Module 11

Purpose of Communication and Workplace Communication

Communication serves five major purposes: to inform, to express feelings, to
imagine, to influence, and to meet social expectations. Each of these purposes is reflected
in a form of communication.

Meaning and Nature of Communication:

The exchange of information or passing of information, ideas or thought from one person

to the other or from one end to the other is communication. According to McFarland

communication is, “a process of meaningful interaction among human beings. More specifically,

it is the process by which meanings are perceived and understandings are reached among

human beings.” Newman and summer defined communication as “an exchange of facts, ideas,

opinions or emotions by two or more persons.”

Communication is the process of passing information from one person to another. The

purpose of communication understands of information. Whatever one wants to say to someone

should be clearly understood by him else the very purpose of the communication would be

defeated.

In an organisation communication facilitates the flow of information and understanding

between different people and departments through different media using all the channels and

networks. This flow of information is vital for managerial effectiveness and decision making in

general and for human resource manager in particular as he has to be in contact with the

managers of various departments, employees and workers and trade union leaders.

Communication thus helps understand people better removing misunderstanding and

creating clarity of thoughts and expression. It also educates people. The communication may be

written or oral, formal, informal, and upward, downward, horizontal, diagonal, interpersonal,

intrapersonal, interdepartmental, intra-organisational.

 The communication brings people together, closer to each other. The communication is

an important management function closely associated with all other managerial functions. It

bridges the gap between individuals and groups through flow of information and understanding

between them. Information is the most vital aspect for communication. It is the information which

is transmitted, studied, analyzed and interpreted and stored. The manager therefore has to

spare time to collect, analyze and store the information for decision-making and routine day to

day business.

Purpose of Communication:

Management is getting the things done through others. The people working in the organisation

should therefore be informed how to do the work assigned to them in the best possible manner.

The communication is essential in any organisation.

The purpose of the communication can be summed up into the following:

1. Flow of Information:

The relevant information must flow continuously from top to bottom and vice versa. The staff at

all levels must be kept informed about the organisational objectives and other developments

taking place in the organisation. A care should be taken that no one should be misinformed. The

information should reach the incumbent in the language he or she can understand better. The

use of difficult words should be avoided. The right information should reach the right person, at

right time through the right person.

2. Coordination:

It is through communication the efforts of all the staff working in the organisation can be

coordinated for the accomplishment of the organisational goals. The coordination of all

personnel’s and their efforts is the essence of management which can be attained through

effective communication.

3. Learning Management Skills:

The communication facilitates flow of information, ideas, beliefs, perception, advice, opinion,

orders and instructions etc. both ways which enable the managers and other supervisory staff to

learn managerial skills through experience of others. The experience of the sender of the

message gets reflected in it which the person at the receiving end can learn by analyzing and

understanding it.

4. Preparing People to Accept Change:

The proper and effective communication is an important tool in the hands of management of any

organisation to bring about overall change in the organisational policies, procedures and work

style and make the staff to accept and respond positively.

5. Developing Good Human Relations:

Managers and workers and other staff exchange their ideas, thoughts and perceptions with

each other through communication. This helps them to understand each other better. They

realize the difficulties faced by their colleagues at the workplace. This leads to promotion of

good human relations in the organisation.

6. Ideas of Subordinates Encouraged:

The communication facilitates inviting and encouraging the ideas from subordinates on certain

occasions on any task. This will develop creative thinking. Honoring subordinates’ ideas will

further motivate them for hard work and a sense of belonging to the organisation will be

developed. It will provide them with the encouragement to share information with their superiors

without hesitation. The managers must know the ideas, thoughts, comments, reactions and

attitudes of their subordinates and subordinates should know the same from the lowest level

staff of their respective departments.

Importance of Communication:

Effective communication is vital for efficient management and to improve industrial relations. In

modern world the growth of telecommunication, information technology and the growing
competition and complexity in production have increased importance of communication in

organisations large and small irrespective of their type and kind. A corporate executive must be

in a position to communicate effectively with his superiors, colleagues in other departments and

subordinates. This will make him perform well and enable him to give his hundred percent to the

organisation.

The following points can illustrate the importance of communication in human resource

management:
1. Base for Action:

Communication acts as a base for any action. Starting of any activity begins with

communication which brings information necessary to begin with.

2. Planning Becomes Easy:

Communication facilitates planning. Planning is made easy by communication. Any type of

information regarding the human resource requirement of each department of the organisation

with their qualifications, the type and kinds of job etc. can be collected through communication

which helps in human resource planning. Policies and programmes for their acquisition can be

prepared and implemented. In the entire process communication plays a vital role, it also

facilitates managerial planning of the organisation.

3. Means of Coordination:

Communication is an important tool for coordinating the efforts of various people at work in the

organisation.

4. Aids in Decision-Making:

The information collected through communication aids in decision-making. Communication

facilitates access to the vital information required to take decisions.

5. Provides Effective Leadership:

A communication skill bring manager near to his subordinates and exchange ideas and submits

appropriate proposals, knows their opinions, seeks advices and make decisions. This enables a

manager to win confidence of his subordinates through constantly communicating with them

and removing probable misunderstandings. In this way he leads his people to accomplish the

organisational goal.

6. Boosts Morale and Motivation:

An effective communication system instills confidence among subordinates and workers

ensuring change in their attitude and behaviour. The main cause of conflict and dissatisfaction is

misunderstanding which can be removed through communication skills. The removal of

misunderstanding makes manager and his subordinates understand each other and create

good industrial relations. This boosts up the morale of the people and motivates them to work

harder.

Principles of Communication:

Lack of effective communication renders an organisation handicapped. So to have effective

communication certain principles are to be followed.

They are as follows:

1. Clarity:

The principle of clarity means the communicator should use such a language which is easy to

understand. The message must be understood by the receiver. The words used should be

simple and unambiguous. The language should not create any confusion or misunderstanding.

Language is the medium of communication; hence it should be clear and understandable.

2. Adequacy and Consistency:

The communicator must carefully take into account that the information to be communicated

should be complete and adequate in all respect. Inadequate and incomplete message creates

confusion and delays the action to be taken. The adequate information must be consistent with
the organizational objectives, plans, policies and procedures. The message which is

inconsistent may play havoc and distort the corporate interests.

3. Integration:

The principle of integration portrays that through communication the efforts of human resources

of the organisation should be integrated towards achievement of corporate objectives. The very

aim of communication is to achieve the set target. The communication should aim at

coordinating the activities of the people at work to attain the corporate goals.

4. Economy:

The unnecessary use of communication system will add to cost. The system of communication

must be used efficiently, timely i.e. at the appropriate time and when it is necessary. The

economy in use of communication system can be achieved in this way.

5. Feedback:

The purpose of communication will be defeated if feedback is not taken from the receiver. The

confirmation of the receipt of the message in its right perspective from its receiver fulfills the

object of communication. The feedback is essential only in case of written communication and

messages sent through messengers. In case of oral type of communication the feedback is

immediately known.

6. Need for Communication Network:

The route through which the communication passes from sender or communicator to its receiver

or communicate refers to communication network. For effective communication this network is

essential. The managerial effectiveness will also depend upon the availability of adequate

network.

7. Attention:
The message communicated must draw the attention of the receiver staff and ensure action

from him in the right perspective. The efficient, sincere and prompt manager succeeds in

drawing the attention of his subordinates to what he is conveying.

It is the psychology of the people that they watch their superiors closely and then respond to

their orders or instructions. Lazy and insincere superiors fail to garner support for themselves

and their instructions usually are not taken seriously by their subordinates. Adhering to the

above principles shall make communication effective, minimize the human relations problems

and increase the overall efficiency.

Communication in the workplace

Workplace communication is the means by which employees exchange information
and ideas. Communicating effectively is a critical aspect of getting any job done,
whether it occurs in-person or virtually and is part of the internal communications efforts
within an organization.

What is workplace communication?

Workplace communication is the means by which employees exchange information and

ideas. Communicating effectively is a critical aspect of getting any job done, whether it
occurs in-person or virtually and is part of the internal communications efforts within an
organization.
The COVID-19 pandemic was a significant disruptor to everyday business and global
communications. At one point in time, approximately half of the United States workforce
was working from home according to US Labor Department statistics. Although vaccine
availability is allowing some areas and industries to get back to in-person activities the
trend of a more hybrid workforce seems like it will be staying around for a while. More
than ever, businesses need to focus on managing virtual workplace communications.

What do we mean by effective workplace communication?

Organizations share information and ideas differently. New communication tools like
Slack, Zoom, Microsoft Teams, Jell, and Twist streamline messaging across
organizations, amongst teams, and between individuals. But what makes the messages
sent on these platforms effective or not?
Effective communication is a two-way street. Establishing context as the sender, and
choosing the proper medium or channel can be critical. Effective communication should
always have a context that forms the setting and necessity for the statement, idea, or
question being shared. Setting includes any external circumstances like urgency,
opinions, or culture.

A clear context leads to a clear message. Quantified Communications, a business

communications advisory firm, found that businesses with approximately 100
employees spend on average 17 hours a week clarifying unclear messages. This
translates to an annual cost of approximately $525,000 in lost productivity.
The sender is another important aspect of effective communications. Messages are
written based primarily on the medium that they travel through. It’s the sender’s
responsibility to encode the information or idea that they are trying to share so that it
can be received.

The medium, or channel, is how the message is communicated, for example verbally,
electronically, or on paper. Technology has drastically improved the mediums that we
have to communicate across the workplace. Communication channels in this day and
age enable us to be constantly connected to each other. Within reason, you can get
ahold of just about anyone at any time.

Maximizing connectivity is one of the primary goals of any communication medium.

According to the McKinsey Company advisory firm, employee productivity increases 20-
25% in organizations where employees are highly connected. Connectivity requires
high-performing platforms to facilitate idea sharing and conversations.

The final element to effective communication is the receiver. Receivers decode

messages using context and observation to interpret information and create their own
thoughts. Receivers provide feedback when they receive information, to confirm both
receipt and understanding.

Sifting through data and information can be one of the most difficult aspects of being a
receiver. Workplace communication studies by SaneBox have shown that 62% of the
emails received by employees are not important. When software company Adobe
surveyed over 1,000 Americans working in offices, they found that workers on average
spent more than five hours a day checking and answering emails.

Luckily, there are numerous technology solutions that offer stronger communication
platforms than email-based communications.
How do you quantify and qualify effective workplace communication?

Once business leaders realize the importance of effective workplace communication,

the next natural question that they typically ask is: How do we determine if we are
communicating effectively across our organization?
Quantifying and qualifying workplace communication can be difficult for businesses with
employees working virtually. Without a physical representation of communication
channels and networks, employees often forget who they are supposed to be
communicating with on a daily basis.

Virtual communication tools and applications bring a workforce together by facilitating

the number of connections. Every workplace is different, but across a business
functional area or an organization, everyone should be able to connect with each other.
Communication between two or more people happens across a channel. The
Communications Management section of the Project Management Book of Knowledge,
written by the Project Management Institute, defines communication management as,
“the key to project control, communications management provides the vital project
integrity required to provide an information lifeline among all members of the project
team”.
Over the last 20 years, time spent on workplace collaboration and communication has
increased by 50% or more. The increase in the quantity of communication must be
paired with quality communication in order to be effective. This key tradeoff between
information quantity and quality is critical to developing a communication platform in
which employees are better off from the information and messaging that they receive
from their employer.

How important is communication for your company?

Data has shown that employees with functioning communication networks in a work-
from-home setting are more productive, have greater work-life balance, and have
overall better mental health. Proper workplace communication increases productivity
and creativity, and there are multiple reasons why a comprehensive communications
management plan should be a part of corporate and business strategy.

First and foremost, effective workplace communication builds and maintains

relationships across an organization. Relationships are managed by the key interactions
that take place every day. Virtual, work-from-home models have created a significant
challenge for businesses in managing and building the relationships between their
employees.

The first few weeks at a business are critical for building a new employee’s expectations
and understandings of the work environment and goals of an organization. Even
businesses that had perfected the in-person employee onboarding experience struggled
to bring new hires into the culture and organization virtually.

Effective workplace communication systems and models are key to solving the
difficulties of virtual onboarding by creating an immersive platform and tiered
engagement plan to onboard employees in a welcoming and gradual nature.
Innovation also strives for effective communication. According to a Salesforce poll, 86%
of employees and executives cite lack of collaboration due to ineffective communication
as the main cause for project and product failures across industries. There are
numerous collaboration tools that a company can utilize to improve innovation.

The very first thing that companies have to ensure that they get right is providing
employees with an information-rich environment to develop their ideas and innovations.
Collaboration takes place across business organizations and also between individuals.
According to the HR Technologist site, 39% of surveyed employees believed that
people in their own organization don’t collaborate enough.

Collaboration, and effective communication in general, helps businesses solve

problems and survive the difficult times within the business. During times of hardship,
effective workplace environments help employees rally around their business leaders.
Improving communication in the workplace

Businesses must identify the cultural and environmental needs of their employees in
order to improve workplace communication and to better achieve strategic goals.
Effective workplace communication often starts with company leadership. As discovered
in an HR Technologist study, 57% of employees surveyed reported not being given
clear direction and 69% of managers reported not being comfortable communicating
with their employees in general.