Module 1 Assignments Introduction To Business Communication
Module 1 Assignments Introduction To Business Communication
Prof. J. Haste stated that when communication occurs between two or more business
people for effective organization and administration of business, it is considered
business communication.
According to W.H., business communication is exchanging business-related views,
ideas, and news among the related parties.
Ricks and Gow defined business communication as a system that affects change
throughout the whole organization.
Top to bottom
Top-to-bottom communication is an organizational communication approach in which
information flows from senior management.
When major business choices are taken at the highest levels, businesses require an
efficient method of communicating the decision throughout the organization. As a
result, many firms adopt top-to-bottom communication to guarantee that information
flows freely from senior management to IC-level personnel.
Peer to peer
A lot of our daily work depends on having a good connection with our co-workers.
Yes, having a good relationship with your boss is crucial, but some of us may go days
without speaking to them.
Being able to successfully interact with our colleagues assists us in getting our duties
done by answering questions, exchanging information, and providing feedback. Not
to mention that excellent communication can increase workplace fun and vitality.
Bottom to top
It is an organizational communication strategy in which information is disseminated
throughout the corporation from lower-level managers and team members. While
bottom-up communication is not as prevalent as top-down communication, it can be
incredibly effective.
Democratization
Voices of otherwise minority populations are more equitably represented in
organizations that contain democratic decision-making aspects. The strategy firms use
in decision making is just as essential as the decision itself. Look for ways to enhance
and foster a planning culture based on enterprise-wide information sharing and data-
driven communication from top to bottom.
Boost motivation and morale
Business communication is critical in enhancing employee efficiency. Different plans
and policies, essential issues, organizational goals, and so on are described to
employees through communication, which improves their knowledge and makes them
more efficient in performing their responsibilities.
Job satisfaction
Effective, fair and easy communication improves mutual connection and
understanding between employees and management. This contributes to higher
satisfaction levels among employees who work hard to attain their objectives.
Higher productivity
Effective business communication boosts employee productivity by encouraging
teamwork. It fosters an environment of trust and understanding among employers and
employees. Cooperation with employees and understanding their wants and desires
are required for effective communication.
Employees can complete their responsibilities more successfully and efficiently this
way. Furthermore, excellent communication reduces the possibility of making
mistakes during their task.
Proper planning
Organizations may develop excellent plans and policies through effective business
communication. These strategies and policies must be based on accurate information.
Managers must communicate policies and plans within the organization to implement
or execute them on time. They can convey strategies and policies to internal and
external stakeholders through effective communication.
Minimize conflicts
Different business parties can exchange information more smoothly with excellent
communication. As a result, there are fewer conflicts, debates, and disagreements
between them.
Completeness
It is necessary to communicate completely. The audience should receive all the
information they require from it. The sender must take the receiver’s viewpoint into
account and correctly relay the message. The following components are included in a
thorough communication-
Make sure that the audience’s self-esteem and emotions are not jeopardized. Modify
your message’s terms to meet the needs of the audience while keeping your it
complete.
Clarity
When you are able to transmit your thoughts and opinions into the recipient’s mind,
you know communication is effective. You don’t want the recipient to make
assumptions or have a hazy understanding of what you’re expressing.
Only when they completely grasp your message will they be able to make the
appropriate decision. It might occur when you employ plain and straightforward
language to express your point to the recipient.
Concreteness
Concrete communication entails being specific and explicit rather than vague and
generic. Concreteness boosts confidence. Simply delivering your message through
statements and questions will not captivate your audience. It is important to back up
your claims with appropriate facts, numbers, and statistics. Otherwise, your audience
will not know whether your message is genuine or not.
Courtesy
Courtesy in a message indicates that the message should reflect the sender’s
expression while also respecting the receiver. The sender should be honest, polite,
prudent, contemplative, empathetic, and enthusiastic.
Correctness
Communication correctness implies that there are no grammatical errors in
communication. Information correctness or factual accuracy is important in both
verbal and nonverbal communication. You must choose the appropriate words at the
right time while also ensuring that the information is reliable.
Communication barriers
We jeopardize ourselves and others when we fail to communicate properly, regardless
of the mode of communication: spoken, nonverbal, written, listening, or visual. Apart
from physical and technological hurdles, there are a few communication barriers that
every employee and management should seek to eliminate.
Cultural differences
Understanding cultural differences in communication is critical. You must think
globally; remember that in Japan, one’s surname comes before their given name.
There may also be regional differences within the organization’s limits, and failing to
appreciate cultural differences could insult someone.
Communication style
Everyone has a unique style of communicating. Some people are quite
straightforward, while others choose to be more oblique. Some employ specific facts,
while others rely on broad strokes, and so on. Sometimes one individual is so
entrenched in their communication style that they find it difficult to communicate
with others who use a different style.
Nonverbal communication
Body language is another term for nonverbal communication. Nonverbal
communication demonstrates to people that you are prepared to communicate
effectively by maintaining eye contact, sitting attentively, and positioning your body
to face the person speaking. Folding your arms across your chest, clenching your fists,
and gazing downward indicate that you are distracted or uninterested, which might
impede the conversation.
Be open-minded
Maintain an open mind to facilitate efficient conversation. Avoid placing judgment on
or criticizing communicated messages. You do not have to agree with the other
person’s beliefs and opinions, but you must respect them.
Active listening
Active listening allows you to gain a better grasp of the thoughts and feelings of
another individual. To display this communication ability, concentrate your attention
on the person speaking. Interrupting someone else’s speech might disrupt the flow of
the conversation.
Compromise
It is important to compromise while you’re communicating with someone. When an
issue arises, both persons must work cooperatively to develop a list of prospective
solutions as well as agreed-upon trade-offs.
Final word
Effective communication is crucial in assisting employees in forming a social circle or
bond. Some firms have an open culture or work environment in which employees at
all levels are free to speak with one another and with their supervisors. Other
organizations prefer to communicate using a hierarchy or chain of command.
Good communicators are vital to a business's profit margin and reputation. Employees
who communicate well and understand the company's vision help make the company
successful. Using effective communication skills can benefit a business and its
employees in a variety of ways, including:
Communicate goals clearly, and regularly remind employees of the team or individual
goals to keep them motivated and encouraged. It can also help employees understand
the importance of their roles in making the company successful, which can improve
loyalty within the company and reduce hiring turnover.
This is why the seven Cs of communication provide a checklist for making sure that
your meeting, emails, conference calls, reports, and presentations are well constructed
and clear – so your audience gets your message.
According to the seven Cs, communication needs to be: clear, concise, concrete,
correct, coherent, complete and courteous.
In this article, we look at each of the 7 Cs of Communication, and we’ll illustrate each
element with both good and bad examples.
1. Clear
When writing or speaking to someone, be clear about your goal or message. What is
your purpose in communicating with this person? If you’re not sure, then your
audience won’t be sure either.
To be clear, try to minimize the number of ideas in each sentence. Make sure that it’s
easy for your reader to understand your meaning. People shouldn’t have to “read
between the lines” and make assumptions on their own to understand what you’re
trying to say.
Information and actions required, must be clear so the reader has the information they
need to take action.
2. Concise
When you’re concise in your communication, you stick to the point and keep it brief.
Your audience doesn’t want to read six sentences when you could communicate your
message in three.
Are there any adjectives or “filler words” that you can delete? You can often
eliminate words like “for instance,” “you see,” “definitely,” “kind of,” “literally,”
“basically,” or “I mean.”
Are there any unnecessary sentences?
Have you repeated the point several times, in different ways?
3. Concrete
When your message is concrete, then your audience has a clear picture of what you’re
telling them. There are details (but not too many!) and vivid facts, and there’s laser-
like focus. Your message is solid.
4. Correct
When your communication is correct, it fits your audience. And correct
communication is also error-free communication.
Do the technical terms you use fit your audience’s level of education or knowledge?
Have you checked your writing for grammatical errors? Remember, spell checkers
won’t catch everything.
Are all names and titles spelled correctly?
5. Coherent
When your communication is coherent, it’s logical. All points are connected and
relevant to the main topic, and the tone and flow of the text is consistent.
6. Complete
In a complete message, the audience has everything they need to be informed and, if
applicable, take action.
Does your message include a “call to action,” so that your audience clearly knows
what you want them to do?
Have you included all relevant information – contact names, dates, times, locations,
and so on?
7. Courteous
Courteous communication is friendly, open, and honest. There are no hidden insults
or passive-aggressive tones. You keep your reader’s viewpoint in mind, and you’re
empathetic to their needs.
Seven Principles
Effective
Every communication should have a clear purpose and should achieve that purpose to
be effective. This includes what is said, how it is delivered, when it is sent/published
and why people should take notice. You need to communicate your message in the
fewest possible words, have the consistency of tone, voice, and content so that you
can save time. Short, punchy statements are often more effective than rambling prose.
Diagrams and images provide impact and clarity. Visual design should provide a good
UX, support the message and the brand and make it easy for people to engage and
pick out the important elements. Each message must have a logical conclusion and a
call to action.
The need for active communication, where important or urgent notifications are
emphasized above general messaging 'noise' and so direct their attention, should be
considered alongside passive 'Publish and Track' or 'For Interest' ('Publish and
Forget') approaches. Active communications should be carefully managed to prevent
overuse or abuse.
Comprehensive
People shouldn’t be left wondering if there is more to come. The information
communicated should be adequate and complete. Where possible, it should fully
address the purpose and provide enough that the recipients can take the required
action without delay, confusion or a reduction in productivity or motivation. Where
communication cannot be completed in a single message etc. then it should clearly
indicate that there is more to follow, with requisite when and how. Links to
supporting material are recommended
Clarity
The purpose of messages should be clear; worded in such a way that the receiver
understands the same thing which the sender wants to convey. Communications
shouldn’t leave your team confused. Be clear of the format you want to say it in. Be
clear about your goal or purpose. It is also essential that the receiver is conversant
with the language, inherent assumptions, and the mechanics of communication.
Typically, sentences should be short, in the active voice and key elements stated it in
separate bullet points.
Coherency
Communication often takes place across multiple tools/formats and over a period of
time. It’s important that communication remains logical, well-planned, and self-
reinforcing across these. There should be a good connection with the main topic and,
often linked to company values, principles, and mission. Equally, communication
should be consistent with the policies, plans, programs and objectives of the
organization and not in conflict with them.
Importance of Feedback
Feedback is very important to confirm that communication has been effective and to
resolve questions, allow challenge, clarify actions etc. Sometimes there is a
compliance requirement or monitoring function that needs to be addressed via
feedback or a ‘read receipt’.
This would look at identifying each audience group within their organisation and
assigning comms accordingly.
Emphasis Strategies
Visual Communication
Adding the visual dimension to a document or speech can be an excellent way to
hold your audience’s interest and make your meaning clear. But be careful not to
get carried away. Perhaps the most important rule to remember in using visuals is
this: the visuals are to support your document or presentation, not to take the place
of it. A picture may be worth a thousand words, but it is the words that really
count. Make sure that your communication is researched, organized, and presented
well enough to stand on its own. Whatever visuals you choose should be clearly
associated with your verbal content, repeating, reinforcing, or extending the scope
of your message.
Table 2.1 Strategic Use of Visuals
Purpos
Type Example(s)
e
Figure 2.3
Show
Photo
an
graph,
actual
Video
person,
Clip,
event,
or
or
Video
work
Still
of art.
Bar Show
Chart the
amount
of one Figure 2.5
or
more
variabl
es at
differe
nt time
interval
s.
Purpos
Type Example(s)
e
Pie Show
Chart the
percent
ages of Figure 2.6
the
whole
occupi
ed by
various
segmen
ts.
Purpos
Type Example(s)
e
Show
the Figure 2.7
change
in one
or
Line more
Graph variabl
es
progres
sively
across
time.
Figure 2.8
Show
the
audien
ce an
Actual
item
Object
crucial
to the
discuss
ion.
Body Use
Motio your
n body
as a Figure 2.9
visual
to
demon
strate
an
event.
Purpos
Type Example(s)
e
Signposts
Signposts (or indicators), are key words that alert the audience to a change in topic,
a tangential explanation, an example, or a conclusion. Readers and listeners can
sometimes be lulled into “losing their place”—forgetting what point is being made
or how far along in the discussion the writer or speaker has gotten. You can help
your audience avoid this by signaling to them when a change is coming.
Common signposts include “on the one hand,” “on the other hand,” “the solution to
this problem is,” “the reason for this is,” “for example,” “to illustrate,” and “in
conclusion” or “in summary.”
With this strategy, you reinforce relationships between points, examples, and ideas
in your message. This can be an effective strategy to encourage selective retention
of your content.
Repetition
Saying the same word over and over may not seem like an effective strategy, but
when used artfully, repetition can be an effective way to drive home your meaning
and help your audience retain it in their memory. Many of history’s greatest
speakers have used repetition in speeches that have stood the test of time. For
example, British Prime Minister Winston Churchill gave a speech in 1940 that is
remembered as his “We Shall Fight” speech; in it he repeats the phrase “we shall
fight” no fewer than six times. Similarly, in his famous “I Have a Dream” speech,
Martin Luther King Jr. repeated the phrases “I have a dream” and “let freedom
ring” with unforgettable effect.