10.1 Understanding Communication

Communication is the transfer and understanding of meaning, which means that if no information or ideas have been conveyed, communication has not taken place.

For communication to be successful, the meaning must be imparted and understood.

Communication encompasses, interpersonal communication, which is between two people or more, and organizational communication, which includes the patterns, networks and systems of communication within an organization.

Both types of communication are important to managers in organizations.

Importance of Communication

Communication is important to managers and organizations because:

Control: it acts to control employee behaviour. For instance, employees are expected to follow authority hierarchies and formal guidelines.

Motivation: it encourages motivation by clarifying to employees what is to be done, how well they are doing, and what can be done to improve performance if it is not up to par.

Emotional expression: the communication that takes place within the group is a fundamental mechanism by which members share frustrations and feelings of satisfaction.

Information: individuals and groups need information to get things done in organizations.

10.1 Understanding Communication

The Communication Process

There are several elements of the communication process: the communication source, the message, the channel, and the receiver.

The entire process is also susceptible to noise, which is disturbances that interfere with the transmission, receipt, or feedback of a message, for example, phone static or background sounds of machinery and co-workers.

10.1 Understanding Communication

The Communication Source

A sender initiates a message by encoding a thought.

Encoding means putting a message into a written, verbal, or symbolic form that can be recognized and understood by the receiver.

The sender can be an individual, group or organization to accomplish a communication goal.

Four conditions influence the effectiveness of that encoded message; the skills, attitudes and knowledge of the sender, and the social cultural system.

The Message

A message can be a written document, an oral speech and even gestures and facial expressions we use.

Effective communication depends on messages that are clear and complete as possible.

The sender then transmits the message through communication channels.

10.1 Understanding Communication

The Channel

There is a multitude of types of channel including face to face conversation, an e-mail message or a letter.

The appropriate choice of channel is critical to ensure that messages are communicated the way it was intended to be understood.

Noise can distort the communication process in any of these areas.

The channel chosen to communicate the message also has the potential to be affected by noise.

The Receiver

The receiver is the individual to whom the message is directed.

Again, a person's knowledge, attitudes and social-cultural background can distort the message.

Before the message can be received, however, the symbols in it must be translated into a form that the receiver can understand.

This is the process of decoding the message.

The final link in the communication process is a feedback loop.

10.1 Understanding Communication

Feedback returns the message to the sender and provides a check on whether the receiver understood the message.

Because feedback can be transmitted along the same types of channels as the original message, it faces the same potential for distortion.

Evaluating Communication Methods

Managers can use twelve questions to help them evaluate the various communication methods:

Feedback: How quickly can the receiver respond to the message?

Complexity capacity: Can the method effectively process complex messages?

Breadth potential: How many different messages can be transmitted using this method?

Confidentiality: Can communicators be reasonably sure their messages are received only by those intended?

Encoding ease: Can the sender easily and quickly use this channel?

Decoding ease: Can the receiver easily and quickly decode messages?

Time-space constraint: Do senders and receivers need to communicate at the same time and in the same space?

10.1 Understanding Communication

Cost: How much does it cost to use this method?

Interpersonal warmth: How well does this method convey interpersonal warmth?

Formality: Does this method have the needed amount of formality?

Scanability: Does this method allow the message to be easily browsed or scanned for relevant information?

Time of consumption: Does the sender or receiver exercise the most control over when the message is dealt with?

Nonverbal Communication

The nonverbal component in communication usually carries the greatest impact; that is, it is not what you said, but how you said it.

Nonverbal communication is communication transmitted without words.

There are two best-known types of nonverbal communication:

10.1 Understanding Communication

Body Language.

This refers to gestures, facial expressions, and other body movements that convey meaning.

Knowing the meaning behind someone's body moves and learning how to put forth your best body language can help you personally and professionally.

Verbal Intonation.

This refers to the emphasis someone gives to words or phrases that conveys meaning.

A soft, smooth vocal tone conveys interest and creates a different meaning from one that is abrasive and puts a strong emphasis on saying the last word.

Barriers to Effective Communication

In addition to the general distortion identified in the communication process, managers face other barriers to effective communication.

These several barriers to effective communication are:

10.1 Understanding Communication

Filtering: It is the deliberate manipulation of information to make it appear more favourable to the receiver.

Emotions: How a receiver feels when a message is received influences how he interprets it. One interprets the same message differently, depending on whether you are happy or upset.

Information overload: When the information that we have to work with exceeds our processing capacity, creating an onslaught of data that is nearly impossible to process and assimilate.

Defensiveness: When people feel that they are being threatened, they tend to react in ways that reduce their ability to achieve mutual understanding. They engage in behaviours such as verbally attacking others, making sarcastic remarks and such.

Language: Words mean different things to different people. Even employees who work for the same organization but in different departments often have different jargons - specialized terminology or technical language that members of a group use to communicate among themselves.

National culture: Communication differences arise from national culture as well as different languages that individuals use.

To overcome barriers and be more effective communicators, managers can do any of the following:

Use feedback, either verbally or nonverbally, as communication problems can be directly attributed to misunderstanding and inaccuracies.

10.1 Understanding Communication

Simplify language by using words and structuring their messages in ways that will make those messages clear and understandable to the receiver.

Listen actively which means listening for full meaning without making premature judgements or interpretations, and demanding full concentration. It can be enhanced by developing empathy with the sender.

Constrain emotions as emotions can severely cloud and distort the transference of meaning.

Watch nonverbal cues to ensure that the desired message is conveyed.

Organizational Communication

Communication within an Organization

Formal Communication. It refers to communication that follows the official chain of command or is part of the communication required to do one's job. Any communication that takes place within prescribed organizational work arrangements would be classified as formal.

Informal Communication. It refers to organizational communication that is not defined by the organization's structural hierarchy. It fulfils two purposes in organization:

It permits employees to satisfy their need for social interaction.

10.1 Understanding Communication

It can improve an organization's performance by creating alternative, and frequently faster and more efficient, channel of communication.

Direction of Communication

There are four directions of organizational communication flow:

Downward. Any communication that flows downward from a manager to employees is downward flow. It is used to inform, direct, coordinate and evaluate employees. For instance, managers assigning goals to their employees or pointing out problems that need attention.

Upward. Any communication that flows upward from employees to managers is upward flow. It keeps managers aware of how employees feel about their jobs, their co-workers and the organization in general. Examples of upward communications are performance reports prepared by employees, suggestion boxes and employee attitude surveys.

Laterally. Any communication that takes place among employees on the same organizational level is flowing laterally. In today's often chaotic and rapidly changing environment, horizontal communications are frequently needed to save time and facilitate coordination. Cross-functional teams, for instance, rely heavily on this form of communication interaction.

10.1 Understanding Communication

Diagonally. Any communication that cuts across both work areas and organizational levels is flowing diagonally. In the interest of efficiency and speed, diagonal communication can be beneficial. For instance, an analyst in the credit department communicates directly with a regional marketing manager about a customer problem. However, diagonal communication has the potential to create problems if employees do not keep their managers informed. The vertical and horizontal flows of organizational communication can be combined into a variety of patterns called communication networks. There are three types of common communication networks:

Chain network: Communication flows according to the formal chain of command, both downward and upward.

Wheel network: Communication flowing between clearly identifiable and strong leader and others in a work group or team.

All-channel network: Communication flows freely among all members of a work team.

The type of network to choose depends on the goal to achieve.

No single network is best for all situations.

If a manager is concerned with high member satisfaction, the all-channel network is the best.

If having a strong and identifiable leader is important, the wheel facilitates this.

If accuracy is most important, the chain and wheel work best.

10.1 Understanding Communication

The Grapevine

The grapevine is an informal organizational communication network and it is active in almost every organization.

The grapevine is an important part of any group or organization communication network because:

It identifies for managers those bewildering issues that employees consider important and anxiety producing.

It acts as both a filter and a feedback mechanism, picking up on the issues employees consider relevant.

By being aware of the grapevine's flow and patterns, managers can stay on top of issues that concern employees and in turn can use the grapevine to disseminate important information.