching
Managerial Skill Development 163
down, relaxing or being tense, gazing steadily or blinking frequently.

We may gain an introduction to the communicative functions of the body by

recognizing the importance of six physical aspects: body shape and appearance, posture,
gestures, touching, facial expressions and eye contact and gaze.

A) BODY SHAPE AND APPEARANCE

The body conveys meaning even when it is not in motion. For example, although no
proven connection exists between physique and behaviour, people tend to expect such
connections and base decisions on them, whether they realize it or not. Tall people are likely
to be considered more credible than shorter people; accordingly, one study found that taller
employees tend to receive higher salaries; even when their qualifications are equivalent to
those of shorter employees.

Skin colour and gender also affect Communication. For example, members of upper-
class, predominantly white communities, perceive whites as more credible than African
Americans. Men also tend to be seen as more credible than women, even by women.
Although such findings vary according to cultural norms, they show that physical attributes
can have a significant impact on people’s attempts at Communication.

Dress is also a form of non-verbal communication. It would be impossible to list all

the things that we can communicate through our clothing; the list would vary greatly with
time, place and situation. We can only say that skillful communicators attend to their
apparel. When a speaker presents himself, we see him before we start hearing him.
Immediately, we begin developing impressions of his abilities and attitudes based on the
non-verbal signals he sends. This is why body language is so critical in oral communication

Body language includes every aspect of your appearance, from what you wear, how
you stand, look and move, to your facial expressions and physical habits such as nodding
your head, jingling change in your pocket or pulling your necktie. Your use of space and
gestures are other key concerns.

B) PERSONAL APPEARANCE

Personal appearance plays a significant role; people see you before they hear you. As
you adapt your language to an audience, you should also dress accordingly. Appearance
includes clothes, hair, jewellery, cosmetics and so on. In today’s society, the purpose of
clothing has changed from fulfilling a basic need to making a personalised statement.
Clothes accent the body’s movements.

You should expect appearance to be a part of the message you communicate. Plan

164 Managerial Skill Development

your appearance in such a way that it communicates effectively to others. Even before the
speaker utters his first syllable, you begin to form an opinion about him and visualize the
way he is going to talk. One’s appearance may put the audience into a resistant or hostile
attitude or induce in them a receptive mood. You should be clean and well groomed,
conforming to the need of the occasion. Appearances communicate how we feel about
ourselves and how we want to be viewed.

EYE CONTACT

• It is rightly said that one who has the ability to read the eyes can read the thoughts.

• Eye contact is one of the most important and powerful parts of facial expression.

• Direct eye contact builds trust and confidence between speaker and receiver.

• It builds emotional relationship.

• Prolonged eye contact signals admiration, belief and can build anxiety.

• Averted eyes show anger, hurt feelings etc.

• Eye gaze shows power and dominance.

As mentioned above, eye behaviour communicates in many ways. It shows

emotions, establishes conversational regulators, it monitors feedback, serves as a reminder.
They supply and receive information. In this way, major aspects of communication are
conveyed through eyes.

Eyes are considered the window to the soul. You look at the eyes of a speaker to help
find out the truthfulness of his speech, his intelligence, attitudes and feelings. Eye contact is
a direct and powerful form of non-verbal communication. You use your eyes to collect
information. Looking directly at listeners builds rapport. It tells the audience that you are
sincere in what you say and you want them to pay attention. Prolonging the eye contact for
three to five seconds, however, gives the impression of staring. Eye contact is especially
important when you start the presentation and at the beginning of each new section.

Your upper eyelids and eyebrows help you to convey an intricate array of non-verbal
messages. Arabs, Latin Americans and South Europeans look directly into eyes. Asians and
Africans maintain far less eye contact. In the professional world, you should make personal
and pleasant eye contact with the listeners. It is not only that you should look at the
audience, how you look at them also counts. Do not look outside the windows, towards the
roof or floor or at one particular section; instead try to establish eye contact-with all. Your
eye contact shows your intensity and elicits a feeling of trust. A direct look conveys candour

Managerial Skill Development 165

and openness. This direct and powerful form is a signal for confidence or sincerity;
therefore, experienced speakers maintain longer eye contact. Your eyes should convey the
message, ‘I am pleased to talk with you; believe deeply in what I am saying’.

Eye contact and eye movement help you tremendously in the filtering process or in
getting the desired response or feedback. However, be wary of cultural differences when
addressing a foreign audience as signals vary from one culture to another.

Eye contact takes place when two people look at each other’s eyes. It tends to occur
when we are seeking feedback about another’s reactions, when we wish to signal that the
communication channel is open and when we want to signal our desire for inclusion. We
may also use especially prolonged or intense eye contact to put another under stress. Eye
contact diminishes when we have something to hide or are in competitive settings; where
there is dislike, tension or fear of deception; when we are physically close to those with
whom we are communicating; during long utterances or when we wish to break social
contact. The more people like each other, they tend to establish eye contact more often and
for longer periods. Of course, the long, icy stare can also convey antagonism.

The gaze is a non-verbal cue that both signals and helps to maintain status
differences. Ralph Exline and his colleagues have identified a pattern they call visual
dominance behaviour, which they find to be characteristic of people in high power positions.
Their studies show that people of high status look more at another person when they speak
than when they listen. Thus, high-status people who wish to bridge the status gap might try
to look more at others when those others are speaking. It is also typical of high-status
people to look less at other communicators than lower-status people do. To measure how
high their status truly is, managers, supervisors or staff experts in organisations might find it
revealing to observe the amount of eye contact they receive.

C) GESTURE

Gestures play an important role in non-verbal communication. The language of

gestures is associated with hand and arms movement with entire body capable of showing
gestures.

Symbols: With relatively fixed verbal translation, a large number of body movements
act as symbols.

E.g. First finger on the lips indicates, ‘To keep quiet’.

Yawning indicates ‘I am bored’ or 'I am angry' or ‘I have no interest’.

Nodding the head up and down indicates ‘Yes’ or ‘agree’.

166 Managerial Skill Development

 Showing first and Second finger in V shape indicates victory.

Tapping finger against skull indicates ‘I am thinking’.

ILLUSTRATORS

The movements of hands and arms go simultaneously with the words of speaker.
e.g. when we say the national anthem, we end it with “Jai Hind” and at the same moment,
we raise our right hand in air.

REGULATORS

Regulators control oral communication by alerting the sender to the need to hurry
up, go slow, turn left or right etc. Regulators include smiles, head movement, shift in eye
contact, shoulder slaps etc.

DISPLAYS

It indicates emotional states such as anger or embarrassment usually occurring in

facial expression.

ADAPTORS

These body gestures vary from person to person. These body gestures are automatic
and are not planned. Gesture is the movement made by hands, arms, shoulders, head and
torso. Skillful gestures can add to the impact of a speech. A well-timed gesture not only
drives a point home but also enhances the impact and adds greater value to what is being
said. Similarly, an ungainly gesture (like playing with your key chain or button) can mar the
effectiveness of the message.

Gestures clarify your ideas or reinforce them and should be well suited to the
audience and occasion. Gestures are more in number than any forms of non-verbal
communication and the meanings attached to them are diverse. It has been observed that
there are as many as 700,000 varied hand gestures alone. Some facial expressions are
common to all cultures. Even if you have never met a person from a particular culture, you
can recognise certain feelings or attitudes. These are love, happiness and mirth, surprise,
anger and determination, contempt and disgust, fear and suffering.

Gestures should not divert the attention of the listener and distract from your
message. Your gesture should be quite natural and spontaneous. Be aware of and avoid
irritating gestures like playing with a ring, twisting a key chain, clasping the hands tightly or
cracking your knuckles. Gestures can roughly be divided into the following types:

• Enumerative- numbers

Managerial Skill Development 167

• Descriptive- size of the objects

• Symbolic- abstract concepts

• Locative- location of an object

• Emphatic- emphasis

D)POSTURE

A person’s general posture indicates some meaning without any specific gestures.
Body posture conveys variety of messages. Postures means the position of body or body
parts i.e. The way you sit, the way you walk the way in which you stretch your legs. In
organisational life postures and gestures play an important role. In corporate sectors
persons postures and gestures can tell much about how effectively the person will perform
in an organisation. Postures include side-to-side movement, forward and backward
movements and vertical movements of arms, hands and body.

Posture generally refers to the way we hold ourselves when we stand, sit or walk.
Novice speakers are unsure of what to do with their body. Certain mannerisms creep in,
usually out of nervousness pacing constantly, bobbing the shoulders, fidgeting with notes,
jingling coins, either constantly moving or remaining static. These mannerisms show his
nervousness to the listeners and reduce the final effect of his speech or presentation on
them.

You need to analyse the effects of body shape and posture to understand their role
in non-verbal communication. When you are with your friends you are probably
spontaneous. You are unaware of your posture, being fluid in all of your physical
movements. However, when you encounter an unfamiliar situation, you become more
conscious of your posture. Stiff, unnatural positions such as the big leaf (hands crossed
below the waist with the back of the hand toward the audience) send the message that you
are unsure of yourself and your message. Instead, lower your hands to your sides in a
natural, relaxed and resting posture. Standing, sitting or walking in a relaxed way is a
positive posture, which will encourage questions and discussion. Squarely facing an
audience, being comfortably upright and evenly distributing your weight are all aspects of
posture that communicate professionalism, confidence, attention to detail and organisation.
Be and appear at ease; neither remains static nor fidget. Move occasionally to hold
attention, suggest transitions and increase emphasis. The way you sit, stand or walk reveals
a lot about you:

168 Managerial Skill Development

• Slumped posture- indicates low spirits

• Erect posture- indicates high spirits, energy and confidence

• Lean forward- indicates open, honest and interested

• Lean backward- indicates defensive or disinterested

• Crossed arms- indicates defensive and not ready to listen

• Uncrossed arms- indicates willingness to listen

E) BODY MOVEMENTS

On the regular basis, people should know what other people need to understand and
what other people are communicating with their posture and gestures.

a) Attitude b) Status c) States and Moods

• The movement of legs and shoulders conveys the attitude of communicators.

• Status influences body movement.

• One can make out easily the status of manager and worker by observing their body
language.

• States of moods depends upon the emotional level of an individual; anger, happiness,
sorrow etc. can easily be made out from an individual’s body language.

F) FACIAL EXPRESSION

Along with posture and gesture, facial expressions also play an important pan. The
face is the most expressive part of your body. A smile stands for friendliness, a frown for
discontent, raised eyebrows for disbelief, tightened jaw muscles for antagonism, etc. Facial
expressions are subtle. You can use them in a variety of ways: to aid, inhibit, or complement
your communication. The face rarely sends a single message at a time. Instead, it sends a
series of messages - your facial expressions may show anxiety, recognition, hesitation and
pleasure in quick succession, racial expression is difficult to interpret. Though there are only
five basic expressions, you can have 33 blends. (Fearce, C. Glenn 1988, Business
Communication: Principles and Application) People tend to hide their true feelings and
reveal only those expressions required at a particular movement at times.

The five basic expressions are:

• Inhibited-restricted and stolid

• Uninhibited-spontaneous and impetuous

Managerial Skill Development 169

• Substitute-happy with a long face

• Frozen-no change in expression

• Blank-no expression at all

The face is probably the single most important source of non-verbal Communication.
The muscles within the face allow it to convey several emotions simultaneously. Faces arc
sometimes hard to read, as in the case of the Mona Lisa, but fascination with her ambiguous
smile shows we are accustomed to getting our readings from facial expressions. Research by
Paul Ekman shows there is a set of facial expressions that most people can interpret with
great accuracy. From his observation of specified facial Ekman has developed a coding
system for six emotions: happiness, sadness, rise, anger, disgust and fear. His results
indicate:

• Happiness is conveyed by the lower face and eye area.

• Sadness is revealed most by the eyes.

• The eye area and lower face communicate surprise.

• The lower face, eye’s and forehead reveal anger.

• The lower face is most revealing.

• Fear is conveyed most by the eye area.

Attention to facial expressions can help people in organisations to communicate

more effectively.

Although the face can communicate a great deal, its expressions also seem to be the
type of non-verbal behaviour that people are best able to control. People best express with
their faces and since the face is so dominant in Communication, it is difficult for a casual
observer to determine whether or nor a communicator is sincere. One experiment has
indicated that only observers who concentrate on parts of the body other than the face can
detect the ‘leakage’ of feelings that a person does not intend to reveal.

We qualify our emotional expressions according to sets of display. The face is proba-
bly the single most important source of non-verbal Communication. While faces usually
suggest clear meanings, we should interpret their expressions cautiously and in context.

170 Managerial Skill Development

Example:

Ever since the birth of television we have been living in an increasingly image conscious
world. As a result, the way we look and the way we act, are often more important than the
words we say.

This is known as non- verbal communication, and is one of the main communication skills
you must master to become an effective communicator.

Importance of good non-verbal communication skills

A good example of the importance of non-verbal communication skills can be found with
research done after 1960s Kennedy Vs Nixon Debate.

When people were asked who had won the debate, those listening via radio awarded the
victory to Nixon. However, those watching the debate on television awarded Kennedy the
victory.

This example clearly Showed how having good non verbal skills (body language) and the way
you look, has a big influence on the overall message you convey to your listeners.

Managerial Skill Development 171

While Nixon may have been a good persuasive speaker over the radio, his shifty and
uncomfortable body language made television viewers suspicious and distrustful.

Consequently, his message was far less persuasive on TV than it was on radio, simply
because of his poor non verbal communication skills.

On the other hand, Kennedy displayed excellent non-verbal communication skills with a
confident body language that matched what he was saying. This made his message more
believable and therefore more persuasive.

Study Notes

Assessment

1. Explain the significance of body shape and appearance in body language.

2. Explain the significance of eye contact in body language.

Discussion

Discuss the various postures and identify the positive and negative postures.

172 Managerial Skill Development

5.5 What is Kinesics?
Kinesics is a major form of non-verbal communication. Kinesics is defined as ‘The
study of non linguistic bodily movements such as facial expression and gestures’.

Kinesics is the interpretation of body language such as facial expressions and

gestures or, more formally, non-verbal behaviour related to movement, either of any part of
the body or the body as a whole. Just being there, nodding your head, blinking your eyes,
shrugging shoulders, waving the hands and other such physical activities are all forms of
communication. Some kinesics behaviour is deliberately intended to communicate, as when
you nod your head for acceptance. Understanding non-verbal cues will develop your ability
to use them more effectively during your presentations.

Face: The most expressive means of body language are face and eyes. Various
meanings communicated by facial expression are happiness, sadness, disgust, contempt,
interest, bewilderment, determination, fear, anger, surprise. Interpretation of facial
meaning plays an important role in communication, because facial expressions can affect
the feedback positively as well as negatively.

While speaking, listening, reading or writing, we consciously use words to receive or

send ideas. We use words because they are the primary symbolic forms that convey our
thoughts. On paper, words remain static; punctuation marks are used to convey pauses,
expressions, emotions, etc. However, in face-to-face communication, the message is
conveyed on two levels simultaneously. One is verbal and the other is non-verbal. For
example, you are congratulating two of your friends on their success in their interviews. If
you extend your hand to them with a big smile on your face along with your utterance,
‘congrats’, your appreciation has more impact on them than the word in isolation. Your
smile and the handshake are non-verbal means of communication, which enhance the
impact of your verbal communication.

The non-verbal part of an oral presentation is not as deliberate and conscious as

verbal communication. Rather, it is subtle and instinctive. Non-verbal communication refers
to all communication that occurs without the use of words either spoken or written. Non-
verbal communication is concerned with body movements (Kinesics), space (proxemics) and
vocal features (paralinguistic features). It is important that we know more about these
features of body language because the verbal components of oral communication carry less
than 35 % of the social meaning of the situation, while more than 65 % is buried on the non-
verbal band. People react strongly to what they see.

Managerial Skill Development 173

 Study Notes

Assessment

1. What is Kinesics?

2. Explain the importance of a face in Kinesics.

Discussion

“Non-verbal part of an oral presentation is subtle and instinctive.” Discuss.

5.6 Summary
Non-Verbal Communication: Verbal communication is the term commonly used to
refer to all communication that occurs by other means than spoken and written words. It is
an integral part of us and helps in communicating effectively. The way an individual
positions him, holds his hands, tilts his head, all transmit volumes about the individual. Non-
verbal communication is the term commonly used to refer to all communication that occurs
by means other than spoken and written words.

Elements of Non-Verbal Communication: Non-verbal communication consists of

four main elements: body language (face, eyes, touch, gestures), artifacts (clothing,
appearance, office design), voice (pitch, loudness, rate, vocal variety, vocal emphasis) and
time.

174 Managerial Skill Development

 Body Language: The body sends a continuous flow of cues that tell us about the
speakers' mindset and emotions.

Physical Aspects to recognise Body Language: We may gain an introduction to the

communicative functions of the body by recognizing the importance of six physical aspects:
body shape and appearance, posture, gestures, touching, facial expressions and eye contact
and gaze.

Kinesics: Kinesics is defined as ‘The study of non linguistic bodily movements such as
facial expression and gestures’. Kinesics is the interpretation of body language such as facial
expressions and gestures or, more formally, non-verbal behaviour related to movement,
either of any part of the body or the body as a whole.

5.7 Self Assessment Test

Broad Questions

1. What do you mean by non-verbal communication? Explain physical aspects which can be
recognised while communicating non-verbally.

2. What are the various types of non-verbal communication? Explain all in detail.

Short Notes

a. Body Language
b. Kinesis
c. Posture
d. Gesture
e. Personal appearance

5.8 Further Reading

1. Business Communication from Process to Product, Bowman, Joel P and Branchaw,
Bemadine, 1987 Dryden Press, Chicago

2. Business Communications: Principles and Applications, 2nd edition, Pearce C Glenn etc.
1988, John Wiley, New York

3. Communicating in Business, Hatch Richard, 1977 Science Research Associates, Chicago

4. Effective Business Communications, Murphy, Herta A and Peck, Charries E, 2nd ed, 1976,
Tata McGraw Hill, New Delhi

5. Successful Business Communication, 3rd ed., Treece Maira, 1987, Allyn and Bacon,
Boston
Managerial Skill Development 175
Assignment
Observe non-verbal communication aspects of some of your friends and rate aspects on the
scale of 1 to 10.

• Body Language

• Gesture

• Posture

• Facial Expressions

• Appearance

• Presentation

• Eye Contact

• Confidence

• Attitude

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

176 Managerial Skill Development

Glossary
A

Acknowledgment responses: Nods, smiles, frowns and words that let a speaker know you
are listening.

Active listening: Feeding back the literal meaning or the emotional content or
both so that the speaker knows that the listener has heard and
understood.

Active verb: A verb that describes the action of the grammatical subject of
the sentence

Adjustment: The response to a claim letter; if the company agrees to grant

a refund, the amount due will be adjusted.

Analytical report: A report that interprets information

Assumptions: Statements that are not proven in a report, but on which the
recommendations are based

Behavioural interviews: Job interviews that ask candidates to describe actual

behaviours they have used in the past in specific situations

Bias-free language: Language that does not discriminate against people on the
basis of sex, physical condition, race, age or any other category

Blind ads: Job listings that do not list the company’s name

Blind copies: Copies sent to other recipients that are not listed on the
original letter or memo

Block format: In letters, a format in which inside address, date and signature
block are lined up at the left margin

Blocking: Disagreeing with every idea that is proposed in a meeting

Body: The main part of a letter, memo or report

Body language: Non-verbal communication conveyed by posture and

movement, eye contact, facial expressions and gestures

Boilerplate: Language from a previous document that a writer includes in a

new document, writers use boilerplate both to save time and

Managerial Skill Development 177

 energy and to use language that has already been approved by
the organisation’s legal staff.

Brainstorming: A method of generating ideas by recording everything a person

or a group thinks of, without judging or evaluating the ideas.

Branching question: Question that sends respondents who answer differently to

different parts of the questionnaire; allows respondents to
answer only those questions that are relevant to their
experience

Bridge: A sentence that connects the attention-getter to the body of a

letter

Buffer: A neutral or positive statement designed to allow the writer to

bury or buffer, the negative message.

Build goodwill: To create a good image of yourself and of your organisation.

The kind of image that makes people want to do business with
you.

Bullets: Large round dots or squares that set off items in a list, when
you are giving examples, but the number is not exact and the
order does not matter, use bullets to set off items.

Business slang: Terms that have technical meaning but are used in more
general sense

Used sparingly, these terms are appropriate in job application

letters and in messages for people in the same organisation,
who are likely to share the vocabulary.

Businessese: A kind of jargon including unnecessary words, some words

were common 200 to 300 years ago but are no longer part of
spoken English. Some have never been used outside of
business writing. All of these terms should be omitted.

Buying time with limited agreement: Agreeing with the small part of a criticism that one
does accept as true

Case: The grammatical role a noun or pronoun plays in a sentence.

The nominative case is used for the subject of a clause, the

178 Managerial Skill Development

 possessive to show who or what something belongs to, the
objective case for the object of a verb or a preposition.

Channel: The physical means by which a message is sent.; written

channels include memos, letters and billboards; oral channels
include phone calls, speeches and face-to-face conversations

Channel overload: The inability of a channel to carry all the messages that are
being sent

Chartjunk: Decoration that is irrelevant to a visual and that may be

misleading

Checking for feelings: Identifying the emotions that the previous speaker seemed to
be expressing verbally or non-verbally

Checking for inferences: Trying to identify the unspoken content or feelings implied by
what the previous speaker has actually said

Choice or selection: The decision to include or omit information in a message

Chronological résumé: A résumé that lists what you did in a timeline, starting with the
most recent events and going backward in reverse chronology

Citation: Attributing a quotation or other idea to a source in the body of

the report

Claim Letter A letter requesting a replacement or refund.

Clear: A message whose audience gets the meaning the writer or

speaker intended.

Clip art: Pre-drawn images that you can import into your newsletter,
sign or graph.

Close: The ending of a document

Closed or defensive body position: Keeping the arms and legs crossed and close to the
body. Suggests physical and psychological discomfort,
defending oneself and shutting the other person out

Closed question: Question with a limited number of possible responses.

Closure report: A report summarising completed research that does not result
in action or recommendation

Managerial Skill Development 179

Clowning: Making unproductive jokes and diverting the group from its
task.

Clustering: A method of thinking up ideas by writing the central topic in

the middle of the page, circling it, writing down the ideas that
topic suggests and circling them

Collaborative writing: Working with other writers to produce a single document

Collection letter: A letter asking a customer to pay for goods and services
received.

Collection series: A series of letters asking customers to pay for goods and
services they have already received. Early letters in the series
assume that the reader intends to pay but final letters
threaten legal action if the bill is not paid.

Comma splice or comma fault: Using a comma to join two independent clauses; to correct,
use a semicolon, subordinate one of the clauses or use a
period and start a new sentence.

Common ground: Values and goals that the writer and reader share

Communication theory: A theory explaining what happens when we communicate and

where miscommunication can occur

Complaint letter: A letter that challenges a policy or tries to get a decision

changed

Complete: A message that answers all of the audience’s questions, the

audience has enough information to evaluate the message and
act on it

Complex sentence: Sentence with one main clause and one subordinate clause

Complimentary close: The words after the body of the letter and before the signature

Sincerely and cordially are the most commonly used

complimentary closes in business letters.

Compound sentence: Sentence with two main clauses joined by a conjunction

Conclusion: Section of a report that restates the main points

180 Managerial Skill Development

Conflict resolution: Strategies for getting at the real issue, keeping discussion
open, and minimising hurt feelings so that people can find a
solution that feels good to everyone involved

Connotations: The emotional colourings or associations that accompany a

word

Convenience sample: A group of subjects to whom the researcher has easy access.

Conversational style: Conversational patterns such as speed and volume of speaking,

pauses between speakers, whether questions are direct or
indirect. When different speakers assign different meanings to
a specific pattern, miscommunication results

Coordinating: Planning work, giving directions, fitting together contributions

of group members

Coordination: The third stage in the life of a task group, when the group
finds, organises and interprets information and examines
alternatives and assumptions. This is the longest of the four
stages.

Correct: Used to describe a message that is accurate and free from

errors in punctuation, spelling, grammar, word order and
sentence structure

Credibility: The audience’s response to the source of the message

Criteria: The standards used to evaluate or weigh the factors in a

decision

Critical incident: An important event that illustrates a subordinate’s behaviour

Cropping: Cutting a photograph to fit a specific space. Also, photographs

are cropped to delete visual information that is unnecessary or
unwanted.

Culture: The unconscious patterns of behaviour and beliefs that are

common to a people, nation or organisation.

Cycling: The process of sending a document from writer to superior to

writer to yet another superior for several rounds of revisions
before the document is approved

Managerial Skill Development 181

 D

Dangling modifier: A phrase that modifies a word that is not actually in a

sentence; to correct a dangling modifier, recast the modifier as
a subordinate clause or revise the sentence so its subject or
object can be modified by the now-dangling phrase.

Data: Facts or figures from which conclusions can be drawn

Database: A computer program that organises data in categories the user

can then manipulate to get the information he or she needs

Decode: To extract meaning from symbols

Decorative visual: A visual that makes the speaker’s points more memorable but
that does not convey numerical data.

Defensive or closed body position: Keeping the arms and legs crossed and close to the body
suggests physical and psychological discomfort, defending
oneself and shutting the other person out.

Demographic characteristics: Measurable features of an audience that can be counted

objectively: age, sex, race, education level, income

Denial: A refusal to accept or believe something that is potentially

harmful or life threatening; people deny realities that are too
much for them to cope with.

Denotation: A word’s literal or 'dictionary' meaning; most common words

in English have more than one denotation. Context usually
makes it clear which of several meanings is appropriate.

Dependent clause: A group of words that contains a subject and a verb but cannot
standby itself as a complete sentence

Descriptors: Words describing the content of an article; used to permit

computer searches for information on a topic

Dingbats: Small symbols such as arrows, pointing fingers and so forth

that are part of a typeface

Direct request: A pattern of organisation that makes the request directly in the
first and last paragraphs

Directed subject line: A subject line that makes clear the writer’s stance on the issue

182 Managerial Skill Development

Discourse community: A group of people who share assumptions about what
channels, formats and styles to use for communication, what
topics to discuss and how to discuss them and what constitutes
evidence.

Document design: The process of writing, organizing and laying out a document
so that it can be easily used by the intended audience

Documentation: Providing full bibliographic information so that interested

readers can go to the original source of material used in a
report

Dominating: Trying to run a group by ordering, shutting out others and

insisting on one’s own way

Dot charts: Dot charts show correlations or other large data sets. Dot
charts have labelled horizontal and vertical axes

Early letter: A collection letter that is gentle. An early letter assumes that
the reader intends to pay but has forgotten or has met with
temporary reverses

Editing: Checking the draft to see that it satisfies the requirements of

good English and the principles of business writing, unlike
revision, which can produce major changes in meaning, editing
focuses on the surface of writing

Ego-involvement: The emotional commitment the audience has to its position

Elimination of alternatives: A pattern of organisation for reports that discusses the

problem and its causes, the impractical solutions and their
weaknesses and finally the solution the writer favours

Emotional appeal: Making the audience do what the writer or speaker asks.

Empathy: The ability to put oneself in someone else’s shoes, to feel with
that person

Encode: To put ideas into symbols

Enunciate: To voice all the sounds of each word while speaking

Evaluating: Measuring the draft against your goals and the requirements
of the situation and audience, anything produced during each
Managerial Skill Development 183
 stage of the writing process can be evaluated, not just the final
draft.

Evidence: Facts or data the audience already accepts

Exaggeration: Making something sound bigger or more important than it

really is

Executive summary: A summary of a report, specifying the recommendations and

the reasons for them

Expectancy theory: A theory that argues that motivation is based on the

expectation of being rewarded for performance and the
importance of the reward

External audiences: Audiences who are not part of the writer’s organisation

External documents: Documents that go to people in another organisation

External report: Report written by a consultant for an organisation of which he

or she is not a permanent employee

Extrinsic benefits: Benefits that are 'added on'; they are not a necessary part of
the product or action

Eye contact: Looking another person directly in the eye

Feasibility study: A report that evaluates two or more possible alternatives and
recommends one of them, doing nothing is always one
alternative.

Feedback: The receiver’s response to a message

Figure: Any visual that is not a table

Fixed typeface: A typeface in which each letter has the same width on the
page

Sometimes called typewriter typeface

Flaming: Sending out an angry e-mail message before thinking about

the implications of venting one’s anger

Focus groups: Small groups who come in to talk with a skilled leader about a
potential product

184 Managerial Skill Development

Forced choice: A choice in which each item is ranked against every other item;
used to discover which of a large number of criteria are crucial

Form letter: A letter that is sent unchanged or with only minor

modifications to a large number of readers

Formal meetings: Meetings run under strict rules, such as the rules of
parliamentary procedure summarised in Robert’s Rules of
Order.

Formal report: A report containing formal elements such as a title page, a

transmittal, a table of contents and an abstract

Formalisation: The fourth and last stage in the life of a task group, when the
group makes and formalises its decision

Format: The parts of a document and the way they are arranged on a
page

Formation: The second stage in the life of a task group, when members
choose a leader and define the problem they must solve

Free writing: A kind of writing uninhibited by any constraints. Free writing

may be useful in overcoming writer’s block, among other
things

Gatekeeper: The audience with the power to decide whether your message
is sent on to other audiences, some gatekeepers are also initial
audiences

Gathering: Physically getting the background data you need. It can include
informal and formal research or simply getting the letter to
which you are responding.

General slang: Words or phrases such as awesome, smoking or at the end of

my rope that are sometimes used in conversations and in
presentations, but are not appropriate in business and
administrative writing since they appear sloppy or imprecise.

Gerund: The -ing form of a verb; grammatically, it is a verb used as a

noun

Managerial Skill Development 185

Getting feedback: Asking someone else to evaluate your work, feedback is useful
at every stage of the writing process, not just during
composition of the final draft.

Glossary: A list of terms used in a report with their definitions

Goodwill: The value of a business beyond its tangible assets, including its
reputation and patronage, also, a favourable condition and
overall atmosphere of trust that can be fostered between
parties conducting business.

Goodwill ending: Shift of emphasis away from the message to the reader. A
good will ending is positive, personal and forward-looking and
suggests that serving the reader is the real concern.

Goodwill presentation: A presentation that entertains and validates the audience

Grammar checker: Software program that flags errors or doubtful usage

Grapevine: The informal informational network in an organisation, which

carries gossip and rumours as well as accurate information.

Ground rules: Procedural rules adopted by groups to make meetings run

smoothly

Groupthink: The tendency for a group to reward agreement and directly or

indirectly punish dissent

Guided discussion: A presentation in which the speaker presents the questions or

issues that both speaker and audience have agreed on in
advance, instead of functioning as an expert with all the
answers, the speaker serves as a facilitator to help the
audience tap its own knowledge

Headings: Words or short phrases that group points and divide your
letter, memo, or report into sections

Hearing: Perceiving sounds

Hidden job market: Jobs that are never advertised but may be available or may be
created for the right candidate

Hidden negatives: Words that are not negative in themselves, but become
negative in context
186 Managerial Skill Development
High-context culture: A culture in which most information is inferred from the
context, rather than being spelled out explicitly in words

Histogram: A bar graph using pictures, asterisks or points to represent a

unit of the data

Hot buttons: Issues to which the audience has a strong emotional response

Impersonal expression: A sentence that attributes actions to inanimate objects,

designed to avoid placing blame on a reader. Indented format:
A format for résumés in which items that are logically
equivalent begin at the same horizontal space, with carryover
lines indented three spaces. Indented format emphasises job
titles

Independent clause: A group of words that can stand by itself as a complete

sentence

Infinitive: The form of the verb that is preceded by to

Inform: To explain something or tell the audience something

Informal meetings: Loosely run meetings in which votes are not taken on every
point

Informal report: A report using letter or memo format

Information interview: An interview in which you talk to someone who works in the
hope to find out what the day-to-day work involves and how
you can best prepare to enter that field

Information overload: The inability of a human receiver to process all the messages
he or she receives

Information report: A report that collects data for the reader but does not
recommend action

Informational messages: In a group, messages focusing on the problem, data and

possible solutions

Informative message: Message to which the reader’s basic reaction will be neutral

Informative presentation: A presentation that informs or teaches the audience

Managerial Skill Development 187

Informative or talking heads: Headings that are detailed enough to provide an overview of
the material in the sections they introduce

Initial audience: The audience that assigns the message and routes it to other
audiences

Inside address: The reader’s name and address; put below the date and above
the salutation in most letter formats

Interactive presentation: A conversation in which the seller uses questions to determine

the buyer’s needs, probe objections and gain provisional and
then final commitment to the purchase

Intercultural competence: The ability to communicate sensitively with people from other
cultures and countries, based on an understanding of cultural
differences.

Internal audiences: Audiences in the writer’s organisation

Internal document: Document written for other employees in the same

organisation

Internal documentation: Providing information about a source in the text itself rather
than in footnotes or endnotes

Internal report: Reports written by employees for use only in their organisation

Interpersonal communication: Communication between people

Interpersonal messages: In a group, messages promoting friendliness, cooperation, and

group loyalty

Interpret: To determine the significance or importance of a message

Interview: Structured conversation with someone who is able to give you

useful information

Intrinsic benefits: Benefits that come automatically from using a product or

doing something

Introduction: The part of a report that states the purpose and scope of the
report, the introduction may also include limitations,
assumptions, methods, criteria and definitions

188 Managerial Skill Development

 J

Jargon: There are two kinds of jargon. The first kind is the specialized
terminology of a technical field. The second is businesses,
outdated words that do not have technical meanings and are
not used in other forms of English

Judgment sample: A group of subjects whose views seem useful

Justification report: Report that justifies the need for a purchase, an investment, a
new personnel line or a change in procedure

Justified margins: Margins that end evenly on the right side of the page

Keywords or descriptors: Words describing the content of an article used to permit

computer searches for information on a topic

Landscape graphs: Line graphs with the area below the line filled in are
sometimes called landscape graphs

Late letter: A collection letter that threatens legal action if the bill is not
paid

Letter: Short document using block or modified block format that goes
to readers outside your organisation

Letterhead: Stationery with the organisation’s name, logo, address and

telephone number printed on the page

Limitations: Problems or factors that limit the validity of the

recommendations of a report

Line graph: A visual consisting of lines that show trends or allow the
viewer to interpolate values between the observed values

Listening: Decoding and interpreting sounds correctly

Low-context culture: A culture in which most information is conveyed explicitly in

words rather than being inferred from context

Memo: Document using memo format sent to readers in your

organisation.
Managerial Skill Development 189
Methods section: The section of a report or survey describing how the data were
gathered

Middle letter: A collection letter that is more assertive than an early letter.
Middle letters may offer to negotiate a schedule for
repayment if the reader is not able to pay the whole bill
immediately, remind the reader of the importance of good
credit, educate the reader about credit or explain why the
creditor must have prompt payment.

Minutes: Records of a meeting, listing the items discussed, the results of

votes and the persons responsible for carrying out follow-up
steps

Misplaced modifier: A word or phrase that appears to modify another element of

the sentence than the writer intended.

Mixed punctuation: Using a colon after the salutation and a comma after the
complimentary close in a letter

Mode: The most frequent number

Modified block format: A letter format in which the inside address, date and signature
block are lined up with each other one-half or one-third of the
way over on the page

Modifier: A word or phrase giving more information about another word

in a sentence

Monochronic culture: Culture in which people do only one important activity at a

time

Monologue presentation: A presentation in which the speaker speaks without

interruption, the presentation is planned and is delivered
without deviation

Myers-Briggs Type Indicator: A scale that categorizes people on four dimensions: introvert-
extrovert; sensing-intuitive; thinking-feeling; and perceiving-
judging.

Negative message: A message in which basic information conveyed is negative;

the reader is expected to be disappointed or angry

190 Managerial Skill Development

News release: Messages that package information about a company and that
the writer would like announced in local and national media

Noise: Any physical or psychological interference in a message

Nominative case: The grammatical form used for the subject of a clause. I, we,
he, she and they are nominative pronouns

Nonagist: Words, images or behaviours that do not discriminate against

people on the basis of age

Nonracist: Words, images or behaviours that do not discriminate against

people on the basis of race

Nonrestrictive clause: A clause giving extra but unessential information about a noun
or pronoun, because the information is extra, commas
separate the clause from the word it modifies.

Nonsexist language: Language that treats both sexes neutrally, that does not make
assumptions about the proper gender for a job and that does
not imply that men are superior to or take precedence over
women

Non-verbal communication: Communication that does not use words

Normal interview: A job interview with some questions that the interviewer
expects to be easy, some questions that present an
opportunity to display strong points and some questions that
probe any weaknesses evident from the résumé

Noun-pronoun agreement: Having a pronoun be the same number (singular or plural) and
the same person (first, second or third) as the noun it refers to

Objective case: The grammatical form used for the object of a verb or
preposition, me ,us, him, her and them are objective pronouns

Omnibus motion: A motion that allows a group to vote on several related items
in a single vote, saves time in formal meetings with long
agendas

Open body position: Keeping the arms and legs uncrossed and away from the body

Suggests physical and psychological comfort and openness

Managerial Skill Development 191

Open punctuation: Using no punctuation after the salutation and the
complimentary close

Open question: Question with an unlimited number of possible responses

Organization: The order in which ideas are arranged in a message

Organizational culture: The values, attitudes and philosophies shared by people in an

organisation that shape its messages and its reward structure

Orientation: The first stage in the life of a task group, when members meet
and begin to define their task

Original or primary research: Research that gathers new information

Paired graphs: Two or more simple stories juxtaposed to create a more

powerful story

Parallel structure: Putting words or ideas that share the same role in the
sentence’s logic in the same grammatical form

Paraphrase: To repeat in your own words the verbal content of what the
previous speaker said

Passive verb: A verb that describes action done to the grammatical subject
of the sentence

People-first language: Language that names the person first, then the condition:
'people with mental retardation', used to avoid implying that
the condition defines the person’s potential

Perception: The ability to see, to hear, to taste, to smell, to touch

Performance appraisals: Supervisors’ written evaluations of their subordinates

Personal space: The distance someone wants between him- or herself and
other people in ordinary, non-intimate interchanges

Personalized: A form letter that is adapted to the individual reader by

including the reader’s name and address and perhaps other
information

Persuade: To motivate and convince the audience to act

Persuasive presentation: A presentation that motivates the audience to act or to believe

192 Managerial Skill Development

Pie chart: A circular chart whose sections represent percentages of a
given quantity

Pitch: The highness or lowness of a sound, low-pitched sounds are

closer to the bass notes on a piano; high-pitched sounds are
closer to the high notes

Planning: All the thinking done about a subject and the means of
achieving your purposes, planning takes place not only when
devising strategies for the document as a whole, but also when
generating 'mini-plans' that govern sentences or paragraphs.

Polychronic culture: Culture in which people do several things at once

Population: The group a researcher wants to make statements about

Positive emphasis: Focusing on the positive rather than the negative aspects of a
situation

Positive or good news message: Message to which the reader’s reaction will be positive

Possessive case: The grammatical form used to indicate possession or

ownership. My, our, his, hers, its and their are possessive
pronouns

Postal service abbreviations: Two-letter abbreviations for states and provinces

Prepositions: Words that indicate relationships, for example, with, in, under,
at

Presenting problem: The problem that surfaces as the subject of disagreement; the
presenting problem is often not the real problem

Primary audience: The audience who will make a decision or act based on a
message

Primary research: Research that gathers new information

Pro and con pattern: A pattern of organisation for reports that presents all the
arguments for an alternative and then all the arguments
against it

Problem-solving persuasion: A pattern of organisation that describes a problem that affects

the reader before offering a solution to the problem

Managerial Skill Development 193

Procedural messages: Messages focusing on a group’s methods: how it makes
decisions, who does what, when assignments are due

Process of writing: What people actually do when they write, most researchers
would agree that the writing process can include eight parts:
planning, gathering, writing, evaluating, getting feedback,
revising, editing and proofreading.

Product of writing: The final written document

Progress report: A statement of the work done during a period of time and the
work proposed for the next period

Proofreading: Checking the final copy to see that it is free from typographical
errors

Proportional font: A font in which some letters are wider than other letters (for
example, w is wider than i).

Proposal: Document that suggests a method for finding information or

solving a problem

Prospecting letter: A job application letter written to companies that have not
announced openings but where you would like to work

Psychographic data: Human characteristics that are qualitative rather than

quantitative: values, beliefs, goals and lifestyles

Psychological description: Description of a product or service in terms of reader benefits

Psychological reactance: Phenomenon occurring when a reader reacts to a negative

message by asserting freedom in some other arena

Purpose statement: The statement in a proposal or a report specifying the

organisational problem, the technical questions that must be
answered to solve the problem and the rhetorical purpose of
the report (to explain, to recommend, to request, to propose)

Questionnaire: List of questions for people to answer in a survey

Ragged right or unjustified margins: Margins that do not end evenly on the right side of the
page

194 Managerial Skill Development

Random sample: A sample for which each person of the population theoretically
has an equal chance of being chosen

Reader benefits: Benefits or advantages that the reader gets by using the
writer’s services, buying the writer’s products, following the
writer’s policies or adopting the writer’s ideas

Reader benefits can exist for policies and ideas as well as for
goods and services.

Recommendation report: A report that recommends action

Recommendations: Section of a report that specifies items for action

Reference line: A subject line that refers the reader to another document
(usually a numbered one, such as an invoice)

Referral interview: Interviews you schedule to learn about current job

opportunities in your field and to get referrals to other people
who may have the power to create a job for you, useful for
tapping into unadvertised jobs and the hidden job market

Release date: Date a report will be made available to the public

Request: To ask the audience to take an easy or routine action

Request for proposal (RFP): A statement of the service or product that an agency wants; a
bid for proposals to provide that service or product

Respondents: The people who fill out a questionnaire

Response rate: The percentage of subjects receiving a questionnaire who

agree to answer the questions

Restrictive clause: A clause limiting or restricting the meaning of a noun or

pronoun. Because its information is essential, no commas
separate the clause from the word it restricts

Résumé: A persuasive summary of your qualifications for employment

Reverse chronology: Starting with the most recent job or degree and going
backward. Pattern of organisation used for chronological
résumés

Revising: Making changes in the draft: adding, deleting, substituting or

rearranging

Managerial Skill Development 195

 Revision can be changes in single words, but more often it
means major additions, deletions or substitutions, as the
writer measures the draft against purpose and audience and
reshapes the document to make it more effective

RFP: See request for proposal

Rhetorical purpose: The effect the writer or speaker hopes to have on the audience
(to inform, to persuade, to build goodwill)

Rival hypotheses: Alternate factors that might explain observed results

Run-on sentence: A sentence containing several main clauses strung together

with and, but or so or for

Salutation: The greeting in a letter: 'Dear Ms. Smith'

Sample: The portion of the population a researcher actually studies

Sans serif: Literally, without serifs; typeface whose letters lack bases or
flicks; Helvetica and Geneva are examples of sans serif
typefaces

Saves the reader’s time: The result of a message whose style, organisation and visual
impact help the reader to read, understand and act on the
information as quickly as possible

Scope statement: A statement in a proposal or report specifying the subjects the

report covers and how broadly or deeply it covers them

Secondary audience: The audience affected by the decision or action; these people
maybe asked by the primary audience to comment on a
message or to implement ideas after they’ve been approved

Secondary research: Research retrieving data someone else gathered

Sentence fragment: A group of words that are not a complete sentence but that
are punctuated as if they were a complete sentence

Sentence outline: An outline using complete sentences that lists the sentences
proving the thesis and the points proving each of those
sentences. A sentence outline is the basis for a summary
abstract.

196 Managerial Skill Development

Serif: The little extensions from the main strokes on the r and g and
other letters, Times Roman and Courier are examples of serif
typefaces

Sexist interview: It is a stress interview in which questions are biased against

one sex; many sexist questions mask a legitimate concern. The
best strategy is to respond as you would to a stress question:
rephrase it and treat it as a legitimate request for information.

Signpost: An explicit statement of the place that a speaker or writer has

reached: 'Now we come to the third point'.

Simple sentence: Sentence with one main clause

Situational interviews: Job interviews in which candidates are asked to describe what
they would do in specific hypothetical situations

Skills résumé: A résumé organised around the skills you have used, rather
than the date or the job in which you used them

Slang: See business slang and general slang

Solicited letter: A job letter written when you know that the company is hiring

Spell checker: Software program that flags possible errors in spelling

Spot visuals: Informal visuals that are inserted directly into text; spot visuals
do not have numbers or titles

Stereotyping: Putting similar people or events into a single category, even

though significant differences exist

Storyboard: A visual representation of the structure of a document, with a

rectangle representing each page or unit; an alternative to
outlining as a method of organising material

Strategy: A plan for reaching your specific goals with a specific audience

Stress: Emphasis given to one or more words in a sentence

Stress interview: A job interview that deliberately puts the applicant under
stress, physical or psychological. Here it is important to change
the conditions that create physical stress and to meet
psychological stress by rephrasing questions in less
inflammatory terms and treating them as requests for
information.
Managerial Skill Development 197
Strong verbs: Verbs that help to convey information forcefully or more
clearly than verb strings or nouns

Structured interview: An interview that follows a detailed list of questions prepared

in advance

Subject line: The title of the document, used to file and retrieve the
document; subject line tells readers why they need to read the
document and provides a framework in which to set what you
are about to say.

Subjects: The people studied in an experiment, focus group or survey

Subordinate or dependent clause: A group of words containing a subject and a verb but that
cannot stand by itself as a complete sentence

Summarizing: Restating and relating major points, pulling ideas together

Summary sentence or paragraph: A sentence or paragraph listing in order the topics that
following sentences or paragraphs will discuss

Survey: A method of getting information from a large group of people

Table: Numbers or words arrayed in rows and columns

Talking heads: Headings that are detailed enough to provide an overview of

the material in the sections they introduce

Teleconferencing: Telephone conference calls among three or more people in

different locations and videoconferences where one-way or
two-way TV supplements the audio channel

Telephone tag: Making and returning telephone calls repeatedly before the
two people are on the line at the same time

Thank-you letter: A letter thanking someone for helping you

Threat: A statement, explicit or implied, that someone will be punished

if he or she does something

Tone: The implied attitude of the author toward the reader and the
subject

Tone of voice: The rising or falling inflection that indicates whether a group of
words is a question or a statement, whether the speaker is
198 Managerial Skill Development
 uncertain or confident, whether a statement is sincere or
sarcastic

Topic outline: An outline listing the main points and the sub points under
each main point; a topic outline is the basis for the table of
contents of a report.

Topic sentence: A sentence that introduces or summarizes the main idea in a

paragraph; a topic sentence may be either stated or implied
and it may come anywhere in the paragraph

Transitions: Words, phrases or sentences that show the connections

between ideas

Transmit: To send a message

Transmittal: A memo or letter explaining why something is being sent

Truncated code: Symbols such as asterisks that turn up other forms of a

keyword in a computer search

Truncated scales: Graphs with part of the scale missing

Umbrella sentence or paragraph: A sentence or paragraph listing in order the topics that
following sentences or paragraphs will discuss

Understatement: Downplaying or minimizing the size or features of something

Unity: Using only one idea or topic in a paragraph or other piece of

writing

Unjustified margins: Margins that do not end evenly on the right side of the page

Unstructured interview: An interview based on three or four main questions prepared

in advance and other questions that build on what the
interviewee says

Verbal communication: Communication that uses words; may be either oral or written

Vested interest: The emotional stake readers have in something if they benefit
from keeping things just as they are

Visual impact: The visual 'first impression' you get when you look at a page

Managerial Skill Development 199

Volume: The loudness or softness of a voice or other sound

Watchdog audience: An audience that has political, social or economic power and
that may base future actions on its evaluation of your message

Weak verbs: Verbs composed of a form of the verb to be plus a noun

White space: The empty space on the page, white space emphasises
material that it separates from the rest of the text.

Withdrawing: Being silent in meetings, not contributing, not helping with the
work, not attending meetings

Wordiness: Taking more words than necessary to express an idea

Works cited: The sources specifically referred to in a report

Writing: The act of putting words on paper or on a screen or of

dictating words to a machine or a secretary

You-attitude: A style of writing that looks at things from the reader’s point of
view, emphasises what the reader wants to know, respects the
reader’s intelligence and protects the reader’s ego; using you
probably increases you-attitude in positive situations. In
negative situations or conflict, avoid you since that word will
attack the reader

200 Managerial Skill Development